Private Emotions – Promises (The Private Emotions Trilogy) (3 page)

The car driver escorted Ethan over the grass and to where I lay on the blanket in my gorgeous white dress. The candles gave off a warm, soft glow that provided the perfect lighting for such an occasion.

Maria took the initiative, walked towards Ethan and passed him the glass in her hand. As he took it from her, she turned to me, gave me a nod and then left me to be alone with Ethan.

Ethan came towards me with his glass in his hand and a big smile on his face. We raised our glasses slightly to each other and took a sip. He lightly kissed me and as I closed my eyes to enjoy the moment, I could smell the familiar scent of his cologne caressing my nostrils. The only way that it could be any better was if I was here with my soul mate, but this would do nicely for now.

“Emily, you are one woman that is full of surprises. I thought that I took the prize for ingenuity, but you have definitely won hands down.” I smiled and motioned for him to sit down on the blanket. I revealed to him a menu that was almost a duplicate of Au Chanté’s offering. It even included a special chocolate dessert, courtesy of Maria. “I am impressed. You do think of everything, don’t you?”

As we ate, I said, “Look, I have to know if you are wearing that specific item. I know it was naughty of me to do that to you but at least you were a good sport, or were you?” I cocked my eyebrow and waited for his response. He looked around to make sure no one was looking and then he unzipped his pants to reveal that he was wearing the red silk undies from his first task of the day’s hunt. I giggled and was so happy that he played along that I couldn’t hide it. “I want you to know that I’m ready to forgive you for that party but I just hope that you won’t repeat that mistake, at least not without my permission first.”

“I, Ethan Sterling, promise that I would not do that again, unless of course you want me to. I know now that I was wrong and I shouldn’t have underestimated you like I did. I thought I had all the answers but alas I did not. You taught me something that I didn’t know before. I know it’s hard to believe, especially with my knowledge of the world and all but there you go.” He was purposely teasing me and we both smiled as the tension of the evening was wearing off. “See, I knew that I could make you smile but I know now that I should watch my back with you because you have some tricks up your sleeve that kind of took me off guard.”

“It wasn’t meant to do that, Ethan, it was only meant to show you that I was more than capable at performing some games of my own. That was partly due to you and now I see the benefits of our…our arrangement.”

“Are you saying what I think you’re saying, Emily?”

“Yes, I will allow you into my life again but only if you promise to think of my feelings when you come up with something that is not of the norm. Put yourself in my shoes and maybe then you’ll know what would be the right thing to do when I am concerned.”

“Okay, I think I can do that and if I don’t know then I’ll just ask to avoid any future misunderstandings.”

“Care to take a short walk with me to that nearby bridge and finalize our agreement?” He nodded his head and we slowly walked towards the bridge. Neither of us spoke a word, as our eyes were saying everything that needed to be said. As we stopped near the bridge I stood behind him and wrapped my arms around his waist. I was blown away when fireworks exploded in the sky across the water.

He looked back and said, “Nice touch.” All I could do was smile and play along because I had no idea that that was going to happen. It appeared that Barry and Maria thought that something was missing from the evening and had decided to add their own special touch. Their cue was when we walked towards the bridge and their timing could not be more spot on. It was a little more than what I was looking for but the way that Ethan was looking at me had me wondering why I hadn’t thought of it myself. We stood there with our eyes gazing upwards at the wonderful display of lights that changed every few moments. He pulled me in front of him, wrapped his hands around my waist and lightly nibbled on my ear as we watched the last of the display.

It was getting late but neither one of us wanted to end the evening until it was absolutely the last gong. I lost myself for a time when his arms were around my waist. I felt transported to an older more chivalrous time when men were the warriors and the women were the ones who cheered them on to victory. He was, right now, the knight in shining armor that I had been looking for all my life. I could not help but wonder what the future held for us. Would Ethan be that knight? Would I have to choose another? Would love in that form ever find me at all? I had to believe that kind of love would find me because I was ready to give that kind of love in return.

It was the perfect night with all the perfect little touches that made me want to have him back in my life. It would remain to be seen if we could make it past just a business arrangement. For now, we had this time together and that was enough for the time being. We had talked things over and now I felt that we were on the same page.

The driver of the car was waiting for us and as he opened the door we climbed in and snuggled together in the back seat. I did not have to worry about my car because Barry would drive it back to Woody’s Tavern and park it there for me. I could always pop over and collect the keys from him the following day.

