CHAPTER FOUR THE MARRIAGE PROPOSAL

“Your family.”

Ethan’s words stayed in my head long after he said them.

I pulled my hand away from his.

“What does that mean?”

He didn't answer immediately.

Instead, he walked back into his office and shut the door behind us.

“Sit down.”

“I’m not sitting.”

His eyes settled on me.

“Claire.”

“No. I’m tired of people telling me to sit down, calm down, wait, or trust them. Every time I do, I end up discovering another lie.”

He studied me for a moment before taking a slow breath.

“Fair enough.”

That response caught me off guard.

I had expected an argument.

Instead, Ethan walked to the drinks cabinet at the corner of his office and poured himself a glass of water.

“You want one?”

“No.”

He nodded and leaned against the cabinet.

“The people who have been contacting you are connected to someone in my family.”

“Who?”

“I don't know yet.”

I frowned.

“You just said my family.”

“I said your family.”

“Then explain.”

He looked toward the window.

“There are people who believe your mother took something from them.”

“What?”

“I don't know.”

I almost laughed.

“You don't know much for someone who supposedly knows everything about my life.”

His mouth curved slightly.

“I never said I knew everything.”

“Then why should I trust you?”

“You shouldn't.”

I blinked.

“What?”

“You shouldn't trust me simply because I tell you to.”

For the first time since I'd met him, Ethan looked almost amused.

“Trust is earned, Claire. I'm aware of that.”

I crossed my arms.

“Good.”

“But I need you to understand something.”

“What?”

“If you continue investigating this alone, you're putting yourself in danger.”

“I've already been in danger. Apparently, I've been in danger for years.”

His expression darkened.

“I know.”

“How?”

“Because I was asked to watch over you.”

“By my mother?”

“Yes.”

The answer made my chest tighten.

“When?”

“Before she died.”

I swallowed.

“You knew my mother?”

“Yes.”

“How?”

“That story is complicated.”

“I have time.”

“I don't.”

I frowned.

“Why?”

“My family is moving.”

“Moving?”

“They know you're asking questions.”

I stared at him.

“And what are they going to do?”

“I don't know.”

“You keep saying that.”

“Because I won't lie to you just to make you feel safe.”

Something about that answer silenced me.

Daniel had always done the opposite.

Whenever something frightened me, he smiled and told me there was nothing to worry about.

Ethan wasn't doing that.

He was telling me exactly how dangerous the situation might be.

It was unsettling.

But somehow, it made me trust him a little more.

“What happens now?” I asked.

“You leave with me.”

I frowned.

“Where?”

“Somewhere secure.”

“No.”

“Claire.”

“I have a house.”

“Daniel knows where you live.”

“I'll go to a hotel.”

“So will the people watching you.”

I hesitated.

Ethan stepped closer.

“You need somewhere they won't expect.”

“And where is that?”

“My house.”

I stared at him.

“Absolutely not.”

“Why?”

“Because you're Daniel's brother.”

“I’m aware.”

“I barely know you.”

“I know.”

“And you want me to move into your house?”

“For a few days.”

I shook my head.

“That sounds like the beginning of a terrible decision.”

His eyes flickered with amusement.

“Probably.”

I couldn't help it.

I smiled.

Just a little.

His gaze lingered on my face.

The smile disappeared from mine.

For a second, neither of us spoke.

There was something about the way he looked at me.

Not like Daniel.

Daniel had always looked at me as though I belonged to him.

Ethan looked at me as though he was trying very hard not to touch me.

I looked away first.

“You said you knew me when I was sixteen.”

“Yes.”

“What exactly do you remember?”

“Everything.”

My stomach tightened.

“Everything?”

“You were stubborn.”

I raised an eyebrow.

“I still am.”

“I noticed.”

“And?”

“You hated being told what to do.”

“That hasn't changed either.”

“You were always asking questions.”

I smiled faintly.

“My mother used to say I asked too many.”

“She was right.”

“You really knew her.”

“Yes.”

“How well?”

Ethan's expression became serious.

“Well enough to know that she loved you more than anything.”

My throat tightened.

I hadn't expected that.

My mother had been gone for years, and I had spent so much time trying to remember her exactly as she was.

Her laugh.

Her voice.

The smell of her perfume.

The way she used to run her fingers through my hair when I couldn't sleep.

“Tell me about her.”

Ethan looked at me.

“Not today.”

“Why?”

“Because you're already dealing with enough.”

I shook my head.

“I want to know.”

“You will.”

“When?”

“When the truth won't destroy you.”

I sighed.

“You really like controlling conversations.”

“I like controlling situations.”

“That sounds worse.”

“It probably is.”

