Right then, as if on cue, the aforementioned appeared at the table.
“Was the food okay?” Terri asked him. “Can I get you a coffee or some dessert perhaps?”
“It was delicious. I really couldn’t eat any more,” he joked lamely, handing her a plate that couldn’t be any cleaner if he’d licked it. And Ethan was almost tempted to.
“Yes, I can see that.”
“But a coffee would be lovely, thank you.” He hoped that given the circumstances, perhaps she might urge Rachel into joining him.
“Such a pity Gary isn’t here, isn’t it?” Terri said. “Oh, and have you told Ethan about your engagement?” she added, smiling at him. “After all, you played such a large part in the whole thing—rescuing Gary like that. If you hadn’t come along when you did, who knows what might’ve happened?”
But Ethan barely heard her. Instead, he just stared at Rachel’s hand.
There it was. His ring, exquisite and sparkling beneath the overhead light just as he remembered it, but on another woman’s finger.
Immediately he was reminded of what Daisy had said before and realized that it did indeed fit Rachel to perfection. As if it had been made for her.
Then he quickly shook himself out of it, figuring that Terri had unknowingly given him the perfect opportunity to raise the subject. His heart sped up. All he needed to do was explain the situation, take the ring back, and he could be on his way.
But for some reason, mostly Rachel’s happy, radiant expression as she lovingly caressed the diamond, he couldn’t get the words out.
“It’s…beautiful. Congratulations,” he mumbled, the words out before he could stop them, and noticing Terri giving him a speculative glance, he squirmed uncomfortably.
“Thank you. We’re so thrilled.” Rachel looked at Terri and stood up. “Okay, okay, I’m coming!” she said, laughing. “Ethan, again I’m so sorry. I really wish we had more time to chat but—” Then she stopped short, looking thoughtful. “Actually, what are you doing this evening? I’ll be finished here at six, and Gary should be back by then, so if you’re free, it might be nice for the three of us to meet up for dinner somewhere. That’s if you’re not rushing back to London?”
His heart lifted. Bingo. “No, I’m not flying out until tomorrow, and I don’t have any plans for tonight as it happens.”
“Fantastic! Where are you staying? I’ll give Gary a call and arrange somewhere nice close by, and we’ll both get the chance to thank you properly. Does that sound okay?”
“Sounds wonderful.”
Having quickly filled her in on where he was staying and what cuisine he might like, Ethan sat back and relaxed a little. He felt a lot more optimistic now that he knew he’d be seeing Knowles in person and definitely much better about not having to unburden himself to Rachel and burst her bubble.
Because tonight, when the truth was finally revealed, wasn’t it only right that Gary Knowles—and not he—should be the one dealing with the fallout?
Chapter 30
Back in the kitchen, while Rachel was making dinner arrangements, Terri nudged Justin hard on the shoulder. “Did youseethat?”
He drew back. “Hey, stop the abuse. You know I bruise easily.”
She put her hands on the counter and started drumming incessantly. “Well, did you?”
“I sure did. He’s cute, isn’t he?”
“That’s not what I’m talking about,” she replied, exasperated, although yes, there was no doubt that Ethan Greene was extremely cute in that open, earnest sort of way. With his soft blue eyes and sculpted masculine jawline, he certainly looked like no professor Terri had ever encountered. “Iknewit,” she said triumphantly.
“They say you always know when you’ve found the one,” Justin teased.
“Could you be serious for just one second? Forget what he looks like. You and I both knew that there was something off-kilter about all this. Any fool could tell that Ethan Greene isn’t here merely to inquire after Gary’s health. Hell, he’d barely sat down at the table earlier before he started quizzing me about him.”
It was also pretty obvious by Greene’s jumpy demeanor that there was something else at play here. The problem was that she couldn’t quite put her finger on what that was. Yet.
“Okay. Well, yes, I agree with you that there’s certainly something fishy about the way he’s just turned up out of the blue—”
“Andyou should have seen how Gary reacted the other day when I told him that his ‘rescuer’ had phoned here looking for him. He didn’t look at all happy, considering the guy is supposed to have done him such a big favor.”
“So what do you think, Sherlock? Is it that there’s more to this story than we’ve been told?” the chef wondered.
