6. All The Jealousy （Ethan）
ALL THE JEALOUSY (ETHAN)
C ooper fucking Daley.
I should’ve known he’d be the only man ballsy enough to flirt with my fiancée in the middle of a crowd worth over a trillion dollars combined.
Touching her, leaning in like they share some kind of intimate, private joke.
No.
Absolutely fucking not.
He grins at me like he can read the violence in my head.
I have no idea how Hattie even managed to smile at the guy.
He drips smarmy, and he also needs a haircut for that mop attached to his scalp.
Hattie’s arm presses against my side, and it’s the only reason why I loosen my grip slightly.
This isn’t her fault.
She didn’t know what she was getting into with this gladhanding fuckstick. I only hope she doesn’t fight me on this as I face him down.
“Daley,” I clip, keeping my voice calm, like I’m not about to lose my shit. “Don’t you have a family— a wife —to get back to?”
“Aw, why so serious, Blackthorn?” he drawls.
Hattie stiffens.
I have to unclench my jaw.
“I don’t want her missing out on anything important. We have other people to talk to,” I tell him.
“She’s good. And hey, Ethan, I’m sorry as hell about the old man.
He lived an incredible life. So many wins, up and down the coast.” He’s shitty enough to frown like he’s genuinely upset while my insides blaze with grief that has nowhere to bleed.
“I wouldn’t be where I am today without his insight. ”
No lie.
I’m sorry as hell I didn’t sign on to Blackthorn Holdings sooner. Then maybe inhuman slimeballs like Daley never would’ve been mentored by Gramps, handing him the keys to a rapid career climb.
His rise has been shady from the beginning. I don’t believe for a second that insight has gotten him this far.
When I don’t respond, Hattie steps forward.
“Thanks, Cooper. We appreciate it,” she says. “Don’t we, Ethan?”
Daley flashes her a million-dollar smile. Almost literally—the man must’ve spent six figures on dental work and jaw surgery.
The first time I saw him, years ago when he was just an intern, he had crooked teeth. One hundred miles from the modelesque smile that’s plastered on all of his ads.
No wonder Hattie blinks like she’s dazzled. Should’ve warned her to borrow some fucking shades from Margot’s collection.
What Gramps saw whenever he brought him on as an understudy, I don’t know.
“Thanks, Hattie,” he says before he turns to me. “You’ve got a good one here, Ethan. Look after her, will you?” He grins. “Wouldn’t want to lose her. Make your granddad proud.”
Is that a threat?
I almost snarl it in his face, but priority number one is getting Hattie the hell away from him.
She doesn’t protest as I march her to the other side of the room, but when she looks up at me, she’s frowning. I do my best not to notice the tiny crease in her brows or the way her eyes look close to panic.
All evening, I’ve been doing my damnedest not to notice how stunning she looks tonight.
That red dress accents curves for days. The way it clings to her should be criminal.
I’m here for business, to make this engagement look legit, and she’s stolen the show.
Who knew she could clean up so well?
No one can keep their eyes off her for long.
Probably something to do with the flirty slit up her skirt, revealing that flash of leg every time she takes a step.
Or maybe it’s the wide, doe-like innocence in her eyes.
Hell, maybe it’s just the cleavage that drew Daley in like a piranha.
Fuck.
“Are you going to explain?” she prompts.
“No.”
She huffs. “What was that all about?”
“ That was Cooper Daley.”
“Uh, yeah, he introduced himself. But why are you freaking out?” She snags a glass of champagne as we pass a waiter, holding it like a weapon.
Her other hand stays tucked in my arm reluctantly.
“There’s nothing to explain,” I bite off.
“Whatever. You guys don’t like each other, clearly.”
“Nothing new. Lots of people I don’t enjoy, especially in these circles.”
“Yes, but you really don’t like him,” she presses.
I’m forced to look down at her again. Her eyelashes sweep up toward her eyebrows as she meets my gaze.
The height difference drives me insane, conjuring filthy thoughts better left muted.
This is Hattie Sage, goddammit.
Yes, she’s striking, but I knew her as a frizzy-haired nerd.
Annoying and stuck in her own world. Bookish to a fault.
Also, ridiculously gullible in an adorable way.
Now, she’s developed a talent for being a grown-up pain in my ass.
But when I think about the way Cooper caught her arm and leaned in and made her blush, I wanted to break something. Preferably his face.
This fake engagement bullshit must be getting to my head.
“Is it because he worked with your granddad?” she asks when I don’t explain.
“No. Not quite.”
“Then what?”
“What makes you think it’s any of your business?” I steer her to the left, avoiding another group that’s doing their best to catch my eye.
A moment to breathe.
Just a minute, then freedom.