I laughed softly.

This time, he smiled too.

It changed his face.

For someone who looked intimidating most of the time, Ethan had a surprisingly warm smile.

I quickly looked away.

“Fine,” I said. “I'll go with you.”

His smile disappeared.

“You're agreeing?”

“Don't make me change my mind.”

He nodded.

“Good.”

“But only temporarily.”

“Of course.”

“And I'm not sleeping in your room.”

“I didn't ask you to.”

“I just wanted to make that clear.”

“I understood.”

“And you're not touching me.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I haven't touched you.”

“You held my hand.”

“To stop you from walking into danger.”

“I didn't ask you to.”

“You didn't have to.”

His voice was quiet.

I looked at him.

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing.”

There was something in his eyes that told me it wasn't nothing.

Before I could ask, the office door opened.

A man in a dark suit walked inside.

“Mr. Black.”

Ethan turned.

“Yes?”

“Your driver is ready.”

Ethan nodded.

“Have the house prepared.”

The man looked at me.

Then at Ethan.

He seemed surprised.

“Understood.”

He left.

I looked at Ethan.

“Your house?”

“Yes.”

“You live alone?”

“Yes.”

“That's convenient.”

“For what?”

“For a man who wants to convince me that I'm safe.”

He smiled.

“Would you feel safer if I had twenty people living with me?”

“Honestly? Maybe.”

“You'd hate it.”

“Probably.”

We left the office together.

The elevator ride was quiet.

I could feel Ethan beside me, but I refused to look at him.

Then the elevator suddenly stopped.

I grabbed the railing.

“What happened?”

“Power interruption.”

“You're kidding.”

“No.”

The lights flickered.

Then went out completely.

The darkness lasted only a few seconds before the emergency lights came on.

I let out a breath.

“I'm fine.”

“I know.”

“You looked worried.”

“I wasn't.”

“You were.”

“I wasn't.”

“You're a terrible liar.”

He looked down at me.

“And you're too observant.”

The elevator started moving again.

When the doors opened, I stepped out quickly.

Ethan followed.

Outside, his driver opened the car door.

I stopped.

“You're not coming?”

“I am.”

“You have another car.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you getting into this one?”

“Because you're getting into this one.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Controlling.”

“Protective.”

“Same thing.”

“Not always.”

I got inside.

Ethan sat beside me.

The car pulled away from the building.

For several minutes, neither of us spoke.

I watched the city through the window.

Everything looked normal.

People walked along the sidewalks.

Cars moved through traffic.

Restaurants were opening for the evening.

Nobody looking at me would have known that my entire life had fallen apart in less than twenty-four hours.

“You're thinking about Daniel.”

I turned toward Ethan.

“How do you know?”

“Because you've been staring out that window for ten minutes.”

I looked away.

“I don't understand how I could have been so wrong about someone.”

“People show you who they are eventually.”

“I thought I knew him.”

“You knew the version of him he wanted you to know.”

I sighed.

“He was supposed to be my forever.”

Ethan was quiet.

Then he said, “Maybe he was never meant to be.”

I looked at him.

“And you?”

His eyes met mine.

“What about me?”

“Why do I feel like you already know how this ends?”

He didn't answer.

The car slowed as we entered a private estate.

A tall iron gate opened before us.

I looked outside.

The property was enormous.

The house sat at the top of a long driveway, surrounded by perfectly maintained gardens.

“This is your house?”

“Yes.”

“You live here alone?”

“Yes.”

“You really like being alone.”

“Most people become exhausting after a while.”

I laughed.

“That's the first thing you've said that I completely agree with.”

He smiled.

The car stopped.

Ethan stepped out first and opened my door.

I got out.

A woman in her fifties approached us.

“Mr. Black.”

“Maria, this is Claire.”

The woman's eyes widened slightly.

Then she smiled.

“It's nice to finally meet you.”

I frowned.

“Finally?”

Ethan gave her a warning look.

Maria immediately understood.

“I'm sorry. I meant it's nice to meet you.”

I looked at Ethan.

He avoided my gaze.

Interesting.

He knew more about me than he was admitting.

Inside, the house was beautiful but surprisingly quiet.

It didn't feel like the cold, extravagant mansion I had expected.

There were books everywhere.

Family photographs lined the walls.

I stopped when I saw one.

A younger Ethan stood beside Daniel.

They were both teenagers.

Daniel was smiling.

Ethan wasn't.

But there was something strange about the photograph.

A little girl stood beside them.

I moved closer.

“Who is she?”

Ethan stopped behind me.

“My sister.”

“You have a sister?”

“She died.”

I turned.

“When?”

“Years ago.”

