by Emma Tharp
Ethan climbs up and hovers over me. He swallows hard before he says, “Do you have any idea how much I’ve missed you?” I’m pretty sure I know because I missed you just as much. Before I get the chance to answer, his lips are pressed to mine with desperation and hunger like he’s consuming me, claiming me as his again.
His hands are all over me, caressing my shoulders, my arms, my stomach, causing me to quiver under his touch. He reaches between my legs and strokes my clit with the pad of his thumb. As the pleasure builds, he eases a finger inside me, rubbing against sensitive flesh over and over again until I think I can barely stand it. My breathing comes out in short pants when I say, “Please. I need you now.”
Ethan’s eyelids are heavy with lust and longing. “Tell me you’re mine.”
The words are jumbled in my head. “What?”
His hands still and the room seems to go silent. “I need you to tell me that you’re mine, Caroline. Say it.” His neck muscles are taut and his jaw is tense.
How can he not know that I’ve always been his? “I’m yours.”
Linking his fingers with mine, he eases his weight over me and gently glides his erection over my sex, teasing me, making me greedy for him. I push my hips up to meet his and he smirks at me, knowing full well how much I want him inside. How he’s restraining himself is beyond me.
He leans over to his bag on my floor, grabs a condom, rips open the wrapper, and slides it on.
Taking what I want, unable to wait another second, I reach down and guide his length into me. He slides in, filling me all the way. “Fuckkk,” he hisses out.
Reaching back, I rake my fingers over his broad shoulders to the hard muscles of his back and all the way down to his glutes. Every line and plane of his body is cut and toned as if he sculpted it just for me to enjoy.
His hands grip my hips as he plunges in and out of me. His head comes to my forehead and he whispers muttered words. “Mine…Need you…Don’t leave me again.”
With each drive of his hips, and each word that he pants, my insides start to coil. I match his rhythm until my body clenches around him and I cry out his name.
“Yes.” Ethan’s chest heaves and his muscles tighten as he crests over the edge. When his shuddering breath calms, he eases onto me and drops a gentle kiss to my lips. “You are mine now.”
My throat is thick with emotion. This is all I ever wanted and I was a fool to let him slip between my fingers. “Yes.”
Sleep begins to pull me under as I’m tangled up with the only man I’ve ever truly loved.
Waking up with just the sheet draped over me, I shiver and open my eyes to see Ethan’s spot is empty. Fear grips me at the thought that I dreamt last night. Sitting up, I breathe deeply and the smell of sizzling bacon passes my nose. Rachel wouldn’t be making bacon. Ethan is cooking for me again.
Getting out of bed, I pull my silk bath robe on and throw my hair into a high bun, impatient to get out to the kitchen and see Ethan.
There he is, shirtless and in a pair of athletic shorts. His back muscles look as amazing as they felt last night. I skip up to him and place a kiss on his shoulder blade. “Breakfast smells amazing.”
He turns into me and nuzzles his face in the crook of my neck and plants soft kisses there, setting my body aflame again. “Good morning, beautiful.”
“You better quit doing that or all your hard work making breakfast will go to waste,” I say, still hungry for him.
“Don’t worry, I don’t have to leave until two. I plan to make good use of the rest of our time today.” His voice is husky and so sexy.
My lower lip juts out. While I can’t wait to be locked in my room, naked with Ethan again, I don’t even want to think about him leaving.
“Hey, I hate seeing that look. We’re going to figure this out, okay? Let’s not lose a minute today with being sad. The weekend was too incredible. Now get some coffee and have a seat.” He kisses me, sucking my bottom lip into his mouth.
This man always knows how to make me smile. “Okay,” I say and get the mug he’s left out for me, fill it, and take my seat at the table.
Ethan sets two plates down of bacon and eggs with toast and jelly. “Eat up. You’re going to need energy.” He gives me a sexy smirk.
“Can’t wait.” I pop a fork full of eggs into my mouth.
“How are they?”
“Delicious. You’re a great cook,” I tell him.
Taking a sip of his coffee, he sets the mug in front of him. “I’ve picked up some skills in the last five years.”
His comment isn’t meant to sting, but it does. Too much time went by that we could’ve been together. I spent too long wallowing in the pain of my loss. “I wish I’d never let you go,” I admit.
Cupping my chin in his hand, he forces me to look into his gorgeous gray eyes. “Please don’t do that. We can’t go back, so let’s not live in regret. We’re back together now and we need to focus on where we go from here, okay?”
I push down the tears that threaten to fall because he’s right. “What are we going to do?”
“I don’t have the answer to that just yet, Linus, but we’re going to figure it out. And soon. I don’t want to be without you anymore.” His eyes amaze me, so full of love and sincerity.
My chest tightens at his admission. “Me either. And I don’t want to sing without you anymore either. It felt so right last night.” Grasping his warm hand in mine, hope burning in my belly, I say, “You could move here with me.”
His smile is wide and hopeful. “Something is going to change and soon. I’m here or you’re back home or we’re together somewhere else. It doesn’t matter.”
This time, I let the tears fall, but they’re tears of happiness. “Sounds good to me.”
