19. Ethan

19

ETHAN

I ’d come to a single conclusion since Clara’s message about Allan. The man was a slimeball. Still harmless, but he had the makings of a first-rate creep. With my back in the corner of the small kitchen where many of the employees spent their lunch hour, I kept tabs on the black-haired man scrolling through his phone. I’d managed to slip behind him once, and the pictures on his phone sent disgust rippling through me. They were all pictures of women, but it was the furtiveness of the images that made me uneasy. Pictures that were grainy or out of focus, like they’d been taken without the woman’s knowledge or from far away then zoomed in and cropped. I almost confronted him, but we had pressing matters with the council meeting. Matters that had Alexander hovering in the doorway giving me a death glare.

“Well?” He shoved both hands into his pockets, his stride eating up the distance to the door where his car sat parked at the curb. Liam helped Clara into the front passenger seat, his back to us as he took care of her.

I kept my voice even despite the anger. “First-rate jackass. Clara’s right to be concerned.”

“Fuck.” Alexander’s pace quickened. “I still don’t want her worried or stressed about him. He’s harmless.”

“Harmless?” I understood Alexander’s stance on the word. He meant that Allan wouldn’t come after Clara in any meaningful way. But harmless had different connotations in this instance. Clara had a reason for bringing Allan to our attention. I hesitated to brush off her concerns even though I’d made up my mind to keep a closer eye on Allan. The more I watched him, the more I realized something was off about the man.

We exited the building together. Clara looked up from the passenger seat. Her expression closed off, and she snapped her head forward. That was why I felt like a heel for telling her not to worry about Allan. She had no idea we were keeping tabs on him. “Clara needs to know.”

“Not right now.” Alexander’s orders were clear. “We need to concentrate on Harrington and the council meeting. Dodgy Allan is not ruining this for us. Any luck tracing the number?”

I didn’t agree with his line of thinking, but I respected him enough to go along. For now. It was early days still, and we had no concrete proof that Allan had done anything wrong. “Nothing. Bastard figured out how to use an untraceable number.” I ran my thumb over my phone, the surge of anger my welcome friend as I scanned the screenshots Clara had sent me. The text message made me want to tear something apart and cuddle Clara close, the dichotomy of the two emotions wreaking havoc on my body. I’d doubled my workout this morning and still couldn’t keep the anger at bay.

Three hours later, we walked out of the council meeting with our heads held high and smiles all around. Clara’s face glowed with pride.

“You were amazing.” I kept my hands to myself but let my voice carry. “You had them eating out of your hand.”

“Wasn’t that hard.” She shrugged but her smile widened and she did a little twirl right there on the sidewalk, causing her skirt to flare out around her knees. “After all our prep work, the hardest thing I had to do was make sure I focused on the facts and figures while letting the architecture speak for itself.”

“Don’t play down your part.” Liam closed in from Clara’s right, sandwiching her between us.

“He’s right.” Alexander spoke up from my other side. “It’s okay to take pride in your work.”

“And watching you take them all on was incredible.” I held out a hand, offering to help her back into the car. “Let’s go celebrate.”

Snow lingered on the sidewalk and dotted the buildings, lining the windows in white. It was a picturesque landscape as Silverbrook prepared for Christmas and the upcoming new year. And it gave me an idea. “Lunch at Anthony’s?”

Alexander and Liam agreed, while Clara paused, her palm in mine. “Anthony’s? I’ve never been there.”

“They have a great brunch menu,” Liam said with a wink. “Anything from pancakes to steak.”

“Yum.” She eased into the car and pulled her skirt down over her legs.

“I’m driving.” I held out my hand to Alexander, and he passed over the keys without argument.

Fifteen minutes later, I pulled the car into Anthony’s parking lot. Clara looked around, her eyes rounding at the outside tables decorated with Christmas lights. A giant tree stood beside the doors, twinkling beneath thousands of white lights and silver ornaments.

“Wow.” She exited the car and stood waiting for us to join her.

