Page 98 of Sliding Into Love
“I’m sorry, Jase. I hate that you had to go through so much. That your father couldn’t get enough of a handle on himself to take care of you. But I hope what Janna said didn’t upset you.” Ethan slid down the steps to sit beside the boy.
“No. It’s good, I think. Maybe she’s forgetting what it was like.”
“Can I ask you a question?”
Jase looked Ethan straight in the eye and nodded.
“I’m going to ask Ivy to marry me. Would you…do you think you and Janna would…what would you think if we adopted you? Is that something you’d want?”
For a moment, Jase’s face went slack. Then he wrapped his arms around Ethan’s neck.
“That would beso cool.”
Worry washed over Ivy; Jase had been doing so well over the past few months, but she hadn’t seen him look quite so startled, either. She wasn't sure if the boy was upset because of what Janna had said, or if it was because Jase thought Janna had forgotten their parents altogether. And she wasn't sure which was worse.
Sighing, Ivy gathered their things for a trip to the library, hoping to cheer Jase up. Janna ran around like a demon with a face covered in peanut butter, though Ivy had no idea how it had happened, and Ivy had nearly forgotten the whole incident when Ethan and Jase returned from their talk.
They both looked considerably happier than when they’d left for their chat, and Ivy was again grateful for Ethan’s calming influence on both her and her kids. She thanked whatever lucky stars had sent him into her life as he smiled at her. They all walked out to his sleek black car for another reluctant goodbye.
“I love you,” Ivy said into his skin before pressing a kiss against the column of Ethan’s throat.
“I know.” He grinned and kissed her forehead before she scowled at him. “I love you too,” he whispered into her hair as he wrapped her in a tight embrace.
Ivy sighed into his tight black tee, pressing her face into his chest.
“You need to go.”
“I do.” He made no move to leave.
“Ethan!” She poked him in the ribs, earning a grin and a sore finger for her efforts.
“Fine, if you’re so eager to have me leave,” he said, scowled, but dropped the expression quickly, pressing a kiss to her temple. He eased into the car and drove away.
With considerable effort,Ivy and Lily managed to make it to their rental house, despite the four-hour drive and a truly exorbitant amount of bathroom breaks. Ethan had rented a gorgeous house on the beach with enough rooms for Ivy, Lily, and both kids, and Ivy hoped Ethan would be able to visit between games. The sound of waves crashed through Ivy’s open window, and she imagined what it would have been like in summer. All blazing sun and laughing children, the scent of sunscreen, and tropical drinks.
Once their things were unpacked, everyone piled back into their rented van and drove to the stadium. Laura, as CEO of an agency, owned a skybox in most stadiums and had invited Ivy and her cadre to join her and Jimmy for the games. When Ivy, Lily, Jase, and Janna arrived, they presented their passes to the gate attendant who led them up a few flights of stairs into an enormous glass-and-chrome box. The view wasincredible. The bank of windows overlooking the stadium drew Jase’s attention, and he peered down at the field and began spouting off trivia about it, but Ivy only half listened while she corralled Janna and Lily away from the glass so they didn’t leave fingerprints on it. Several large screens lined the walls, and Ivy pointed out Ethan on one; they could see the whole stadium from the box, but they were so high up, it was impossible to see the players’ faces, except for when they were shown on screen.
Ivy introduced Laura and Jimmy to Lily, and they all settled into their fancy reclining chairs to watch as the game started.
As the game progressed, Ethan seemed…off. His usually graceful movements, surprising for such a large man, were tight and jerky and not like himself. Beside Ivy, Jase hissed through his teeth and clamped his jaw shut every time Ethan made a play, and even with her limited understanding, Ivy guessed the game was not going well. The scoreboard would agree with her: it was seven to four at the bottom of the eighth, and the Tornadoes fans were going wild in the stadium below. Laura and Jimmy shared glances in a “we’ve been married so long we can speak telepathically” kind of way, and Ivy wondered what they were thinking. As for Ivy, she was worried for Ethan. His shoulders rounded after every out, and even from a distance, she knew enough to see his form was off. Derek jogged out to the mound a few times, more than he’d done all season combined.
Thankfully, Ethan’s uncle wasn’t present on the sidelines, so Ivy assumed Ethan’s odd behavior stemmed from nerves.
When the game ended, even Janna was subdued by the loss.
“Cheer up, guys, there are at least two more games left,” Jimmy offered in a lame attempt to bolster their spirits. Laura glared at him, and he raised his hands in defeat. “I’m just sayin’. They’ll do better tomorrow. The first game is always the worst.”
When Ethan arrived at the beach house, with still-wet hair and a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. Janna was already asleep, but he quietly kissed her on the forehead after depositing his bag in Ivy’s room. Jase was awake and reading, and Ivy overheard him and Ethan having a low conversation in the other room.
Fidgeting with the hem of her oversized black tee, Ivy waited on the edge of her bed for Ethan to find her. When Ethan finally came back in, he flipped the light switch off and flopped down on the bed beside her, throwing an arm over his eyes. Only the faint glow of the hallway light outside her door lit the room.
“Ethan?” Ivy asked. He hadn’t even kissed her hello.
“Yeah?” Ethan’s voice was hoarse and faint, distant.
“You okay?” She nudged him with her knee.
He sighed in response.