Rubbing the pad of his thumb under my eye, he wipes away the tears. “This is going to work between us. No giving up this time. Got it?”
“Got it.”
“Good. Now hurry up and finish your breakfast. I can’t wait much longer.”
And with that I get up and straddle his lap; he’s already hard and ready for me. “I’m not hungry anymore.”
“That’s great news, Mom,” I say into the phone. Like I promised her when I left home last month I’ve called her once a week, normally on Sunday evenings.
I’m doing my best to be present tonight, but all I can think about is Ethan. His visit here made me so happy, and while I’m sad he had to leave to go back home today, I know that we’re in a good place and we’re going to make plans to figure out our living situation as soon as possible.
“And I still haven’t had a drink since you girls left last month,” she tells me. There’s pride in her voice and I believe her.
My mother became an alcoholic when my father passed away. Her way of dealing with the pain. It started to get worse over time and it eventually became a daily occurrence and there was nothing my sister or I could do about it.
To say my mother’s and my relationship is strained is an understatement. We never did get along well and when Dad died, we barely spoke at all. When Rachel and I went home for the reunion, something inside me changed. It was being back home and seeing Ethan again and playing the gig at the reunion with the band. It put everything in perspective for me. It was time for me to grow up and get out of my own way. Rebuilding my relationship with my mom became a priority for me and in turn, she’s changed, too.
“I’m proud of you, Mom. Keep up the good work.”
“Thanks, honey.”
Rachel walks in the door and plops down on the couch next to me. I put my phone on speaker.
“Mom, Rachel just walked in,” I tell her.
“Hi, Rach.”
“How are you, Mom?” Rachel asks.
“Doing good. It’s nice to hear my girls’ voices.”
Rachel and I smile at each other. It makes Rachel happy to see Mom and me talking again. They always had a good relationship and Rachel hated it when we didn’t get along.
“Sin
ce I have you both here, I’ve got news. Last night Ethan and I got approached by a record executive from IM Records last night at open mic night at the Freemont. We played two songs and he must’ve liked us because he gave us his card.” I’m nearly shrieking as I speak, barely able to contain my excitement.
Rachel bounces up off the cushion and almost lands in my lap as she hugs me. “No way. That’s incredible.”
“Woo-hoo,” Mom says. “My baby girl is going to be famous.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. He gave us his card, no promises.” I try to tamp down my excitement, even though it’s nearly impossible. Between my mom’s cheerleading and my sister’s bouncing-off-the-wall energy it isn’t possible. I shriek and join my sister who is now jumping up and down in the middle of our tiny living room.
I settle back on the couch and tell Mom I will call with any updates and we all say our goodbyes.
Rachel walks into the kitchen. “Want a cup of tea?”
“Sounds great.” I bring my knees up under my chin and reflect back on how much things have changed for the better in my life. Ethan and I are back together, someone is interested in our music, and my relationship with my mother is on the up and up. Besides the fact that Ethan and I live in different cities, things couldn’t be much better.
My sister comes back in the room with two mugs in hand. She sets one in front of me and takes the seat next to me, putting her legs across mine. “So tell me all about it. Don’t leave anything out. Oh, and do you hate me for telling him where you work?”
My eyes widen, in all the excitement I forgot that she told him. I’m in too good of a mood to get worked up over it now. “Umm, it could’ve went way worse. He wasn’t happy about it, but we worked through it. We’re giving it another shot. We’re together.”
She sweeps her dark hair out of her face and puts it in a ponytail. I’ve always admired how thick and shiny it is. “I knew it. The second I saw the look on both of your faces at the diner on our first day back in Pennsylvania, nothing had changed for either of you. I’m so happy for you guys.”
“Thanks. I’m thrilled. We want to make it work this time. I see him in my future.”
“Where do you see yourself living?” she asks, raising the mug to her lips and blowing on the hot liquid.
My body stiffens. “We haven’t gotten that far yet. There are still things we need to talk about.”
“Why are you so tense about it? Is he applying pressure?”
“No, not at all. He said he’d be happy anywhere as long as we’re together, but I know he’d like me to move back to Pennsylvania, so he could continue to work for his parents even though he hates it. But once we talk to the guy at IM Records, maybe we’ll have a better idea of our options.” I hate the unknown and being in limbo with our living situation doesn’t sit well with me.
“Yeah, hold off on any major decisions until you talk to the record guy. And in the meantime, if you’d like to fly home with me, I’d love for you to join me. I can’t wait anymore; Tom is flying me home next weekend.” Her smile is larger than life.
“I know I have shifts on Friday and Saturday. Let me see what I can do.” What I wouldn’t give to be with Ethan again in five short days. He’s only been gone a couple of hours and it feels like forever.
7
Caroline
Tuesday morning, I called Marcus at IM Records. It’s a brief call and he let me know he wants to meet me. I told him that Ethan wasn’t here, but he assured me that it was fine if it were just he and I that met today. Luckily, I have the day off, since it’s short notice.
With shaky hands, I press the nine button and ride up the elevator in the IM Records building. I wipe my palms down my dress, attempting to rid them of dampness. With a ding, the door opens and I turn left toward Marcus Campbell’s office.
