Later that afternoon, Stella and Lacy came by with movies and Ally’s homemade chicken potpie and rolls.
“Mmm. Smells heavenly.” Liz smiled, feeling very hungry. The three of them spent a relaxing afternoon watching Christmas movies and laughing. No one mentioned the stalker, her car, or Ethan. It was a perfect day.
“Today was a great day.” Liz smiled at Stella and Lacy as they got ready to leave. “Thanks so much. I needed this.”
Stella and Lacy hugged Liz. “It was a good day for us, too. I think we should do this more often, a girls-only day,” Stella suggested. “It’s good for all of us to just relax and hang out.”
“I’m all for it,” Liz agreed and Lacy nodded in agreement. After they left Liz took a long nap and was woken by the pounding on her door. She woke up startled and went to the door, looking out the peephole first. She had to be careful although she didn’t think a stalker would knock first.
“Ethan, what’s wrong?” Liz opened the door, still yawning.
He hugged her so hard she couldn’t breathe. “I thought you were hurt. I’ve been knocking for a while, angel, and I was about to kick the door down.”
“Well, I am glad you didn’t. I hadn’t got much sleep last night so I guess it caught up to me.” She frowned at him. “Why are you here? Is something wrong, Ethan?”
“No. I just got off work and wanted to see if you were okay,” he said, letting her go and looking at her as if nervous. He put his hands in his pockets, still dressed in his uniform. “Lacy stopped by the station and lectured me worse than my mother would.”
Liz wanted to smile but didn’t and waited to see what he had to say. Ethan deserved it for jumping to conclusions and being such an ass and not just last night either but since the Halloween party. He had rejected her and judged her wrongly.
“Then she felt sorry for me and said you really were doing fine and feeling a lot better but I wanted to see for myself.” Ethan looked at her forehead and saw the bruise forming and the small cut and winced. He led her to the couch and sat next to her. “Gabe is right. I am an idiot.”
That observation made her smile in agreement. Ethan picked up her hand. “Can you forgive me for acting like a jealous fool?”
Liz shrugged her shoulders, remembering Gabe’s advice to not let him off the hook easily. “Why should I? You said some awful things and why should you be jealous? You said I wasn’t your type so why should you care if I date others?”
He had the good grace to look ashamed. “I apologized to Gabe this morning and I am on probation with him. I owe you so many apologizes, Liz, I don’t know where to start.”
Liz sat quietly for a second. “Maybe I should ask you first what you want from me. Do you want friendship?”
Ethan kept holding her hand and rubbed her wrist softly with his fingers, sending shivers up her arm. “For now I think we should get to know each other better but I won’t lie to you, Liz. I want you so very much. It’s like a fire burning in my gut. But I’ve done this all wrong, and I am determined to fix it. It’s just that I’ve never been so attracted to anyone like this before. I swear it’s muddled my brain because I usually have more finesse.”
Liz was touched by his sincere speech and she looked into his eyes. They were like a warm liquid gold in color. It would be so easy to just give in to the physical attraction they both felt, but he was right. They had to get to know each other first. It would be harder if they made love and Ethan decided to walk away. For her part she knew her feelings for Ethan were genuine, but he needed the time to get to know the real her.
“I regret not asking you out after the party so I want to do that now. Will you go out on a date with me, Liz, please?” he asked.
Her heart melted and Liz smiled softly, unable to resist him. “Okay—oops, wait. Gabe said to make you work for my forgiveness.”
“He would.” Ethan grimaced then smiled. “But it’s too late. You said yes and I’m taking it.”
Liz leaned back on the couch against the pillows, still feeling a little sore. “One thing still bothers me. You said I was like
your ex-wife. How? In the way I look?” She held her breath, anxiously waiting for his answer.
Ethan shook his head. “Diana had black hair and brown eyes but she was small and petite like you. She hated the military life even though it paid our bills and gave her shopping money. I’m not sure why she married me, maybe to get out of this town, but it wasn’t as romantic as she imagined it would be. Diana complained constantly about me going on duty and had affairs, saying it was my fault for not paying attention to her. The constant fights and drama made me volunteer for more tours. We divorced after eighteen months, and to be honest, I was relieved. She found some rich guy and I never saw her again.”
“I’m sorry, Ethan.” It was a sad story but at least she wasn’t a look-alike replacement.
“It’s okay, really. We were too young and not well suited to each other except physically.”
“Oh, I see,” Liz said, understanding his attitude a little better now. “You’re worried all we have in common is a physical attraction.”
“Yes, that’s why I want us to go out together and talk and see if we like each other,” Ethan replied honestly, not wanting to lie. He was curious about getting to know the real Elizabeth Daniels. He knew she was on her own here and a lot of people in the town spoke highly of Liz. Liz leaned into his big, warm body and put her arms around his waist, feeling comfortable. “It’s okay. You don’t know me, I get that, but I’m just glad we have the chance to get to know each other. I thought we were destined to be enemies forever and that made me so sad.”
Liz felt so small and feminine in his arms and he tightened his arms around her. She was soft and warm and she smelled like honeysuckle. He had to admit to himself that Liz was not snobby or high maintenance like he had first thought. She would never be friends with Lacy or Stella who were just common people if she was. Even his own aunt shopped at Liz’s store and told him that Liz had a heart of gold. Everyone knew that Mrs. Johnson had financial difficulties with Mr. Johnson’s passing away, and whenever the elderly lady came in to Liz’s store to shop, suddenly there was a sale going on. That showed him she had compassion. He needed to get rid of all his previous misconceptions and get to know the real Elizabeth Daniels. “We could never be enemies, angel.” He kissed her forehead softly, inhaling her sweet scent. “Are you really okay? And be honest with me so I won’t worry all night.”
He felt her head nodding, but she didn’t move out of his arms. He was content to stay there and hold her all night. He felt happy that she was giving him a second chance. “I’m just tired and a little sore but I’ll get over it.”
“I’ll leave so you can rest. Are you sure you are okay with being alone?” Ethan asked standing up with her and hugging her tightly, not wanting to leave.