CHAPTER 7
ETHAN
I still havework at the office, but my hand doesn’t reach for the key in the ignition. It’s been two hours now, and I’m still parked in the lot across the road from Natalie’s building. The sounds of her wretched sobs from the other side of the door ring in my ears like a haunting echo. My injured hand aches from how many times I’ve slammed it against the steering wheel in my frustrated anger.
I shouldn’t have left. I should’ve let her hit me or scream at me, but I shouldn’t have left her alone.
The humiliation in her eyes, confusion mixed with hurt, was infuriating. If I could, I would have reached through the phone and wrung her mother’s neck. Who speaks to their child like that? I’ve met the woman. Back in college, she attended Lucas’s graduation. She had seemed like a doting mother then.
Was this affection only a front, or was it reserved for her son?
Closing my eyes briefly, I lean my head against the headrest. When I had Jake write up the contract, I had done some research.It didn’t take too much effort to find out her finances weren’t the best. The car she had bought a year ago was secondhand. She always cashed in her vacation days. I had simply put two and two together, deducing money might be an incentive to convince her to sign such a shady contract. Now, I feel like an asshole.
Her mother’s been taking money from her. It’s obvious from the message.
And I used this against her.
A sharp rap on the passenger side window has me turning my head. It’s a woman, much to my surprise. Her hair is a bright pink, lifted in short spikes, and she’s wearing an oversized t-shirt with shorts. Despite the late hour, she looks wide awake and determined.
Before I can react, she’s opened the car door and is sitting down.
“Excuse me?—”
“You’re Ethan Wilder, aren’t you?” She offers her hand. “Sarah Brown, Natalie’s friend. I also happen to be her flatmate.”
Alarm fills me. “Is Natalie?—”
“She’s fine,” Sarah reassures me. “I put her to bed, and she’s sleeping. I saw you parked out here when I came back from work. I can also see you from my bedroom window, so I just came to check.”
“Oh.” I tap my fingers on my thigh. “I wasn’t stalking her?—”
“I know.” Sarah shrugs. “She already told me. She was a bit of a mess. Natalie has her pride. Having you hear the message?—”
“It doesn’t reflect anything on her!” I snap. Natalie must be close to her to have told her about it.
“I never said it did.” Sarah lifts her hands in a placating manner. “Look, I just came out here to tell you to go home. I’ve got her.”
She reaches for the car door handle, and I stop her. “Natalie’s relationship with her mother. What is it like?”
Sarah gives me a disgusted look. “I’m not going to spill Natalie’s secrets to the man who broke her heart. You and her family have done enough damage to her to last a lifetime.”
She tries to open the door, but I immediately lock the car.
Her eyes widen. “Don’t even think about?—”
“You said I broke her heart.” My head is spinning. “It was a one-night stand. How did I break her heart?”
I always thought Natalie was just angry with me for bruising her pride all these years. Was I wrong? Was it more?
Sarah tilts her head, evaluating me with sharp eyes. “It was a one-night stand? Really? What are you doing parked outside her apartment at two in the morning?”
I press my lips together before sighing, a wave of resigned clarity washing over me. “I see your point.”
“You were her first,” Sarah says abruptly. “In every sense of the word. After the kind of family life she has had, you were a stark contrast. You saw an opportunity, you seized it, then you crushed her spirit. Her family told her she was unwanted and unloveable, and you reinforced it. She was only good enough to be used. That’s not something one can come back from so easily. She cared for you. In her own way, she felt seen for the first time, and?—”
As she speaks, her words grow agitated by the second, her face turning red with anger. Finally, she holds up her hand, cutting herself off.
“Unlock the door. I might just kill you, I’m so mad.”
