Page 69 of A Little More Hope

The room went deadly quiet for a few seconds, my statement shocking both men into silence. They stared at me, eyes wide, mouths open as they absorbed the gravity of the situation, until boom, a bomb went off.

“The hell you are!” Ethan snapped. I’d guessed he’d be first one to recover from my announcement and initiate the arguments against me leaving. “You can’t quit,” he spat. “You’re as much a part of this company as the rest of us. You helped build it from the ground up, for Christ’s sake. We all did. It won’t work without all four of us, without you. He raked his fingers through his short dark-brown hair, before whipping his hand down and pointing his finger at me. “I’ll sue. You try to leave, and I’ll sue your sorry ass for every cent you have.”

“Ethan.” I tried to calm him.

“Don’t fucking Ethan me. This is not happening, Mason. It’s not.”

Ty remained on the edge of his seat, composure regained and quietly sipping his coffee, his calm unwavering amber eyes fixed firmly on my face. It was his reaction I’d worried about the most. Much like me, Ty played his cards very close to his chest. I may be the calmest and most analytical of the four of us, but Ty was by far the shrewdest and most logical. He’d never been in a relationship, as far as I knew, so once he found out my reason for quitting, I had no clue how he’d react or what his feelings on the subject might be. With Ty it could go either way.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?” Ethan rounded on him. “He can’t leave, Ty. Make him not leave.” He scooted forward too, his superfast brain already whirring, figuring out all the options to get me to stay. “Does Gabe know what’s going on? Wait, dumb question, of course he does. I’m gonna fucking kill him when I get hold of him. No wonder he didn’t want to come with you.” He threw his arms up in disgust and scowled at me.

“Speak to us,” Ty prodded gently, leaving Ethan to quietly seethe. “Tell us what’s going on.”

Turning my focus to him, I tried to relay my intentions calmly and rationally. “While I’ve been recuperating—” I stopped and took a shaky breath. “—I met someone.”

Ethan’s rebuke was instant. “Is that what this is about? Some damn woman?” Ethan cut in. “You’re gonna give up your life, your career, for what, a quick hookup?”

“It’s not a quick hookup,” I snapped, hurt he was trying to sully my relationship with Ash. “Do you really think I’d give up my career if that’s all it was? I may have been shot in the head, Ethan, but I can still tell the difference between random sex and something deeper.”

He at least had the good grace to blush.

“So it is something more?” he asked me.

I exhaled, long and low. “Yes, it is,” I stated clearly.

“And being with her, will she be enough for you to give up your whole way of life? To leave the company? To leave us?”

Before I could reply, Ty gently shushed him. “Wouldn’t you do exactly the same if it was the only way for you to be with Nate?” he asked simply. The glare he got in return didn’t faze him in the least. “Okay, so let him speak.”

They each focused their attention back on me, making me squirm in my seat.

“Um…it’s not a woman.” My cheeks were growing hotter and hotter. “It’s a guy.”

I thought they’d gone quiet when I’d told them I’d leave the company, but now the silence was deafening.

“Okay,” Ty eventually spoke. “And?”

“I fucked it up, am fucking everything up with him, and I can’t continue to let him down any longer. I need to make things right between us.”

“What do you mean?”

“He’s been helping me.”

“I’ll bet he has,” Ethan retorted.

Ty instantly reacted. “If you don’t shut your smart mouth and let him explain…” He didn’t need to finish his sentence. No one messed with Ty.

Ethan slumped back into his seat and made the zip action with his finger and threw away the key.

Like that’s gonna work.

Ty’s focus returned to me. “Sorry, go on.”

No matter what I said next, I’d never be able to put into words how much Ash meant to me or give him anywhere near enough credit for just how much being with him has aided my recovery, but I was determined to give it my best shot so they might just have an inkling as to why he was so special. “He helped me with people, acting as a buffer, keeping them at bay whenever they got too close. I could ultimately relax, knowing he’d protect me.” I smiled wistfully. “I’d never known that feeling before. I’d always assumed the role of protector as being part of my responsibilities in a relationship, and not the other way around. He knew exactly what to say to calm me whenever I freaked out. He somehow managed to put me back together when I didn’t have the first clue where to begin. There’s no second-guessing with him. He’s so open, so honest. He allowed me to let go and be me, as I know he’ll be there to catch me if I fall, when I couldn’t do that with you.” I grimaced. “Sorry, that didn’t come out right. I can be myself with you. I am, but with him…”

“We get it,” Ty said softly.

“Eventually our friendship turned into more, and me being the dumbass I am, I told him I couldn’t trust him, could never trust him.” I expelled a puff of air, annoyed at myself once more at the damage I’d caused to us, to him. “So, he left.”

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