something last night, hadn’t she? A connection. He was undeniably good-looking, at least when he wasn’t brooding and pissed off. Maybe a little even then. Underneath that he was smart and witty. He’d made her laugh. For just a few hours, he’d forgotten about being paralyzed and had just been Ethan. And she’d been surprised by just how much she liked him.
But the old Ethan, the guy who took people skydiving and lived in a mansion on a hill, would never have been interested in her. She was an ordinary girl with an ordinary job and an extraordinary amount of baggage. Had she taken advantage of a vulnerable man? That thought sent a wave of nausea over her.
Her mouth felt like it was full of sand, so she got up, dug around in her bag for her toothbrush, and headed to the bathroom. She looked at her face in the mirror and thought she looked much older than her twenty-eight years. The bloodshot eyes with bags underneath certainly didn’t help—but still…
After she finished getting dressed, she made her way to the kitchen. No sound came from the direction of Ethan’s room. Still asleep. Sarah pilfered around in the cupboards as quietly as she could before dramatically opening up the double-door fridge.
“Pay dirt,” she whispered.
A package of ground coffee peeked out from the back of the freezer, atop some kind of frozen vegan food substitute. No milk, but she’d make do. It took at least five minutes to figure out the fancy Italian coffee machine. She snickered. Hers at home had exactly two buttons: power and brew. A few seconds later, a rich, heady aroma filled the kitchen. Oversized mugs hung from a rack below the cabinet, and she poured a generous cup right up to the brim.
She took her coffee over to the bay window and sat down on the seat. She gasped when she took in the magnificent view. Below the house, a tree-covered hill sloped gently down to a wide creek. She scanned the horizon—not a manmade structure in sight. Nature stretched out as far as the eye could see. Ethan’s life was making more and more sense. She imagined him running through the woods and climbing up trees as a boy.
“What are you smiling about?” He had rolled into the kitchen as silently as a ninja in footed pajamas. Sarah jerked in surprise and nearly spilled her coffee. Her cheeks flushed. She wondered if he knew she was thinking about him.
“You’re sneaky in that thing. I was just scoping out the view. Not bad. I could get used to this.”
“Good. I think you should move in.”
“What?” She nearly spilled her coffee a second time. “Did you fall down and hit your head again?”
“I’m serious. I’ve spent most of the night thinking about this. It makes perfect sense.”
“Only if by perfect sense you mean no sense.”
“Hear me out. I need someone to live with me. I can’t stay here alone, and I’ll be damned if I’m moving into a nursing home.”
“Long-term care facility,” Sarah corrected.
“Whatever. You’ve done this before. With your mom. You have the experience. And I like the idea of a full-time physical therapist a helluva lot more than a live-in nursemaid.”
“Okay, I’m starting to understand why this would make perfect sense for you .”
“It does for you, too. I’ll match your salary. Meaning I’ll pay you to live here.” He gestured to the view she’d been mooning over. “Plus, you can keep your job.”
“How could I? You need someone with you. All the time. I heard it straight from Dr. Sanchez’s mouth.”
He paused, searching for a rebuttal. “My staff will pitch in during the day.” He snapped a finger. “And I’ll get one of those dogs.”
“You’ll get a dog?”
“You know, the ones people get to do stuff for them.”
“A service animal?”
“Yes! No problem.”
She rolled her eyes. “What about last night?”
“My fault completely. I apologize. I drank too much. Won’t happen again.”
Why did him saying that disappoint her? She shook the
But the old Ethan, the guy who took people skydiving and lived in a mansion on a hill, would never have been interested in her. She was an ordinary girl with an ordinary job and an extraordinary amount of baggage. Had she taken advantage of a vulnerable man? That thought sent a wave of nausea over her.
Her mouth felt like it was full of sand, so she got up, dug around in her bag for her toothbrush, and headed to the bathroom. She looked at her face in the mirror and thought she looked much older than her twenty-eight years. The bloodshot eyes with bags underneath certainly didn’t help—but still…
After she finished getting dressed, she made her way to the kitchen. No sound came from the direction of Ethan’s room. Still asleep. Sarah pilfered around in the cupboards as quietly as she could before dramatically opening up the double-door fridge.
“Pay dirt,” she whispered.
A package of ground coffee peeked out from the back of the freezer, atop some kind of frozen vegan food substitute. No milk, but she’d make do. It took at least five minutes to figure out the fancy Italian coffee machine. She snickered. Hers at home had exactly two buttons: power and brew. A few seconds later, a rich, heady aroma filled the kitchen. Oversized mugs hung from a rack below the cabinet, and she poured a generous cup right up to the brim.
She took her coffee over to the bay window and sat down on the seat. She gasped when she took in the magnificent view. Below the house, a tree-covered hill sloped gently down to a wide creek. She scanned the horizon—not a manmade structure in sight. Nature stretched out as far as the eye could see. Ethan’s life was making more and more sense. She imagined him running through the woods and climbing up trees as a boy.
“What are you smiling about?” He had rolled into the kitchen as silently as a ninja in footed pajamas. Sarah jerked in surprise and nearly spilled her coffee. Her cheeks flushed. She wondered if he knew she was thinking about him.
“You’re sneaky in that thing. I was just scoping out the view. Not bad. I could get used to this.”
“Good. I think you should move in.”
“What?” She nearly spilled her coffee a second time. “Did you fall down and hit your head again?”
“I’m serious. I’ve spent most of the night thinking about this. It makes perfect sense.”
“Only if by perfect sense you mean no sense.”
“Hear me out. I need someone to live with me. I can’t stay here alone, and I’ll be damned if I’m moving into a nursing home.”
“Long-term care facility,” Sarah corrected.
“Whatever. You’ve done this before. With your mom. You have the experience. And I like the idea of a full-time physical therapist a helluva lot more than a live-in nursemaid.”
“Okay, I’m starting to understand why this would make perfect sense for you .”
“It does for you, too. I’ll match your salary. Meaning I’ll pay you to live here.” He gestured to the view she’d been mooning over. “Plus, you can keep your job.”
“How could I? You need someone with you. All the time. I heard it straight from Dr. Sanchez’s mouth.”
He paused, searching for a rebuttal. “My staff will pitch in during the day.” He snapped a finger. “And I’ll get one of those dogs.”
“You’ll get a dog?”
“You know, the ones people get to do stuff for them.”
“A service animal?”
“Yes! No problem.”
She rolled her eyes. “What about last night?”
“My fault completely. I apologize. I drank too much. Won’t happen again.”
Why did him saying that disappoint her? She shook the
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