A Wonderful Kind of Love (Kinds of Love 2)

The waiter raised his eyebrows as he started setting the food down in front of them.

Elena dissolved into a fit of laughter, leaving Laura to glare at her brother.

Raising siblings was hard.

Chapter 9

Ethan

Ethan felt oddly nervous as he prepared for his day. He'd woken up that morning in a great mood, and he knew it had to do with the fact that he was going to see Laura that evening. He checked his watch. He had two meetings before it would be time for his date, and it felt like too long and yet not enough at the same time.

He stood at the foot of his bed with his dinner suit laid out on across the comforter. He held three ties in his hand, trying to figure out which one would look the best. Usually, he left this kind of decision up to his secretary, but he was on his own today.

He held up the blue one. It looked nice, but he wasn't sure if the gold one gave a better impression. He wondered which color Laura liked better and wished he had a horse tie. She would like a horse tie.

A knock on the door to his hotel suite pulled him from his thoughts. He set the ties down and went to open the door. Peeking through the peephole, he could see Craig waiting for him. He smiled and opened up the door.

“Good morning, Craig,” Ethan greeted him.

Craig handed him a small package. “This came for you, sir,” he said respectfully. He smiled as he handed the box to Ethan.

“Thank you,” Ethan said, taking the box. “I'll be out in just a moment.”

He went to close the door but changed his mind. He needed a second opinion on the ties. Craig wasn't his secretary, but any opinion would be better than none.

“Craig, are you any good at picking out ties?” Ethan asked.

“You mean for your date tonight?” Craig gave an unassuming shrug. “My sister says I have a great eye for color. Maybe I can help.”

“I need all the help I can get,” Ethan replied, pulling the door open wide and letting the security guard inside. “My suit's in the bedroom.”

Ethan led Craig through the living area of the suite and to the spacious bedroom. Craig glanced about as they walked, taking in all the details of the place. Ethan thought it must be the mark of a good bodyguard.

“Here's the suit,” Ethan said. “And the three ties I have to go with it. I'm leaning towards the blue, but I just can't seem to decide.”

Craig chuckled. “You should actually check your package.”

“What?” Ethan asked, unsure of what his package had to do with choosing a tie for dinner tonight.

“Check your package,” Craig repeated. “I opened it up to make sure it was safe. I think you'll find it helps your current situation.”

Ethan frowned but pulled open the box. The tape was neatly sliced open, making the item inside very easy to find.

It was a tie. A beautiful pale green, silk tie.

“As my sister would say, it matches your eyes,” Craig told him. His cheeks pinked slightly as he shrugged.

Ethan lay the tie out against the suit. The pale green complimented the dark charcoal of the suit better than anything he had picked out. It was perfect.

“I think she'll like that, sir,” Craig said.

He picked the box up, eager to see who had sent it. The return address was just the tie seller's address, and there was no packing slip with information.

“Was there anything else in the box?” Ethan asked Craig, holding up the box. “I'm not sure who sent it.”

Craig shrugged. “I didn't take anything out once I opened it and saw it was safe. I'm sorry, sir.”

“Huh.” Ethan frowned until it dawned on him. “I asked Becky to pick me out some new ties last week. This must be one of them.”