Liam reached out to touch her but let his hand fall at a look from Alexander. No touching in public. We’d established that rule while snowed in with Clara. No one outside the four of us could know about our affair. We’d lose everything, including Clara, if this turned sour.

Liam’s grimace puckered his mouth. He smoothed a hand over his cheek and forced levity into his tone. “Wait until you see the inside. And the food…” He held a hand over his heart. “To die for.”

“I certainly hope it doesn’t come to that.” Clara’s laugh cut off abruptly when Liam opened the door and the sweet cinnamon and charred steak aroma drifted out. “Okay. I’m starting to understand what you mean.” She took a deep breath and closed her eyes with a rapturous look on her face.

Alexander, Liam, and I shared a mutual groan. Being in public with Clara and keeping my hands to myself was going to be harder than I thought.

A man in a red apron approached us at the door, grinned, and led us to a table near the back of the restaurant. He gave Liam a once over. “Nice suit.”

Liam didn’t even look down or touch the material like someone uncertain of their clothing choice would. He returned the smile. “It’s one of a kind.”

“I can see why.” The man walked away, still grinning.

Clara scooted into the seat closest to the window and plucked a breadstick from the basket that arrived via another man in a red apron. “How do you pull off colors like that?” She motioned at Liam’s vibrant purple and black ensemble. “It should be garish, but you make it look fashionable.”

“It’s a gift.” Liam unbuttoned his suit jacket and slid a hand into his pocket, his jacket tucked behind his wrist. “As is this.”

Clara’s eyes widened, her mouth rounding in an O as the breadstick dangled from her fingertips. “That’s unfair.” Pink infused her cheeks. “I never should have told you that was sexy.”

“Oh, but we’re glad you did.” Alexander winked and settled across from her.

Our host returned and we wasted no time ordering our favorites. Clara listened to us, checked the menu, then ordered a sampler platter so she could try a bit of everything. It was one of the adorable things I loved about her. She was not afraid to go after what she wanted. It made her a powerhouse today in the meeting and the best lover I’d ever had.

“When do you think we’ll break ground on Harrington’s project?” Clara tore into the breadstick with gusto.

Alexander looked to me to answer. “I’d estimate a month or more. They might make a decision today, but they’ll dither over the semantics and draw it out as long as they can.”

“Plus the holidays and cold,” Liam added. “We’re looking at early spring before things get crazy busy.”

“We’ll finalize everything while we wait. Make sure Harrington is on board with all our designs and start getting contracts drawn up.” Alexander sat back as his food arrived and watched Clara through the steam billowing off his meal.

Clara plucked a potato skin from her plate and popped it into her mouth. The blissful look reappeared.

Liam kicked me beneath the table.

I returned the gesture with a “not now” glare. I’d booked a surprise for Clara later. Every passing minute made it harder to keep quiet, but I wanted today to be special for her. “Congratulations on your first massive project.” I raised my glass in a toast and clinked it with Clara’s from across the table.

Liam and Alexander joined us, our glasses raised high. “To Clara,” we said simultaneously.

She blushed beneath our attention but lifted her chin. “It was a group effort, but I’m glad to be part of the team.”

“We’re good together.” I let the double-sided words land between us and watched her blush deepen.

Liam’s elbow grazed Clara’s, and they shared a look that raised the temperature several degrees. The rest of the meal passed with general talk about the project and what happened next. It was refreshing to have Clara’s opinion on things and to see her mind at work. She thought outside the box, her youth and energy bringing a new spark to the overall look and feel of Harrington’s ideas.

Alexander paid the bill and led the way to the front door. Christmas music trilled overhead in a rise and fall of cymbals and drums. Clara tapped her toes along with the beat while pulling her coat on and sliding the buttons home.

The four of us walked out together, Clara in the center of us as we crossed the sidewalk.

“Ethan?”

I turned from Clara toward the sound of my name.

Daniel, Rachel, and a few others from the upper offices at Summit walked our way. Surprised looks passed from me to Alexander, and then to Clara.