Ethan tried to feed me strawberries and whipped cream from the platter that was in the car. “I just couldn’t have any more to eat. I am still full from our meal.” I fed him a piece of fruit and his tongue licked my finger as he took it. I felt a jolt of electricity in the pit of my stomach and it gave me the idea of what his tongue would feel like somewhere else, but sex was not going to be on the agenda this evening. This was our time to reconnect and tonight I felt that we did just that. Hopefully that connection was on a deeper level to what we had before and it would peel back another layer from the complexity of who we were.

The drive back to his apartment was too short for my taste. I could have easily lived in this moment forever but even fairytales have an ending. Once the car stopped at his place, he got out and then stopped in his tracks. He turned around, bent his frame into the back of the car where I sat, kissed the back of my hand and then went on his way. It was a fun and enjoyable day and I could not help but think if there could be anything more between us. I knew that our situation was not ideal but whose situation is? Maybe, he wasn’t the man for me after all and I would just have to move on without him. All today proved to me was that he did care for me but he might not ever be ready to move on. That was something I would have to accept, but despite this, I knew one thing for sure. I still wanted him in my life, regardless of the circumstances.

Chapter Two
Rekindled Fires

“That’s the best news I’ve heard in a long time. I would say we have something to celebrate and should all get together as soon as possible. I’ll invite Ethan and you can make your announcement at a dinner party at my place. I’ll put on a little soirée this evening and that will be our way of celebrating.”

“Emily, you don’t have to do that and it would be just as nice to have you here with us to enjoy our news, although I can see the benefit of having Ethan there too. This might show him that the future is not always written and sometimes you have to go with the flow, as life always finds a way of surprising us.” Maria was giving me the green light to invite Ethan to our little get-together this evening and now it was just a matter of finding out if he could make it on such short notice.

“Don’t worry, I doubt that it would take much arm-twisting to get him to join us but it’s going to depend on his schedule and if he’s busy or not.” After I got off the phone with Maria, I immediately contacted Ethan but got his secretary who said that he was in a meeting and would call me right back. Ever since we got back from our picnic on the river’s edge, he was more open and honest with me, but still wasn’t ready to talk about Henrietta and their relationship together. Susan had told me that this would be a major stepping stone to overcome but it would be a catalyst to something more happening between the two of us.

Having him back in my life again was giving me a newfound energy and I began to see further than just today or tomorrow.

My phone rang a few minutes later and Ethan said, “I do have one more meeting this afternoon and then I am all yours. It would be my honor to spend the evening with you and your friends. If they are important to you then they are important to me as well.”

“This is just a dinner so you don’t have to be on your game tonight. Just be yourself like the person I saw at the river the other night. That is the person that I want in my life, not the arrogant ladies’ man that first came to my door with a proposal to help me with my sexual development.”

“I’ll try but I can’t help who I am. If I do stray from the path, just nudge me and I’ll know that I’m going too far.”

Now that I had all of them coming to my place this evening, I needed to make this dinner extra special, which meant that I would have to go to the market and get all of Maria’s favorite food. Thinking quickly on my feet, I realized that I could make a theme of it and that way their announcement wouldn’t come as that big a surprise.

As I walked down the supermarket aisle I came across the spice rack where I had left the final clue that led Ethan to the river for what was the frankest conversation that we ever had. Knowing his past and the obstacles that I had in mine, I had enough courage to call him on his crap and put things straight once and for all. It was still up in the air whether or not there could be anything more between us than just an arrangement but I’ve learned that life was unpredictable.

I got all my ingredients together, went back to my apartment and got things ready for what I hoped would be a very pleasurable evening with my friends and Ethan. Maria and Barry had only met him briefly but they knew how much he meant to me and were willing to give him a chance. They were instrumental in my plans the other night on the river and I have learned over our short time together that they could be counted on when I needed them the most. Of course, the same went for me when they were concerned.

The dinner was on the stove and Barry and Maria were the first to arrive. I had to hug both of them for all the support and joy that they had brought into my life. We talked about the other evening and they were happy to hear that things went better than expected.

“It’s not every day that Snow White is seen on the streets and the look on Ethan’s face when he saw me dressed as a maître d was priceless.” The knock on the door signaled the arrival of Ethan. My heart still skipped a beat each time I knew that he was near. I opened the door, gave him a kiss and offered him a glass of wine. I returned to the kitchen to finish up with the food preparation.