Chapter 47

Chapter Forty-Seven

I check my cell phone and see a message from Thomas. He’s letting me know that he’ll be home late today because he’s going out for dinner with a few clients. That suits me just fine, and I’m relieved to have avoided a discussion this morning. I quickly text him that I’ll be meeting Kelly this evening and will be late, so there won’t be another argument when he walks in and finds me not there.

After I send the message, my cell phone rings less than two minutes later. I answer it with a furrowed brow when I see Thomas’s name on my screen. Meanwhile, I stand in front of my wardrobe in my underwear, trying to decide what to wear.

“Thomas? What’s going on?” I answer the call, already feeling like I’ve been caught red-handed.

“Why are you going out again today? June is coming tomorrow, and the house can’t look like it’s been hit by a bomb. You need to think about your family this weekend and stop going out all the time,” he rages, his words a constant source of frustration.

I try to swallow my anger, just like my guilty conscience. Kelly is right. Now it’s my turn.

“Our house is always clean, in case you haven’t noticed, and that doesn’t change because I go out once or twice a week. I’m tired of waiting for you in an empty house. That’s why I’m going out with my best friend. Good luck with your clients, darling,” I say, determined to maintain my independence without making a big scene because I don’t feel like it and don’t have the time right now.

“Don’t be late,” he grumbles and hangs up.

Rolling my eyes, I put my phone aside and turn my attention back to my wardrobe. I’ve been excited about tonight all day. Kelly put together a few outfits for me earlier when she was here and laid them out on my bed. But I don’t think any of them are appropriate or they’re far too sexy. Although provocative might not be such a bad thing for a young guy like Ezra.

I grab one dress she picked out and hold it in front of my body as I stand in front of the mirror. It’s a black cocktail dress from my earlier days when it was still important to Thomas that I attend every significant business dinner because it would look better and play positively when he founded his law firm. Of course, I did everything I could to support my husband in realizing his dreams.

I inspect the dress critically, but the longer I look at it, the more I like it. My makeup is already done, and I have to think about what to do with my hair.

I can’t help but notice that Ezra’s bedroom is completely dark. He doesn’t seem to be home. I wonder if he’ll stand me up, but I quickly dismiss the thought, knowing how much he wants to spend an evening with me. I hope to learn more about him today because I know nothing about Ezra King.

After stepping back in front of the mirror in my black cocktail dress and matching high heels, I decide to let my hair down, as I’m feeling pretty sexy right now. A hot shiver runs through my body at the thought of what Ezra will say about my outfit. I have no idea what he has planned, but I’m happy to be surprised.

I smooth out my dress once more, then I’m ready and leave my house. During the drive, I try to keep my nervousness in check. But as I turn into the bay and let my car roll to a stop, my heart skips a beat when I see Ezra standing in his leather jacket, dark jeans, and a white shirt flashing between the black leather. God, he’s downright handsome.

I park and turn off the engine as he slowly walks toward me with a big grin on his face. He opens the car door for me, quite the gentleman, and I get out on wobbly legs. His lips gently meet my cheek, and I smile because he is so polite.

“Hello, beauty. Nice of you to come,” he greets me in his raspy voice, which immediately gives me a pleasant shiver.

“Hello, Ezra,” I reply in a hoarse voice. Pull yourself together, Cora!

Feeling stupid for letting him throw me off my game, I turn my gaze away from him, and only then do I notice the breathtaking view, crowned by the dawning sunset. In awe, I step a little closer to the barrier and look into the distance toward the horizon, which is already turning into a pale pink.

“It’s beautiful,” I whisper, unable to take my eyes off the view.

“I think I have the nicer view, but I’m glad you like it. Enjoy it while I take care of some final preparations.” Ezra whispers close behind me.

I smile at his words but nod silently and don’t look away. This place is beautiful. Trees line the small bay and make the whole thing even more idyllic. Looking at the many houses in our neighborhood from up here has a calming effect and makes the many everyday problems much smaller.

“May I invite you to dinner, Mrs. Shepherd?” I hear his voice a little later, so I turn to him curiously, as there is nowhere to sit.

Ezra stands beside my car, grinning, with a picnic blanket stretched over the hood. He’s cleverly tucked it under the edges so it stays in place, allowing us to sit on the warm engine without getting burned. The setup is simple yet ingenious, and the view from here is still perfect. Smiling, I walk over to him and let him help me up onto the hood, where a basket is thoughtfully placed in the center.

