Then a sudden thought popped into his mind and his pulse quickened. Of course.
Before Ethan had time to ponder his revelation further, the doorbell rang, and he went to answer it.
Vanessa stood at the door looking exquisite. She always looked beautiful, but tonight she was dressed in a well-cut black cocktail dress that fitted her slim frame to perfection. Her blond hair was piled elegantly on top of her head, and a simple pear-shaped diamond pendant adorned her throat.My future bride, he thought. If only she knew it.
“Hello, darling. You look beautiful.” Ethan wondered why he sounded so wooden, so stilted all of a sudden.
She smiled and stepped into the hallway. “Thank you.” Placing a light kiss on his cheek as she passed, she moved into the living room, taking off her coat.
“Why did you ring the doorbell? Did you forget your key?” he asked, trying to make light of the situation.
She blushed a little. “I don’t know really.” Again, an uneasy formality appeared between them. She looked around. “Where’s Daisy?”
“She’s staying over with one of her friends. I thought it might be good to make tonight just about you and me.”
“Oh, that’s nice.” Vanessa smiled again, but it didn’t reach her eyes, and Ethan felt his heart deflate.This is so awkward.It was as if all their shared history had somehow been erased and they were starting over from scratch.
“Would you like a glass of wine?”
“Yes, if you’re having some.”
Ethan moved to the kitchen and picked up the bottle of red that he had already opened. When he turned around, the openly tense expression on her face took him aback. He needed to change the mood here—and quickly.
“Here you go.” He handed her a glass and held out his own for a toast. But she didn’t wait, instead bringing the glass to her mouth and drinking deeply. “Er, cheers then,” he joked lamely.
“Oops, sorry.” Laughing a little, she belatedly clinked his.
Ethan perched on one of the high stools at the edge of the kitchen island. “You know, I heard that you should always try and end a year the way you started it.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. And this time last year, you and I were very happy, remember?”
“Ethan…”
“No, please, just let me finish. I know there’s been some tension between us lately, especially since New York, and…well, frankly, I’m not sure why that is. I love you, Vanessa. Daisy loves you. I need you in my life, and I want you to be happy.”
Vanessa lowered her gaze. Whether it was because of the emotion of the moment or the strain in the room, he didn’t know.
“Ethan, I am happy. I just… You’re right, there is some tension, and I thought…” She trailed off, shaking her head.
He stood up and went to her, taking both of her hands in his. “Regardless, none of that matters now. Well, it does, but…” He shook his head, aware that he was babbling a little. “I wanted to talk to you about something, a serious subject.”
She brought her gaze up to meet his. “Serious?”
“Yes,” he said, swallowing hard. He hoped this idea would go over well, a temporary diversion of sorts, at least until he had the ring back.
“What is it?” A strained smile played at the corners of her mouth, and he wondered what she was thinking or expecting him to say.
He cleared his throat. “Well, I thought that maybe we should take our relationship to the next level. Start acting more like a family.” She smiled hopefully at him, and he felt his heart begin to lighten. “I was thinking that maybe we should think about moving in together… I mean you…move in with us.”
There was silence for a moment, and his hands started to sweat. He couldn’t believe he was this nervous. After all, if everything had gone according to plan, by rights they should already be engaged, so he felt almost silly for worrying about her answer to this. What if she said no?
Finally, she spoke. “Move in…here with you and Daisy, you mean?” she asked, her face brightening.
Ethan smiled. “Yes,” he replied and immediately noticed her eyes get teary. “I love you, and so does Daisy. You must know that.”
A tear crept down her cheek, and she threw her arms around his neck.
