He said. They stood in the rain, neither wanting to be the first to leave, both aware that whatever this was, this strange accidental collision of worlds, was fragile enough to break if they looked at it too hard. "Text me," Vivian said finally. "I will. I mean it.
I know. " She turned toward the Jaguar, then paused. "Ethan, yeah. Thank you for stopping, for fixing my car, for showing up tonight, even late. And covered in mud. Thank you for not leaving when I didn't show up on time.
I did leave, but you came back. She smiled, got in her car, and drove away. Ethan watched the Jaguar's tail lights disappear into the rain, then climbed into his truck and sat there for a long moment, hands on the wheel, trying to make sense of what had just happened. His phone buzzed. Vivien, drive safe and fix that check engine light.
He laughed and typed back, "Yes, ma'am. The drive home took 20 minutes, and for the first time in longer than he could remember, Ethan Cole wasn't thinking about foreclosure notices or overdue bills, or whether he was failing his daughter. He was thinking about a woman who ran an empire, but ate greasy diner burgers at midnight, and he was smiling. The next morning came too early and brought Sophie with it. Ethan woke to the sound of his sister's key turning in the lock, followed by the thundering footsteps of an 8-year-old who'd apparently forgotten how to use her inside voice.
Dad, dad, wake up. Aunt Sarah said you went on a date, and I want to hear everything. He groaned into his pillow, every muscle, protesting. Sleeping in wet jeans on top of the covers probably wasn't his smartest move, but he'd been too tired to care when he'd stumbled in at 1:00 in the morning. Sophie, inside voice, Sarah called from the doorway.
And maybe let your dad actually wake up before the interrogation. Ethan rolled over to find his daughter standing beside the bed, still in her dinosaur pajamas, brown eyes wide, with the kind of manic energy only children possessed before 8:00 a.m. Was she pretty? Did you kiss her? Are you getting married?
Jesus. So, he sat up, wincing at the ache in his back. How about we start with good morning? Good morning. Now answer the questions.
Sarah appeared behind Sophie holding two cups of coffee like a peace offering. I tried to make her wait in the car. Clearly that worked great. Ethan took one of the mugs gratefully. What time is it?
7:30. You're welcome. Sarah sat on the edge of the bed studying him with that older sister expression that meant she was cataloging every detail for later analysis. So, how did it go? Sophie bounced on her toes.
Did you like her? Ethan took a long drink of coffee, buying time. How did he explain last night to an 8-year-old? How did he explain it to himself? It was good, he said finally.
Weird, but good. Weird how? Sarah pressed. She was the one I helped. The car that broke down.
Sarah's eyes went wide. You're kidding. Nope. Fixed her Jaguar, rushed to the restaurant. She'd already left because I was late.