Page 32 of Something New

"I think it's going to taste good," Ethan said.

"I think it will!" I said excitedly.

It was Italian food—baked pasta with salad and breadsticks. He said it was something he made quite a bit and was comfortable with it—plus it would provide leftovers at the start of a busy week. He told me that the whole point of treating me to dinner was to do something nice for the photos, and that he felt bad for cooking instead of taking me out somewhere. I insisted that I was perfectly happy eating at his place. It was the truth. I loved being there. I had fun with Ethan, and I was completely enamored with John-Michael.

Three hours passed in the blink of an eye, and before long it was Ethan's bath and bedtime. During the course of the night, I had stepped up on a few things regarding Ethan, chipping in and helping out with him. I knew John-Michael appreciated it. I figured he still viewed me as a babysitter type, which was honestly fine with me—I stepped in when needed. That's why he didn't look surprised when I asked him if I could do the dishes while he gave Ethan a bath or vice versa. I knew that both of those things needed to get done, and it was my pleasure to offer, especially after how sweet he had been all night.

He asked how long I could stay, and I assured him that I was not in a hurry. I gave Ethan a bath and got him ready for bed while his dad cleaned the kitchen. We read a story on the couch downstairs, and then he asked me to sing him a song.

I sang Froggy Went a Courtin' since I knew the one about the frog at the bottom of the pool was a hit. I did a slower, sweeter version of the song, but the lyrics still made him laugh. Ethan was lovey-dovey with me, snuggling up to me and being sweet. It warmed my heart so much. My brothers loved me, but they were grown up now, and they never came to me for any sort of affection. That little boy's willingness to hug me and snuggle me filled some sort of void that I didn't even know was there. My heart was full in those moments on the couch with him.

John-Michael was two rooms away, cleaning up the kitchen. He could see us, but I didn't think he could hear us. I did see him glancing over every once in a while, but my attention was focused on Ethan.

After cleaning up, his dad was ready to tuck him into bed. Ethan told me goodnight, and they headed to the bedroom. John-Michael assured me it would only take five minutes and asked if I would stick around and wait for him before I took off. I easily agreed.

I was in the kitchen, sitting at the bar when he came back in there. He was wearing sweatpants and a t-shirt. I usually wasn't attracted to the athletic, all-American type, but John-Michael was above a type. He was just a natural man, good at being himself. I found it irresistible. He and Ethan were both irresistible.

"Is he sleeping already?" I asked.

"No, but almost. I told him I'd come back and check on him in five minutes, but he'll be out by then."

"Oh, my gosh, I just love him so much. That whole thing where he was explaining bulldozers to me. I never knew he was such an expert on construction sites. My brothers would have loved that. I hope he said some of that to them."

"Oh, Ethan knows your brothers. He thinks they are the coolest. My mom had to keep him away from them because he would have talked their ear off."

"They would have loved that."

"Did you wipe the table?"

"Yes."

"It looks great. Thank you for that."

"Thank you for dinner. That was so good. How are you feeling? You know, how are you holding up today?"

"I'm over it," he said. "Thank goodness." He opened the kitchen cabinet to get himself a glass. "Do you want something else to drink?"

"I'll have some water," I agreed since I would do anything to avoid leaving.

He took two glasses out of the cabinet and filled them with ice and water from the refrigerator. He handed me one of them and stood close to me in the kitchen. He leaned against the counter and glanced at me casually.

We had done a lot of getting to know each other in the last two days, and everything he did just made me more and more attracted to him. He was a decent upstanding citizen, and a God-fearing human, and I was more attracted to those qualities than I ever thought I would be. He reminded me of my brothers in that way, and it was an attribute I never thought I could find so desirable.

"What were you singing to him?"

"What?"

"What were you thinking about?" he asked, seeing me snap to reality.

"My brothers," I said smiling and being vague. I turned and caught sight of his dark eyes. I felt a thrill in the core of my body when our gazes linked.

"What about your brothers?" he asked after a tension-filled pause.

"Nothing. What were you about to ask? You were asking something?"

"Oh, just now, on the couch. You and Ethan. What were you singing?"

"Frog in the bottom of the… no, no, no, it wasn't. It was another frog one. The froggy went a-courtin'. That was the one."

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