Page 87 of The Enemy of My Enemy Is… My Fake Boyfriend?

"And you know what's really fucked up?" Ethan asked. "I think I should pay them off."

My hand dropped from his side, and I turned to look at him, his arm leaving my shoulder. "What? Are you serious?"

In the darkness, it was harder to read his face, but he certainly didn't look like he was joking. "I want them off my back. I don't want to feel like I owe them anything."

"But you don't owe them," I insisted. "You were a kid.A kid. And you lost your parents. They were the only family you had."

"I know it doesn't make sense. But I do feel like I owe them. Even though boarding school was fucking torture thanks to my cousins and Chase, it set me up for college. I put my head down and studied hard, education the only way I could see out. They didn't pay for college, so at least I did that all on my own."

"You dideverythingall on your own," I argued, my blood pressure rising. "And you shouldn't have had to."

Ethan surprised me by smiling at me. "You're damn cute when you're mad."

"Don't patronize me."

"I'm not patronizing you,darling. I'm just kind of shocked that you're on my side like this. I never would have imagined the great Aria Stratton sticking up for me."

I didn't know how to respond, and I held my tongue for once, not just blurting out all the crap running through my mind. Although we weren't a real couple, the emotions were very real, and I didn't know how or if I should even try to express that, let alone the horrible thought that Ethan might not feel the same. This was all so messed up, and I needed to do some serious soul-searching.

Deciding there was one thing I was comfortable saying, I reached out, taking his hand in mine. "I just want you to know that you don't have to go through this alone, Ethan," I whispered, my voice barely audible above a sudden breeze.

His face softened, and he opened his mouth to say something. But right at that moment, we both turned at the sound of heels clicking toward us on the balcony. It was Astrid walking our way.

"Sorry to interrupt you two," she said, slightly breathless.

"It's fine." The way she was looking at me set off alarm bells. "What's going on?"

"You're not going to believe this, and I'm sorry to be the one to have to tell you, but word just got out that Chase and Hannah are engaged. And it's all anyone can talk about in there."

It was a good thing Ethan still held my hand because I suddenly felt off-balance. He tugged my palm, drawing my attention to his face. "It doesn't matter, babe. It doesn't matterat all."

"But... but how could he get engaged again so soon?" I sputtered. "It makes me look like an even bigger fool."

"How?" Ethan said in a tight voice. "Nothing he does is any reflection on you, not anymore."

"Ethan is right," my sister agreed.

"But I just know they'll find a way to spin it to make me look bad."

Ethan squeezed my hand. "Whatever happens, we'll deal with it, okay? Together."

The way he said it with such conviction made my chest squeeze, and the best part was I knew he meant it, that he would actually do what he said.

Staring into his eyes, I felt something stir in my soul. That was it. I was officially in love with Ethan Locke. And as much as I wanted to, there was no going back.

Astrid cleared her throat beside us, claiming our attention once more. This time she looked pointedly at Ethan. "My dad asked me to tell you something. He said he wants you to send him every bit of information you have on Chase. Absolutely everything."

What the heck did that mean? This night was getting stranger by the minute, and I was suddenly ready to just go home, kick back, and do my best to recover from this wild emotional rollercoaster.

Twenty-Eight

Ethan

Mr. Stratton sat across from me, the big man himself coming to my office at the end of a long day for a surprise visit, which was fucking strange. It was about time though. After an onslaught of articles about Chase and Hannah's engagement, most of them with terrible things about Chase's awful ex Aria, I was ready to explode with frustration.

There'd been a ridiculous amount of articles about what a bridezilla Aria had been during their engagement, complete with anonymous quotes from a bridal shop, a caterer, and a florist, all bullshit of course. They'd said she looked down on service people, haughty and entitled, treating them atrociously.

God, it made my blood boil. And even more so that Mr. Stratton had taken his sweet time looking over all that I'd sent him, even though I'd literally stayed up all night after the gala to get it to him as quickly as humanly possible.

---