She stepped inside to find him staring out the window into the dark night, his thoughts probably on his deceased wife.
“Hey,” she said softly.
He turned to face her, deep grooves around his mouth. “I don’t know how to thank you. I know what it took for you to come today. To face everyone after all this time.”
She swallowed hard. From the moment her fate had been sealed in that study, she hadn’t seen any point in coming back. Hadn’t considered the Knights family in any way. Until Ethan had shown up on her doorstep at school. He’d been the big brother she’d never had, always a presence in her life, showing up for her in ways no one else ever had.
“There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.” She walked over and took his hand. “I’m here for you as long as you need me.”
“Thank you,” he said. “I have an extra room for you to stay in,” he said, gesturing across the apartment.
She shook her head. “I don’t want to get in the way.” He needed time alone, to grieve. “I made a hotel reservation.”
“How long are you in town for?” he asked.
She shrugged. “As long as I feel it’s necessary.” If she left it up to him, he’d tell her he was fine. That she didn’t need to stay. She knew better. He’d never really lean on other people unless forced to.
Jonathan had called her a few times, but Ashley hadn’t answered, not wanting to deal with his persistence about the proposal she’d turned down.
“Look, we have a company-owned apartment in the building, where family and friends stay when they’re in town,” Ethan said, interrupting her thoughts. “It’s fully furnished. You can use it while you’re here. Stay here tonight and we’ll get you settled in tomorrow. I’ll feel better knowing you’re close by.”
She knew he was throwing that last line out there so she wouldn’t argue. “You’re not going to take no for an answer, are you?” she asked.
He raised an eyebrow and shook his head. “Nope.”
“Okay. I’ll stay there.”
He managed a smile. “Which brings me to another point.” He paused, and she knew, without a doubt, what the topic was going to be. “Cut Sebastian some slack? He was just a kid when things happened between you.”
She swallowed hard. “It’s complicated, Ethan. It’s not just because we were caught making out. I don’t blame him for that. We were both young and stupid.”
It was what she’d overheard that stayed with her, even now. How he’d all but thrown her out of the house without thought. But she wasn’t about to bother Ethan with the past. Not now.
“Don’t worry. I can be civil,” she assured him. As long as Sebastian gave her a wide berth, she thought. But to Ethan, she said, “You won’t have to worry about me being around your brother.” She was here to make Ethan’s life easier, not more difficult.
But the playboy wasn’t someone she wanted in her life in any form.
Chapter Three
Ethan had insisted on going back to work almost immediately, so for the rest of the family and their employees, life went on as usual. Except for Sebastian, who now had to deal with Ashley being around, at the office and at his brother’s apartment, a constant fixture, taking care of Ethan.
She brought him homemade muffins and Starbucks in the morning, made sure he ate lunch in the afternoons, and the nights Sebastian or his siblings showed up with dinner for Ethan, Ashley was there, her fitted but obviously expensive dresses hugging her body, her warm vanilla scent permeating the air. If he thought she’d been a temptation when he was younger, she was even more of an enticement now.
Except now she didn’t give him the time of day, and it pissed him off. He wasn’t a bad guy, and they’d both had a role in getting caught together.
So what was her problem with him?
Not wanting to cause trouble and upset Ethan, he let it go, ignoring the subtle tension for days, until he came back from lunch to hear female laughter. Sierra, who headed the social media division of the company, and Ashley stood together in the break room, drinking from Starbucks cups and laughing over something, big smiles on their faces. They’d obviously broken the ice that had existed between them from the past. Ashley could get over whatever differences she’d had with Sierra.
Just not with him.
Coming on top of his bruised feelings concerning his family’s treatment, it hurt. So when Sierra headed for her office, Sebastian rose to his feet and strode to the break room, determined to have it out with Ashley, once and for all.
He stepped into the room as she dumped her coffee cup into the trash. She glanced up, met his gaze, and started to walk around him, in a sudden hurry to leave. His gaze took in her deep purple dress, wound tight around her ample breasts, small waist, and still-enticing ass.