Her First (3 page)

Ethan spent the next few weeks trying to forget he’d ever met Madison Allen.  On edge and snappy, his co-workers could sense something was bothering him.  Joyce even kept asking him about how things went at dinner, but he had managed to ignore her or brush her off.  He was so upset that he was on the verge of firing her if she asked him about Madison one more time. “Can you leave the shoe lady alone?” Ethan snapped.

Joyce completed what she was writing before looking up. “I can, but can you?”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Let’s look at this.
A week or so ago you were floating.  Now you’re lighting into your team about insignificant things. It's totally out of your character. This has been going on every since your dinner with her. So something must have happened.”

Ethan
knew she was right, but still denied it. “Mrs. Madison Allen has nothing to do with this. I swear if you weren’t my cousin, I would be looking for a new secretary.”

Joyce gathered her things and calmly said, “I’m out of here. When you want to apologize for your attitude, you know how to reach me.”  She slammed his office door.

Ethan placed his face in the palm of his hands while leaning on his desk.
I need to do something about this,
he thought. 
I can’t go on snapping at folks. I’ll call Joyce later and apologize. 
Ethan sat down in his chair at his desk and allowed his thoughts to continue.
I’ve been lusting after a married woman. Maybe if I see her one more time and if she tells me she’s happy with her husband, I can then get her out of my system.

With
Madison’s phone number embedded in his memory, Ethan picked up the phone and dialed it. As soon as the phone rang, he hung up. “What am I doing? I’m not one to share,” he said to himself. 

He grabbed his jacket and decided to do something he hadn’t done in months, go out to a club. He called Frederick on the way to the club and made arrangements to meet up with him. 
An hour later he entered the club and found a comfortable spot at the bar. It was a perfect spot for him. He ordered a drink, looked around and got a perfect view of the front door. Thursday night was karaoke night and the club was packed.  A few women flirted with him. He knew he was an attractive man, but he didn’t feel like playing the cat and mouse game tonight.

The announcer grabbed the mic
rophone and began introducing the karaoke contestants. The first contestants took the stage.  Ethan couldn’t see the person, but it didn’t take long for him to realize that the voice he heard was his brother‘s.  There was a female singing along with him, but Ethan had no idea who she could be.  He moved around to the other side of the bar so that he could get a good look. He knew Frederick enjoyed attention, and that the woman on stage was probably his brother’s next victim. He could tell she had a shapely body from the way her red dress clung to her body. He almost dropped his drink when he saw that the woman was none other than, Madison.

The crowd loved them.  When they exited the stage,
Ethan saw Frederick, Madison and some other woman walking in his direction.

Madison
was busy talking to Charlotte and before Frederick could finish the introductions, Madison and Ethan both blurted out in unison, “What are you doing here?”

Charlotte and Frederick looked from one to the other and then Frederick intervened.

“I take it you two already know each other,” Frederick asked.

“Yes,” they both replied, tension surrounding each of their tones.

“Charlotte, would you like that drink now?”  Frederick made an excuse so his brother and Madison could be alone.

Charlotte, on the other hand, didn’t want to miss out on a thing.  She put her hand up, motioning Frederick to wait. “Maybe later,” she replied.

Frederick wrapped his arms around Charlotte. “No. I think now is a good time.”

“Charlotte, go. I’ll be okay,”
Madison said, assuring her that everything would be fine.                             

Frederick and Charlotte left and
Ethan and Madison stood still like they were glued to that one spot.  The thickening crowd forced Madison to move closer to Ethan.

Ethan
was the first to break their spell of silence. “Mrs. Allen, I see your husband let you out to play. For a moment I thought you were with my brother.”

Madison
couldn’t hear everything he was saying because of the thunderous music. “Look, Ethan. It’s Miss Allen. Contrary to what you think, I’m not married.”
He looked down at her finger. He leaned closer to her so she could hear him. “How do you explain this then?”  He pointed at the ring.

“It’s a long story.  But I’m far from being married.”

“I have all night. Do you want to go outside on the patio so we can talk?”

Madison
remembered how he left her outside of the restaurant, so she declined.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Besides I’m about to leave anyway. Bye.”

She abruptly turned and walked away. Ethan watched her and made a mental note on how graceful her stride was.  Some of the other men in the club couldn’t keep their eyes off her as she strutted by each one of them. Either she was used to the attention or just didn’t care, because she ignored their advances as she headed for the door.

Ethan
didn’t move.  He didn’t know what to do.  But he didn’t want to let her get away from him a second time either.  The moment she informed him that she wasn’t married he knew that he had to make things right between them.  He looked around the club for Frederick and Charlotte and saw them sitting at the other end of the bar and made his way towards them.

“Hey, bro,” Frederick said to
Ethan as he approached them at the bar.  “Looks like you lost your best friend.”

“Looks like you found one,”
Ethan said, referring to how comfortable Frederick and Charlotte looked with one another.

Frederick looked over at Charlotte.  “Charlotte and I work together,” he confirmed.

“But speaking of best friends,” Charlotte interrupted, “where’s mine?” Charlotte began looking over Ethan’s shoulder for her friend.  “What have you done with Madison?”

“He’s harmless,” Frederick assured her.  
“This is my brother.  This is Ethan.”

“
Ethan?” Charlotte asked with excitement.  “
The
Ethan, huh?”