With my legs bent, I lean against my windshield and watch him take a bottle of champagne out of the basket. After uncorking it, he fishes out two plastic glasses with long stems and hands me one so that he can pour me a glass. I hold my glass out to him with a gentle smile and wait until he has poured himself a glass and put the bottle back in the basket.

“Here’s to a nice evening. I hope you like it. Of course, I could have taken you to a fancy restaurant. But firstly, the risk of us being seen would have been too great, and I wanted you to relax. And secondly, I think it’s something different from what you’re used to.”

Ezra is right. We shouldn’t be seen together, especially not in a fancy restaurant where our affair couldn’t be more obvious. And he’s also right that this date is something different. I can’t remember the last time Thomas and I did anything beyond just going out for a fancy dinner. He used to be more creative, but back then, our resources were more limited. Inevitably, I wonder whether Ezra planned this date because he’s short of money. But I quickly dismiss the idea, as he has bought a house in our not-exactly cheap neighborhood, owns the boxing club, and is renovating it, which also requires money. I realize again that I don’t know anything about him.

I quickly shake my head with a smile and clink glasses with him.

“It’s wonderful. I like it. Thank you very much. I’m curious to see what else the evening has in store,” I reply and take a small sip.

“Anything you like. I’m completely at your disposal, Beauty,” Ezra replies with that ambiguous undertone and that sexy vibration in his voice that gives me goosebumps every time.

Smiling, I lower my eyes to my lap before giving him a shy sideways glance. This guy always throws me for a loop, yet it doesn’t feel bad. On the contrary.

“I thought maybe we could have a little chat. Get to know each other a little better,” I reply somewhat meekly, as I don’t want it to be so obvious that I’m extremely curious about his life.

Because we both know why we’re here and where this is going. How the evening will end. But I still want to get to know him better, even if it’s just a fling. At least, that’s what I’m trying to tell myself. After all, I can’t fall in love with him.

“You seem to be interested in more than just my body. Good to know,” he teases me, making my cheeks burn up.

Ezra knows how incredibly attractive I find him. He knows what he does to a woman with his audacious smile and how he only has to touch you to make you fall for him.

“I’m an open book for you. You can ask me anything you want, Beauty.”

I quickly consider what I could ask him. Since I know so little about him, I have plenty of questions in mind. But I don’t want to overwhelm him or come across as too nosy. Instead, I decide to start with what I already know and gradually dig a little deeper. My goal is to be respectful and avoid giving off the wrong impression.

“You told me you took over the boxing club from your father,” I leave my words open-ended, hoping he will tell me what he is willing to share with me on his initiative.

Ezra leans against the windshield, stretches his legs, and crosses them. He looks off into the distance momentarily, and I’m afraid I’ve asked the wrong question. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to start with his late father. Stupid, Cora. Just plain stupid!

“Yes. My dad opened the club when he was about my age. I spent my entire childhood and adolescence there. It was a great time, and I desired to honor his memory… Plus, I wanted to make up for not being there for him when he died,” he adds after a brief delay, dropping his gaze to his lap, where he twirls his glass between his fingers.

“I’m sorry about that, Ezra. I shouldn’t have asked you about him,” I apologize and place a hand on his to comfort him.

I didn’t want to drag our evening down with such topics. But I wanted to find out a bit more about him. For example, how old he is. However, I’m not sure if I want to open Pandora’s box. I know he’s much younger than me. Maybe he’s even younger than I think, and then I’m just making it more complicated than it already is.

“It’s okay… I wasn’t an easy kid. I kind of gave him a hard time. And I never had a mother; she left shortly after I was born. I know nothing about her because my dad never wanted to talk about it, and since she didn’t want me, I never asked. After all, I had him. When he got sick, we had no contact because I was… an asshole. Then, one day, I got the call that he had died. I didn’t even get to say goodbye. That was hard. But I’m trying to make it up to him somehow by at least keeping his boxing club going like he would have wanted, and since he couldn’t take good care of it in the end, I’m fixing it up so it looks like it did in its prime,” he says, a little sparkle flashing in his eye as if he’s lost in a fond memory.

I don’t know what to say to all this information. It must be terrible not to have a mother. That’s why I’m glad I have such a good relationship with June. I don’t know what I’d do if it ended at some point—for whatever reason.

“It’s nice that you’re doing this for your father. I’m sure he’d be proud of you. We all make mistakes, but it’s our job as parents to forgive our children and show them the right path. You’ve found it, and you’re making up for it,” I try to cheer him up a little.

