Page 55 of Whisper of Surrender (Whisper Lake 2)

CHAPTER 17

Ethan’s shoulders slumped in exhaustion. He’d been with the fugitive task squad tracking down a murderer for the past thirty-six hours. During that time, there’d been a standoff, and he’d been shot. He’d spent an hour being examined by a medic that he hadn’t needed since his vest took the brunt of the shot, another three hours on paperwork, and another two in the debriefing. He hadn’t slept. Hadn’t eaten. He was sore, and it hurt to breathe.

But as he stood outside the rehearsal space waiting for Jess, he could honestly say that there was nowhere he’d rather be. Well, maybe he’d rather be in bed with Jess, but just knowing that he was about to see her, that he was about to hear her voice, had him floating on cloud nine.

It was a place he was getting used to being, as he’d been there since their weekend getaway. Nothing had ever been as perfect as their weekend in Chicago. He still hadn’t fully processed everything that had happened between him and Jess or had any idea what it meant, but he did know it was a step in the right direction.

He’d wanted so badly to declare his undying love for her, but he’d somehow managed to keep it to himself. Even in the texts they’d exchanged, he’d wanted to end them all with, I love you. He knew better than most that when someone you love walks out the door, it could be the last time you see them. But he was still worried that if he rushed her, rushed them, she might bail.

So as much as he’d love to suggest that they go back to his place, or hers, after this lesson, he was going to refrain. He’d waited a lifetime already. He could wait a few more weeks, or months if he had to, to be with her. Really be with her.

His phone buzzed, and he was pretty sure he knew who it was before he even looked at the screen. Sure enough, it was his grandma.

“Hey, Na-”

“Young man, you tell me what’s going on right now.” She used a tone he hadn’t heard since she’d found empty beer bottles behind their house when he was a teenager.

He was thirty-two years old, but at that moment he felt like a guilty teenager again.

“Well, I’m on the phone, talking to-”

She cut him off. “Don’t back talk. I’m serious.”

“So am I.” He knew he was pushing his luck, but it was too fun not to push her buttons. “I’m seriously on the phone with you. And how am I supposed to answer your questions if I don’t talk back to you?”

“Ethan Michael Steele.”

Oh boy, she used his middle name. This was serious.

“I do not have the patience nor the inclination to play word games or joke around with you right now.”

“Sorry, Nana,” he automatically apologized. “What are you calling about?”

“I just ran into Doris, and apparently she knows more about your goings on than I, your grandmother, do. She almost let slip, several times, some secret that she is keeping for you.”

Of course she did. He should’ve known that Mrs. Weathersby would want to lord over his grandma that she was privy to information that Nana wasn’t. He should’ve seen this coming. He’d promised Jess that he wouldn’t tell anyone what they were doing for the talent show, but he knew that his grandma would never let this go until she got to the bottom of it. Out of the two secrets he was keeping from her, this was the lesser of two evils.

“It’s not a big deal,” he assured her. “Jess and I are entering the talent show, and we’re dancing-”

“You’re what?” She interrupted again. “My hearing aid must be on the fritz. It sounded like you said you were dancing.”

“Now who’s got jokes?” he grinned, knowing that if she was teasing him, she wasn’t that mad.

“I’m allowed to have jokes. You know what they say about your elders?”

“Put them in homes?” he teased back.

“Respect them.”

“Oh, I always get those two mixed up.”

“So why does Busybody Betty know about this and your grandmother doesn’t?”

“Like you so kindly pointed out, dancing is not exactly a talent of mine, so Jess reached out to Mrs. Weathersby for a recommendation for a dance instructor.”

“You’re taking dance lessons?”

“Yes, but Jess wanted to keep it quiet because she thought we’d get better scores if no one knew what we were doing. The element of surprise.” Ethan thought that she didn’t want to get anyone’s expectations too high, especially the judges. “So we didn’t tell anyone about the dance.”

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