“I’m
Ethan,” he confirmed.  “I don’t know about
the
Ethan, but I’m definitely Ethan.  But anyway, your best friend left.”

“Left?” Charlotte said with a puzzled look on her face.

“Yep; headed for the door,” Ethan informed her. 

Charlotte’s
first thought was to get up and go after her friend, but then she had a second thought.  “Ethan, as you can see I just started my drink.  Would you mind being the designated driver?”

“What do you mean,”
Ethan asked confused.

“
Madison, she’s going to be needing a ride home seeming she rode with me.” Charlotte winked. 

Ethan
hid the grin that was trying it’s best to take over his lips.  He wanted to jump up and click his heels.  But instead, he kissed Charlotte on the cheek and exited the club. He felt a surge of confidence at the opportunity to make things right with Madison.

***

Madison rushed out of the club before it dawned on her that Charlotte had drove. She was fuming mad. Ethan acted as if they were long lost friends. Infuriated, at the same time his stare caused a warm sensation to go through her entire body and she felt like poking his eyes out for making her feel uneasy inside.

She decided that she would head back towards the club when she heard someone call her name. She turned around and came face to face with
Ethan.

“Are you following me?” she asked him.

Ethan tried hard not to laugh, because he knew she was stranded. “No, but I do know that unless you plan on waiting all night for Charlotte, you need a ride home.”

“Did my ex-best-friend tell you that?”

Ethan was unable to control his laughter. “Yes and I kindly told her I would take you home, since you were ready to leave and she wasn’t.”

Madison
didn’t find any of what he was saying amusing. “Don’t worry. I came here with Charlotte and I’ll leave with Charlotte.”

Ethan
pulled her body against his chest and began kissing her intensely.  Some onlookers shouted, “You need to take that home.”

Ethan
pulled away first. “You were saying.”

Madison
stuttered, “Where are you parked?”

“Now that’s more like it.” He led her to his car.

Once they were in the car, Ethan reached over her to help fasten her seatbelt.  Unable to hold back his desires, he kissed her again. This time their kisses were more relaxed and they only stopped when Ethan accidentally hit the horn.

“Maybe this isn’t a good idea,”
Madison said, pulling away.  “I can still get Charlotte to take me home.”

“I promise to behave,”
Ethan smiled.  “Now how do we get to your place? There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

She stared at him.  Her eyes revealed she didn’t believe talking was all that was on his mind. She gave him directions and they headed towards her place.

***

Ethan
maneuvered the car into Madison’s driveway.  Before she could make a move, he jumped out and ran around to open the door for her.  She got out and he closed it behind her, following her trail as he walked her to her door.

Madison
was confused, but bluntly said, “I hope you don’t think I’m indebted to you because you brought me home.”

He looked directly into her eyes. “No. I’m indebted to you.”

She nervously fumbled with her keys before losing her grip and dropping them at her feet.  Ethan picked them up and opened the screen door for her. Madison couldn’t understand why this man made her so nervous.

“Would you like to come in for a minute?” She couldn’t understand how he made her so weak.

Ethan glanced at his watch and contemplated on whether to go in or go home. Madison unconsciously took her tongue and licked her lips. At this point, Ethan decided to throw caution to the wind. “I’d love to come in,” he replied.

Madison
led the way into her home. He watched her as she turned on the lamp.

“Why don’t you wait in the living room and I’ll get us something to drink.”

Ethan sat down on the couch and before he could relax, Madison walked back in the room carrying a couple of glasses of ice, Sprite and bottled water on a tray. “I brought out both.  Take your pick.”

At that moment, watching her enter the room like a ray of sunshine seeping from behind a dark cloud, the only thing he wanted to do was drink of her sweet juices. He snapped out of his trance and replied. “Sprite will be fine.”

Sitting the tray down on the oblong, dark tan coffee table in front of the couch, Madison sat down next to Ethan, and then kicked off her heels and crossed her legs. “Are you ready?” she asked.

He almost choked on his Sprite. “Come again?”

“You said you wanted to hear my long story behind the ring. Are you ready?”

Realizing that he almost made a fool of himself,
Ethan responded, “Sure, I’m all ears.”

Madison
decided not to look directly in his eyes, because she needed to concentrate. She hoped after hearing her story he wouldn’t think less of her.

While she spoke, she paid close attention to his facial expressions. She went as far as to tell him that her co-workers and family thought he was her invisible husband. “I understand if you don’t want to have anything else to do with me, but
you don't know my mom. I'm only twenty-two but she doesn't care. If it was up to her I would have married the moment I graduated from high school.”

For a moment, he didn’t say anything. All of a sudden he burst out laughing. “If someone else would have told me this story, I would have said they were kidding. But for some reason I believe you. Either we’re crazy or they are. Believe it or not, I can understand why you did what you did.”

“You can?”

“Yes, of course. I get the same thing all the time from my family and friends. Frederick is older than me, but because he’s always had the reputation as a ladies’ man, he doesn’t get any flack.  I’ve always been considered the responsible one, so people assume I would be married by now with
at least one child.”

They both laughed.
Madison wiped her right eyebrow. “I feel so much better getting everything off my chest.”

“I do have one question though.”

“What?”

“When do we consummate the marriage?”

She picked up one of the red and gold pillows on the couch and threw it at him. He picked up one and they got into a pillow fight and ended up in each other’s arms.