She didn’t dare jump to any conclusions. But Ethan was here and maybe it was a chance to build a few bridges. Kate was covered in grime and sweat, but now was the time.
‘Why don’t you both come in?’ She stood back from the doorway and Sam ran inside. Ethan followed him at a rather more deliberate pace.
‘Why are you so dirty?’ Sam looked up at her.
‘I’m making something in my garden. Do you want to see?’ She shepherded Sam through to the back door, looking out for any broken glass that might be on the floor and hoping that Ethan wouldn’t notice the sink.
‘Wow...it’s a castle!’
‘It’s a rockery, Sam.’ Ethan’s voice came from behind her. ‘Kate’s going to plant flowers.’
Sam looked up at her questioningly. ‘It’s going to be a castle with flowers. What do you think?’ Kate provided a compromise answer.
‘They’re very heavy.’ Sam was looking at the pile of rocks which had been delivered last weekend.
‘Yes, they are a bit.’
‘We could give you a hand.’
‘You can’t, Dad. You’ve got your best shirt on.’ Sam reprimanded him and then looked up at Kate. ‘We had to go home so he could put his best shirt on.’
Ethan laughed suddenly as if, faced by an immovable force, he’d decided to give in gracefully. ‘What would I do without my wing man to keep me honest?’
Sam shrugged, clearly more interested in the castle than a conversation that he didn’t quite understand. He ran across the lawn to inspect Kate’s handiwork and Ethan turned to her.
‘Kate, I heard what you said. I’m hoping that some of your courage might rub off on me.’
‘You mean...?’ Suddenly she knew what he meant. It was in the deep-blue gaze that she’d been trying to avoid.
‘We both thought we couldn’t make things work because we didn’t trust ourselves to change. But you’ve done it and I want to show you that I can too. If you’ll give me the chance.
‘You think my good intentions will rub off?’ She allowed herself a smile at the thought.
‘I think they will. Kate, I love you. I want us all to be together—you, me and Sam. If you’ll take us.’ He shrugged. ‘Personally, I’d advise anyone against it. But I’m hoping that you’re that reckless.’
She loved him. More than she had before. However successful she’d been in denying it, this had all been for Ethan. For herself as well, but in her darkest moments, when she’d woken frightened in the night, it had been him she’d thought about.
‘I love you too, Ethan. I want to give this another try.’
He nodded. His hand wandered to her arm, his fingers leaving a trail of goose bumps. He glanced out at Sam, who was exploring the end of the garden, and then pulled her towards him.
‘We’ll take care of each other. That has to be enough, doesn’t it?’
‘It’s more than enough. It’s everything.’ Kate kissed him. It wasn’t the deepest of kisses, or the warmest of embraces, but she could feel the shock of sudden pleasure run through him, just as it raced through her.
‘You just changed my whole world, Kate. Tipped it upside down.’ He didn’t seem to mind that she’d get his best shirt dirty if they went on like this. Holding her close now, he kissed her again.
‘Sam...’ Kate came to her senses, digging Ethan hard in the ribs. Sam was still exploring the garden, but any moment now he was going to be running back to the house, wanting to share something with his dad.
‘I’ll explain things to him.’ Ethan kept hold of her hand, as if it belonged to him now, and he wasn’t going to give it up. ‘Or we’ll explain things. I dare say he’ll have a few questions.’
A bright belief in a future that could be different. One that might hold a few problems, but problems were there to be solved.
‘And I dare say we can answer them.’
‘I think we can. And, in the meantime, it looks as if you have two volunteers to help with your new castle.’ Ethan nodded towards Sam, who was collecting small stones from the flower beds and piling them up around the larger ones.
‘That’s good. I could do with the help.’