Page 76 of Out of Bounds
“Happy birthday, Mrs. Carson, your day spa is ready to go when you are.”
“Oh Ethan, you did this for me?”
“I did. You like it?” I hope she does. She showed a bunch of pictures when she was doing her planning and I just got the contractors to make what she wanted.
“I love it.”
“Wait until you see the rest of the place.”
“Oh my God.” A tear runs down her cheek and she throws her arms around me, holding me close to her heart. “I’ll love you forever for this. Thank you so much for believing in me.”
Her words deliver a punch to my gut and when she stares back at me it’s like a door opens in my broken soul for me to walk through and accept how I truly feel about her. I want to run right out and tell her I love her too, but the shadow of fear on my heart holds me back.
I know she probably just said she loved me in the moment because of the excitement and she probably does mean it, but hearing her say that meant more for me.
When I look at Bree I always see everything I ever wanted and without her I see nothing but uncertainty.
“I’m glad you like it,” I reply and she dabs at her eyes.
Her mother and Shelby rush over and whisk her away to look at the place. The night wears on like that where she’s engrossed in the excitement and I’ve never seen Bree look happier.
Knowing I made her happy means even more to me.
When we get home, I make love to her. I noticed the difference between sex and love while we were in Italy. It happened that night after I told her the truth.
We left that vineyard as two different people than the ones who’d entered and those versions of ourselves are the ones who came back home to Wilmington.
I knew then that she’d open my heart because she never wanted to fix me.
I couldn’t describe to anyone what it meant to me to hear her say that. the power of her words resolved a problem which at one point in my life it was my biggest setback. However, that only enhanced my other demon—my fear of love.
I was never supposed to fall in love with Bree, but I think that was unavoidable. I should have known that,
In the past I avoided Bree and ended up with Amelia. Losing her crippled me and I swore to myself I would never do it again.
But look at me.
When she falls asleep in my arms I don’t sleep I think of my new dilemma and the giant clock ticking over our heads counting down the days until we end.
I find myself back at the spa—I can call it that now—with Logan the next morning. We’ve come in to do the final check on the lightings in the treatment rooms.
We were meeting up to discuss a case anyway so we thought we’d check everything here on the way.
“This is all good to go,” Logan says with a nod.
“My section is fine too. I think we’re done here.”
“Cool.”
“Ready to go?”
“I am, but I thought we could take a second to talk before we head to the station. You’re quiet,” he notes.
“I’m fine.”
“Are you? I noticed you went all weird last night when Bree said she loved you.”
I press my lips together. “You heard that?”