“We didn’t know you were going out for dinner.” Rachel stopped in front of me, her red hair blowing in the breeze whipping down the street. “We would have joined you.” Curiosity coated her voice, and the constant looks she sent Clara set off warning bells in my mind.

“We took Clara out to celebrate.” Alexander took hold of the conversation with his usual stoicism. “Her meeting with the city council was a masterpiece.” Nothing in his voice or the way he looked at Clara gave any hint of how he truly felt. I knew it only because I’d seen it in him when we spent hour after hour together with Clara.

Clara’s shoulders stiffened just enough to draw my attention to her. She looked Alexander over before shifting toward Rachel and the others. “Mr. Thorne is being too kind. I did my job as it was expected of me.” Cold. Clipped. Her words resembled daggers being thrown at each of us.

There was nothing we could change about the situation we found ourselves in. Clara knew that, but I understood her frustration.

Rachel turned away when her companions called to her on their way into the restaurant. “Congratulations, Clara.”

Clara offered a tiny nod of thanks before turning away. The bite in the air had nothing on the sudden change in demeanor. Now wasn’t the best time to bring up my surprise, but I couldn’t let her think this thing between us was over. “Clara.” I cupped her elbow and drew her off to the side. “Would you like to have a movie night with me and Liam?”

“What?” Confusion drew her brows down. “Where are we going to see a movie?”

“The cinema.” I motioned one hand toward Alexander. “He can’t join us. Curse of being CEO is that he has meetings with shareholders.”

“I’d rather go with you.” Heat filled Alexander’s eyes. “But I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful time with Ethan and Liam.”

“What do you mean, exactly?” She arched a brow. Myriad expressions flickered over her face.

I caught surprise and optimism that I hoped meant she’d say yes. I leaned in close and whispered, “I’ve rented out the movie theater. We have the whole thing to ourselves.”

“The whole thing?” Her chest rose in a hard breath. “Why do we need the whole theater?”

“Because I wanted to spend time with you.” The admission came easier than I expected. “And I didn’t want to have any interruptions.”

Liam shouldered his way into the conversation. “We both wanted time with you.”

It wasn’t a competition, I reminded myself while swallowing the sharp retort. The theater was my idea but I refused to ruin the moment by giving in to the nudge of jealousy.

“Lead the way.” Clara held out both hands, then wrapped them over her stomach.

Alexander hesitated on his way around the hood of the car. “I’m sorry I’ll miss the movie. I’ll make it up to you later.”

Clara’s flush deepened. Her head tipped to the side. “I’ll hold you to that.” Wind danced through her hair, plucking strands and sending them trailing over her cheeks. She brushed them away and took a step toward me.

I took her hand and held it tight. Fuck the consequences. I needed to touch her, to ground the moment and show her that we were not ashamed of anything that had happened between us. She returned the squeeze, sending relief to push out the last of my concerns.

“This way.” The theater sat on the end of the block, and we made it before Alexander’s car turned the corner in the opposite direction.

A single attendant waited for us at the doors. She showed us into the darkened room and left without a word.

Clara wasted no time in finding a seat, where she pulled me down beside her. “Come on, Liam. Let’s not miss the movie.”

The screen darkened, cinematic music swelling to a crescendo. Liam dropped into the seat on Clara’s other side and kicked back in the recliner with his feet in the air.

Clara eyed him from the side, then turned toward me. “So, are we really here to watch a movie or are other activities involved?”

“We’re here to do whatever you want.” Like Liam, I reclined in the chair and put my arms behind my head. A boom sounded and color exploded across the screen.

Clara glanced that way, then scooted closer to me and ran a hand across my chest. “Think there’s anyone up there?” She pointed at the control room.

I shook my head. “No. Even if they were, they can’t see us from here.” We were tucked in an alcove where shadows ruled save those few moments when light from the screen caught us.

“Good.” She swung her leg over my waist and rubbed her knee over my erection. “I want to have some fun with you and Liam.”