A small smile graces his full lips, and he nods gratefully at me. His gaze finds the sunset again, which stretches out in front of us in all its glory. I follow his gaze, and we sit quietly, enjoying the beautiful view.

“Your daughter is lucky to have you as her mother. Your relationship seems to be good.”

I nod and can’t suppress my smile. I love June more than anything and am immensely proud of her. Even though she’s lost her way a little, I know she’ll find the right thing for herself soon.

“She is a good girl, and I’m very proud of her,” I reply with a smile.

“A good girl, is she?” he replies ambiguously, and I know exactly what he’s getting at.

Ezra grins mischievously at me, and I can see where his thoughts wander. He says nothing, though, and nods. It makes me smile. It’s so refreshing to be with him. Nothing is stiff or forced. He’s relaxed, funny, charming, but also mischievous and incredibly sexy. I notice how I feel more and more comfortable with him and how much I enjoy spending time with him. Is this the right thing to do? Definitely not. But right now, I don’t care what’s right or wrong about it. I want to enjoy my time with him.

“So you’ve always lived around here?” I pick up the conversation again.

He rocks his head back and forth slightly.

“More or less. As I said, there was a time when I lost my way a bit and lived somewhere else. But I grew up here, yes. And you?” he now asks a counter-question.

“Thomas and I have been together since high school. I got pregnant young, and we got married. We had to find a way to keep our heads above water, and money was tight. We rented a small apartment on the other side of town. My parents have wanted nothing to do with me since the pregnancy. It’s not a good idea to get pregnant so early and be unmarried. Thomas’s father wanted his son to learn how to look after his own family because that’s what you have to do as a man.” A contemptuous snort escapes me when I talk about my parents and Thomas’s parents.

I haven’t thought about them for a long time because I’ve made peace with the fact that they all behaved completely wrongly toward us. But when I talk about it now, the anger comes flooding back.

“It must have been difficult becoming a mother so young,” he replies.

I shake my head because it wasn’t.

“No. The circumstances were difficult, but I love my daughter more than anything and don’t regret having her for a second. I loved raising her and watching her grow up,” I explain to him.

“So, why did you only have one? It sounds like you would have loved to have a bunch of kids,” he jokes, but his grin falls when he sees the puzzled look on my face.

I wanted to hide it and not react to it, but it is and remains a sore point that we only have one child because I would have loved to have more.

“I’m sorry. It’s none of my business,” he quickly relents.

“No. It’s fine. It’s just… you’re right. But sometimes, one person wants it more than the other. Thomas…” I leave it there because it still hurts too much that Thomas practically forced me to get an IUD to prevent us from having more children.

Thomas loves June and would be a great father if he could better control his perfectionism and controlling side. But after all these years, I still can’t quite understand why Thomas never wanted more children with me.

Ezra nods knowingly and, thankfully, lets it go. Instead, he picks up the bottle again and refills our glasses. The sun has almost completely set, and I realize that not bringing a jacket might not have been the best idea. Although the previous nights were pleasantly warm, tonight I’m feeling cold as the wind has shifted, bringing in a fresh, chilly breeze. Clouds push themselves in front of the setting sun and quickly turn the sky dark. Nevertheless, the lanterns behind us at the side of the road still provide enough light for us to see each other.

Shivering, I rub one hand over my arm and take a sip. Alcohol is known to warm you up from the inside, even if it’s a misconception, but I tell myself that I’m not so cold.

“Here,” comes Ezra’s voice, and he hangs his leather jacket around my shoulders.

My gaze shifts to him, noticing how he looks unexpectedly sharp in his white button-down shirt, a stark contrast to his usual laid-back style. I’m used to seeing him in tracksuit bottoms, usually shirtless. The fact that he put on a nice shirt just for our date stirs something in me.

“Thank you. That’s very nice of you,” I reply with a smile and pull his jacket a little tighter around my body.

I still can’t take my eyes off him, and the thin fabric that stretches so tightly yet perfectly around his muscular body emphasizes it even more. The sleeves of his shirt stretch a little when he moves, showing off his muscles. I can feel the heat flowing through my body, which is why I lower my gaze to regain some order in my thoughts.

But as soon as I lower my head, the scent of wood, leather, and aftershave creeps into my nose from his jacket and immediately envelops me again. I love his scent and would love to inhale a deep breath of it if it didn’t look so strange to bury my nose in the leather and smell it now. So, I suppress the impulse and follow another one instead…