“What happened?”

His expression closed.

“Not now.”

I nodded.

“Sorry.”

He walked away.

I followed him.

A few minutes later, Maria showed me to a bedroom.

“This is yours.”

I stepped inside.

It was beautiful.

A large bed.

A private balcony.

A walk-in closet.

And, thankfully, a lock on the door.

I placed my bag down.

“Thank you.”

Maria smiled.

“Mr. Black asked me to make sure everything was comfortable.”

“He seems to give a lot of instructions.”

“He always has.”

I looked at her.

“Do you like working for him?”

Maria smiled.

“He's a good man.”

I almost laughed.

“That's what people say about Daniel too.”

Her smile faded.

“Mr. Ethan is nothing like his brother.”

I studied her.

“What do you mean?”

She looked toward the door.

“I shouldn't say anything.”

“Please.”

Maria hesitated.

Then she whispered, “Mr. Ethan has protected you for a very long time.”

My heart skipped.

“What?”

She shook her head.

“Forget I said that.”

Before I could ask another question, she left.

I sat on the edge of the bed.

Protected me.

For how long?

Why?

I looked around the room.

Something caught my attention.

A framed photograph on the bedside table.

I picked it up.

It was old.

Much older than everything else in the room.

My mother stood in the middle.

She was smiling.

Beside her was a much younger Ethan.

And in my mother's arms was a baby.

My hands began to shake.

I turned the photograph over.

There was writing on the back.

I recognized my mother's handwriting immediately.

Ethan,

If anything happens to me, protect my daughter.

She deserves to know the truth one day.

But not until she is ready.

I read the words twice.

Then a third time.

My eyes filled with tears.

My mother had trusted Ethan.

She had known something was going to happen.

And he had kept her promise all these years.

The bedroom door opened.

Ethan stood there.

His eyes went straight to the photograph in my hands.

For the first time, I saw genuine fear on his face.

“Where did you get that?”

“It was here.”

He stepped inside.

I held the photograph toward him.

“My mother wrote this to you.”

He said nothing.

“You promised her.”

“Yes.”

“You promised to protect me.”

“Yes.”

“And you never told me.”

“You weren't ready.”

I felt tears slip down my cheeks.

“I think I've spent my whole life waiting for someone to tell me the truth.”

Ethan came closer.

He stopped in front of me.

“I know.”

“Then tell me now.”

He looked at me for a long moment.

“I can't.”

I laughed through my tears.

“Of course.”

“Claire—”

“No.”

I put the photograph down.

“I can't keep doing this.”

“Doing what?”

“Trusting people who keep secrets from me.”

He reached for my hand.

I let him.

His fingers closed gently around mine.

“I won't lie to you.”

“You already are.”

“I haven't told you everything.”

“That is the same thing.”

“No.”

He looked directly into my eyes.

“There's a difference between lying to you and waiting until I can give you the truth without putting you in greater danger.”

I didn't know what to say.

His thumb moved slowly across my knuckles.

The gesture was simple.

Gentle.

Yet my entire body became strangely aware of how close he was.

I looked down at our hands.

Then back at him.

“You shouldn't do that.”

“Do what?”

“Look at me like that.”

His eyes darkened.

“Like what?”

“Like…”

I couldn't finish.

He took one small step closer.

“Like I want you?”

My breath caught.

“Yes.”

His voice dropped.

“I do.”

The room suddenly felt too warm.

“You're my brother-in-law.”

“Not anymore.”

“My divorce isn't even finalized.”

“I know.”

“Then this is wrong.”

“I know.”

His gaze stayed on mine.

“I've known it was wrong for years.”

My heart pounded.

“What do you mean?”

He didn't answer.

Instead, he released my hand and stepped away.

“You should rest.”

I stared at him.

“That was it?”

“What did you expect?”

“I don't know.”

A faint smile touched his lips.

“Neither do I.”

He walked toward the door.

Then stopped.

“Claire.”

“Yes?”

“You don't have to marry me.”

I frowned.

“I never said I would.”

“I know.”

He turned toward me.

“But if you want revenge against Daniel, I can give you something he can never take away.”

“What?”

His expression became completely serious.

“My name.”

I stared at him.

“What?”

“Become my wife.”

My heart stopped.

“You're asking me to marry you?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

His eyes held mine.

“Because Daniel thinks he destroyed your life.”

He took a slow breath.

“I want to give you the chance to destroy everything he thought he owned.”

I couldn't speak.

Ethan stepped closer.

“And because I've wanted you long before he ever had the right to call you his wife.”

Then he walked out of the room, leaving me alone with the photograph, my mother's secret, and the most dangerous proposal I'd ever heard.