10. SOPHIA
10
SOPHIA
Once again, I’ve fallen victim to the Blackwood charm.
Damn him.
The morning air is uncharacteristically cool as I sit on the back deck sipping my coffee, the gulls screeching as they wheel and dive overhead, the smell of bacon cooking wafts outside as my dad prepares for the day.
What would it be like to be a seagull, to fly away whenever things get unpleasant? Not a bad life … until a shark leaps from the water or an eagle swoops down.
Maybe not such a great thing after all.
Why do I keep beating myself up over my relationship with Ethan?
I enjoyed it. Wasn’t that enough?
The scheme Ethan is working on with the adoption seems to be a good thing, right?
Making sure that a child ends up with at least one of their biological parents, one who’s more than able to take care of their needs, well, it’s hard to argue with that.
Still, I can’t shake the feeling that if Ethan’s parents are involved, something has to be wrong with it.
Maybe I’ll feel better once I meet with this Harrison Whitmore person.
Ethan told me a little about him before bringing me back to my car early this morning.
Whitmore owns several companies, including Universal Solutions, a multinational conglomerate with its hands in almost every industry, from technology to heavy industry to finance. They, indeed, are universal.
I looked him up online when I got home; he seems decent enough on the surface.
He already has one grown son from his first wife, who had died tragically in an auto accident. This son is now a chemical engineer with a stable family and career. There’s nothing to indicate his upbringing had been anything less than ideal.
Rumor is that Whitmore has a thing for younger women, but in all honesty, what rich, powerful guy didn’t?
Still a relatively young fifty-five, he lives a mostly reclusive life apart from an occasional public appearance.
The few negative articles I found generally related to his hardball business tactic, but that, too, was to be expected.
I’m pretty sure the idea of spending time as Ethan’s faux wife is coloring my judgment.
What does that even look like?
I’m sure his parents had been informed that, “that Delgado girl,” as I imagine they would refer to me, was now in on their plan.
With their WASPy sensibilities, they probably would be enraged if their blue-blooded son really did marry someone with a Hispanic last name, even though most traces of that heritage go very far back.
I imagine I’ll have to present myself as Mrs. Blackwood, at least to the young woman. Presumably, we’d have to meet her in person.
I wonder if I could marry a guy like Ethan?
He has demonstrated he is capable of honesty and affection, but how far does that extend, and how long will it last?
I’m sure all his ex-girlfriends thought he was sweet at some point, too; otherwise, why go out with him?
Just like Dax, I don’t want to make that mistake again.
It’s way too early to be thinking about such a thing anyway.
I think about what I might do with the money I earn.
I don’t know how much that might be, but Ethan hinted that it might be over six figures.
Naturally, I’d never thought about having that kind of money, at least not all at once. Sure, once I’d built my career, maybe I’d earn that in a year, but now?
My parents will also be curious as to where I had come into that kind of money and will be none too happy if they learn it came from the Blackwoods. They don’t trust that family either.
I’ll have to be able to tell them the story. Maybe it will be OK.
If nothing else, I might get my own apartment or a little cottage in town. I love my parents, but when you’re twenty-two, they cramp your style.
I wrap my robe around me and head back to the house to prepare for work.
My thoughts rush back to last night.
Even if he was a lousy lover, which he’s not, he gets an A+ for imagination. Who knew a violin bow could be used as a sex toy?
I run one hand over my breast, reveling in the sensation. A wicked smile comes to my lips, but I realize I must get moving. I have to get to work.
As I turn on the shower, I wonder if, at some point, Ethan might be able to begin to erase his family’s reputation. I’m not sure if he’ll even try—once he takes control of the family business.
Money can change people, and I’m not convinced he’s really changed.
Once he has complete control of everything, he might be unable to resist using the incredible power to enrich himself even further—or do even worse.
Enough!
I’m filling my head with all these preconceived notions about what Ethan is really like or what might happen in the future.
That’s not fair to either one of us.
I step into the shower, and as the warm water cascades over my body, I give in to temptation, allowing my hand to wander down to my sex, my finger flicking over my clit, imagining it’s Ethan doing it.
I can feel every nerve in my body stimulated by the rushing of water and the attention of my hand.
The other hand finds my breast, playing with my nipple, pretending it’s the strings of the bow he used so skillfully.
“Shit,” I groan, the finger on my clit moving in rapid circles, my breath coming in fast gasps.
My climax washes over me as I slump heavily against the tile wall, my legs barely able to hold me up.
Shit, I’m going to be late, I think, glancing at my phone while stepping out of the shower.
I dress quickly, and my phone buzzes as I step out the door.
“Hey Mel,” I try to sound casual, but I dread telling her about my night with Ethan.
“Hey, Soph. The girls and I are heading down to the beach later. Wanna join us?”
“Sorry, can’t. Got called in to work to cover a shift.”
“That sucks.”
“Yeah ... listen, um, I gotta tell you something. Try not to be mad.”
“Uh oh. I don’t like the sound of this.”
“So, I don’t know how you’re going to feel about this, but I went out with Ethan again last night, and I ... kind of ended up hooking up with him again.”
I dread hearing what she’s going to say, thinking she’ll berate me.
“Look, I love you, Soph, and we’ve been over how I feel about Ethan. I don’t know if you really know what he did to Alexa,” she says, referring to her older sister.
“No,” I admit. I know he was supposedly pretty emotionally abusive towards her, then cheated on her and dumped her unceremoniously. It was a shitty thing to do, but I didn’t know the details.”
“Yeah, well, it was a while ago, but he used to give her shit, tell her he didn’t know why he even dated her because she was shallow and stupid. Then he went and cheated on her and then tried to make it sound like it was all her fault.”
“I had no idea,” is all I can say. I find it hard to believe the Ethan I know could be such an asshole. I had heard Liam talk about what a “player” Ethan was but found it hard to believe it was that bad.
I also know that Melanie wouldn’t lie to me.
“Jeez, I’m sorry Mel. I ... I didn’t know it was that bad.”
“Look, I don’t want to ruin your happiness. I mean, who knows, it’s been a long time, and maybe he’s changed, I have no idea.”
“It bothers me that he was ever like that. I don’t want to say a tiger can’t change his stripes, but that’s some serious shit. That’s a discussion I’ll be having with him. You remember what happened with me and Dax?”
“Oh, I remember,” she says derisively. “Like I told you before, if he makes you happy, I’m happy for you; just please, please, be careful.
Be careful . Those words rattle around in my head after I hang up. Are my feelings for Ethan so strong that I’m failing to realize I’m walking into the same sort of trap I fell into with Dax—or worse?
Could Ethan really be dangerous?