The silence lingered.
Then—
“Bad time?”
My head lifted.
Ethan stood in the doorway, backpack slung over one shoulder, tailored trousers sharp, that hesitant smile tugging at his mouth like he wasn’t sure he should interrupt.
In the middle of this chaos—and decisions that could cost people their jobs—he looked like relief.
I straightened, forcing the tension out of my shoulders, tucking the crisis back into its box for five minutes. “No,” I said. “Come in.”
“Sorry to interrupt,” he said, taking a couple of steps inside. “Just thought I’d pop in and say hi. First week and all.”
“How did it go?”
His eyes roamed over my desk, taking in the mess of paper and folders. “You look busy.”
I pushed up from the chair, flipped on the light, then crossed to the bar cart. “I am, but a quick break won’t sink the company. Want one?” I glanced at him as I poured.
“Sure,” he said, setting his bag on a chair before dropping to the one beside it.
“So…” I handed him the glass and went back to sit behind my desk. “How was it?”
“Good. Everyone’s nice.” His mouth curved into a smirk. “Had to have a chat with HR, sign a form.”
“Me too.” I rolled my eyes and took a long swallow. “Just a formality. Don’t worry about it.”
“It was kinda weird,” he said, swirling the drink, “but everybody’s being oddly neutral about it.”
I raised a brow. “What do you mean?”
“You know, no one’s said anything about this…” He gestured between us. “Nothing mean anyway. I was kind of expecting it.”
“How come?”
He took a sip, then looked away, his gaze dragging over the bookshelves like he was trying too hard to be casual. “Got used to it.”
I frowned, about to ask him what he meant by that, when he cut off my train of thought.
“I’m officially all moved in—or unpacked, I guess. Henry’s ridiculously happy about it.”
“I bet he is.” I smiled around my drink. “He loves having people around. He got so upset when Oli and I left for college without him. Kept showing up with lunch while he was supposed to be at school.”
Ethan chuckled. “I can totally see that.”
“I’m glad you two finally talked. Are you feeling better?”
“Yeah. Better.” His lips pressed into a line, though a small smile began to form. “It still sucks, but I don’t feel so hopeless now.”
His pride was probably taking another hit just talking about this. I couldn’t imagine what he must be feeling right now. I wanted to kill his fucking father.
“And Charlotte?”
He shook his head. “One step at a time, Ash.”
I opened my mouth to insist he talk to his sister before he cut in again.