By then, hopefully Cooper will have moved on, if he hasn’t left the building. Gone back home to his pretty wife.
Poor girl. He’s left her alone while he attends these events alone, all so he can chat up everything with tits.
Hattie untangles her arm from mine the second we step into the cool air. Goosebumps prickle her skin, and I shrug off my jacket, laying it over her shoulders.
“What’s this for?” She blinks.
“It’s a cool evening and that dress doesn’t look warm. Too much exposed skin.”
Her lips pinch together as she looks down at herself.
“Oh. Thanks. And I’m sorry if this isn’t what you had in mind when you invited me,” she says quietly. “Margot thought it would be good, but—”
“What the fuck?” I’m too confused to even think about being polite. “Why are you frazzled about the dress?”
Her eyes are shadowed when she looks up at me.
The sun has set and the soft outdoor lamps are the only light.
Being out here alone feels like a bad idea.
Just not bad enough for me to storm back inside where Cooper Daley and a bunch of heavy responsibilities wait like hungry wolves.
“You said you didn’t like the dress.”
Unable to help myself, I eye the dress again. It’s a journey dyed in red, wrapping around her waist, tight across her wide hips, draping over her breasts and one shoulder.
And that slit—a siren call to skin.
“The dress is fine,” I say gruffly. More than fine. “But that’s not the issue. You need to stay the hell away from Cooper Daley. He might’ve worked with Gramps, but he’s no family friend. I never trusted his ass.”
“Why?”
“Must you know everything?” I snarl.
“Yes.” She folds her arms across her chest, which pushes her breasts up deliciously. “I want to know. Just because I agreed to this insanity doesn’t mean I answer to you. Or that you can keep me in the dark about everything. I’m old enough to handle myself, Ethan.”
“Like hell,” I mutter.
“See, that. That, right there, is the toxic alpha crap that doesn’t jive with me.” She jabs me in the chest, a gesture so unexpected, I freeze. “Keep it up, and I’m done. I’ll give you your money back. So explain . Why do you want me to avoid Cooper Daley again?”
“Toxic alpha crap?” I snort. “Is that what they call a man protecting his girl now?”
“What would you call it? What are you protecting me from?”
“I’d call it common courtesy, and you’re welcome. One more minute alone, and his hand would’ve been on your ass. I’ve seen how he behaves with women before.”
Her mouth opens, but no words come out.
She sucks in a breath that’s too loud in the evening air with the canned laughter floating from the ballroom.
“I was never in any danger. You didn’t need to protect me.” She shakes her head. “Jesus, it’s like we’re kids again.”
“Too defensive.” I jam a frustrated hand through my hair. “And why is that so horrible? Even when I was a complete shit to you, I was looking out for you, Pages. You and Margot both.”
“Yeah, sure.” Her eyes glint with anger and another emotion I can’t identify. “The boy who used to wreck our beach castles was protecting me. The guy who almost got me drowned was just looking out for my health.”
Damn her.
There’s no way to explain the way my heart seized up when I saw her leap off the side of the boat, fully clothed.
That awful moment when she went under by the pier and didn’t surface again.
I never hesitated.
I was in the water before I knew what I was doing—and she was so frantic, so desperate, spitting water with wide eyes.
I knew I would never be able to make it up to her.
I grit my teeth. “We’ve already been through this. I pulled you out. I kept you safe.”
“Yes, we’ve established that. If only you’d never told me a literary icon was just a few feet away.”
“And I’m fucking sorry ,” I snap. “I never would’ve done it if I’d known you’d jump in. Goddamn, Hattie. What kind of shit-wretch do you think I am?”
She hesitates.
“The kind who used to pull pages out of my favorite books for fun?”
“Yeah, and I bought you new copies, didn’t I? Better ones. I’d leave you hardbacks before you left to go home.” I’m closer now, leaning over her, my hand on her arm, though I don’t remember putting it there.
Her perfume merges with the heady summer night, something rich like hints of mocha or plum.
“ You were the one who sent the books?” she whispers.
“Who did you think? Margot?” I snort. “Don’t think she’s ever read a complete novel in her life that wasn’t for school or a fashion show. She absorbed damn near everything from the movies, the brat.”
“And you weren’t one too?” She sucks in a breath through parted lips.
“I was a hellraiser, but I never meant to hurt you, Pages.” The old name comes back too easily, landing between us like an arrow, ripping us back to our youth.
Except neither of us are clueless teens anymore.
Her face tilts toward mine, half-shadowed, and she’s practically panting with frustration.
Her chest grazes mine.
My hand is still on her arm.
Fuck, I don’t mean to, but I lean in, the gravity taking over.
Her green eyes widen.