Page 20 of Bride ’N Boots

“A phone call.” I swallowed. “To my . . . to Ethan.”

“And what will you be telling Ethan?” he asked.

“You know what I’ll tell him.”

“That you met someone.”

My brow furrowed and I shook my head. “No.”

“But we did meet.”

“Yes. But this isn’t about you.”

“What’s it about then?”

“Me realizing that my relationship with him is over.”

“Yeah, because you met me.” He took a step closer. “If you hadn’t met me, you’d still be letting him string you along until he was ready, or until he ended it.”

I glared up at him for daring to speak the truth. “You make me sound like squirrel willing to accept peanuts.”

It was his turn to glare. “Because you are expecting peanuts, when you should be expecting more. You’re a romantic with a soft heart and he’s a stupid bastard for not safeguarding it like the treasure that it is. He’s a boy. You need a man. And now you’ve got one.”

My anger was a bomb he’d diffused in seconds.

“I also know you won’t let me touch you until you’re free and clear of this emotional entanglement.” He leaned down and kissed my nose. “So, untangle.”

He pulled back. “I’ll be inside when you’re ready to go.”

“And where are we going?” I asked.

“You tell me, gremlin.” He kissed my lips. Quick. A peck. A tease.

And then he left me alone.

I pulled out my phone and stared at the screen. I opened it and listened to Ethan’s voicemail, asking me to call him whenever I had the chance.

Taking a deep breath, I pressed his name. He answered on the first ring.

“Babe,” he greeted. “I’ve got great news. My meeting went well. Really well. So well that they offered me a promotion.”

“That’s great, Ethan,” I said, trying to inject excitement into my voice.

“Yeah, it is. You know what’s even better? They’re paying for a relocation to Coeur d’Alene. I mean, I could work remote before, but now they’re paying for the move. It’s perfect.”

Silence permeated the other end of the line while he waited for me to react.

“Babe?” he pressed. “Isn’t that good news? Now we can be together.”

“But the last time I visited, you said you didn’t want to move to Coeur d’Alene.”

“Things changed. I don’t want to do long distance, and now we won’t have to. I’ll move to Coeur d’Alene, we’ll get a place together and⁠—”

“Hang on a second,” I interrupted.

“What? Aren’t you happy?”

“Happy? Ethan, you plan your life and expect me to fit in around it. You wanted to stay in Seattle for your job. I understood that. When I floated the idea of you moving to Coeur d’Alene eventually, you shut me down.” I paused. “Who was she, Ethan?”