Pulling open the door, I set my shoulders back and take a shuddering breath and walk toward the receptionist’s silver expanse of a desk. The entire office has a modern contemporary feel, almost to the point of industrial. There’re steel surfaces and metal fixtures throughout the space and exposed pipes and ducts above, such raw elements you’d think would make the office uninviting, but instead it’s got a chic and modern feel.
“Can I help you?” the brunette with a pixie cut sitting behind the desk asks.
“Yes, I’ve got a twelve o’clock appointment to see Mr. Campbell. My name is Caroline Carter.”
She points toward the two black leather couches. “You can have a seat. I’ll let him know you’re here.”
“Thank you,” I say and take a seat, crossing my legs at the ankle.
Checking my watch, I am ten minutes early. It’s too much time to sit here with my nervous energy. Part of me wants to stand and pace, but I’m not sure what pixie cut would think of that, so instead my foot bounces up and down and I focus on my breathing. It’s only a meeting, but it could be a really big deal for us. Our lives could change for the better.
A smirk builds across my lips when I think about calling Ethan to tell him that Marcus wants us to sign a contract with him and start recording an album. What a glorious day it’ll be when we sing our first show together.
“Ms. Carter, come on back.” Standing before me is Marcus Campbell. Taller than I remember, he’s lean and has short dark hair with a smattering of white throughout, giving him a distinguished look. He’s quite handsome.
My heart flutters as I stand and my knees get weak. I take a calming breath and give my hand to him. “Thank you for meeting with me, Mr. Campbell.”
His grip is firm as he shakes my hand. “You’re quite welcome. Follow me down the hall.”
We walk in silence down a long hallway and I focus on Mr. Campbell’s cool and confident gait, giving him a self-assured air that I try and mimic.
He closes the door behind me and gives me a once-over. His eyes are a sharp green and the heat of his appraisal warms my cheeks. I’m wearing a black dress that hits just above the knee. It’s conservative, but has embellishments along the neckline that give it personality without being overly showy. I borrowed it from Rachel, who wears it when she substitute teaches.
“Why don’t you have a seat?” He points to the black leather chair opposite his chrome desk.
Doing as he asks, I sit down, knees together with my hands resting on my lap, my heart racing at an abnormally high rate.
“I’m glad you could make it in today. You impressed me with your performance at the Freemont.” He leans against his desk, standing close to me, arms crossed over his chest.
“Thank you, Mr. Campbell. I appreciate that. Ethan and I wrote the songs we played. We write all of our own music. It’s our passion.” I glow from the inside with pride.
“Please, call me Marcus. How long have you been playing the guitar and singing?”
“As long as I can remember. My dad played and he taught me at a young age.” A pang of sadness hits me in the chest at the mention of my father, but I push it down. He’d be so proud of me. “Ethan and I started a band our junior year of high school and we played together for nearly seven years. Then I moved to Nashville to see if there were any opportunities here to further my career.”
Nodding, he pulls himself up to his full height and walks around the desk to sit in his chair. He leans back in a relaxed position. It’s as if I can breathe easier without having him hover so close to me. “You made a good choice coming here. I’d like to offer you a chance to come sing for the team.”
A swarm of butterflies take flight in my belly. “When?”
“On Thursday at two. Can you be there?”
“Oh my goodness. Yes. I can be, but I’m not sure if Ethan can make it. I will call him after the...”
He cuts me off. “I don’t think you understand. I’m asking you to come. Alone.”
Realization slaps me across the face. I don’t want to do this without Ethan, but what do I say? I know in my heart I’d be a fool to turn this down. I manage a weak smile. “We are better a
s a duet. I know your team will love us together.”
He runs a hand through his short salt and pepper hair. “I’m asking you to come meet the team. We aren’t looking for duets at the moment. If it doesn’t work for you, I’ll have to pass.”
“No. I’ll be there on Thursday.” I paint a smile on my face as I stand to leave the office before I cry or say something that will kill my opportunity.
“Great.” He walks up to me and opens the door. His hand finds my back as I leave. I don’t flinch away, but I also don’t like the advance.
“Goodbye now.” I hurry away down the hall.
“Call if you have questions.”
I don’t look back.
My hands shake on the steering wheel and sobs wrack my body the entire twenty-minute ride home. At one point, I have to pull over and settle down so I can safely make it home. How am I going to tell Ethan that Marcus Campbell wants me to play for the team but not him, too?
Everything has been going so well between us, I don’t want to create a wedge now. Would he understand? We’re still so new, could this change the way he feels about me? It’s pointless to speculate; I have to tell him.
My sister is waiting for me when I get back to our apartment. “Well, how did it go?”
Taking a seat, I slump onto the couch with my purse still over my shoulder. “He wants me to come sing for the team on Thursday.”
She gives my arm a playful smack. “No way. Then why do you look sad and disappointed?”
“Because they want me. Not Ethan,” I say, my tone flat.
“Oh.”
“Yeah. And I don’t know what to say to him. We were so excited for the chance. I’ve got to call him, but I don’t want to let him down.” Tears sting at the back of my eyes, but I push them down.
