Chapter 16 Zoe
Chapter Sixteen
ZOE
I vaguely listened at a court hearing a few days later—a few days during which Ethan texted roughly every hour.
I was able to surmise his daily practice schedule solely based on that being the longest chunk of time during the day he didn’t text me.
My mind wandered to what it had felt like to have him deep inside me, the pull and slide of his cock feeling so delicious I got hot and bothered just thinking about it.
“Ms. Lawson,” the judge said.
My attention snapped back to the courtroom. I was relieved at the distance between the table where I was standing and the judge, otherwise he might notice the flush I could feel on my cheeks. “Yes, Your Honor.”
“I’ve asked you twice if you agree to the conditions proposed by opposing counsel. This will be your last chance.”
Judge Wilson was a generally patient judge, but I could see the furrow between his brows and sensed I needed to do a better job of focusing.
This had never happened to me before. I didn’t get distracted in court, even for the mundane administrative hearings such as this one.
I’d always prided myself on my focus and attention to detail.
Little did I know, I’d been coasting by on the fact I had nothing to distract me before.
Ethan was the mother of all distractions and filled my mind day and night.
“My apologies Your Honor. I’ve reviewed the conditions in the proposed settlement and my client is willing to agree to them,” I replied with a nod.
The moment the judge turned back to opposing counsel to ask something, Ethan sauntered right back into my thoughts. I was screwed. In more ways than one.
I got through the hearing and made my way back outside.
As much as my mind was enjoying fantasies of Ethan, worries were cropping up.
I’d obliterated the professional barrier I tried to keep between myself and clients.
When it came to attorneys and clients, the ethical guidelines around relationships were vague.
The general line was whether the ‘sexual contact’ started before your professional relationship.
I was walking right on that line, and I knew it.
Ethan had kissed me before I became his attorney, but I felt silly arguing that point.
No matter the legal ramifications of what I’d done, it was definitely frowned upon to fuck your clients.
As with everything in life, men could get away with far more than women.
I knew how it would look if it became public knowledge I’d gotten involved with Ethan while I was representing him.
I hated admitting it, but he’d swept me off my feet and I’d gotten caught in the tides of desire.
I’d conveniently managed to shut my worries off for a bit, but now they were back in force.
In part because I didn’t know how to define what was happening with us.
I knew, whether I wanted to or not, that he was best known for being a player and not just in soccer.
I doubted he intended to have this thing with me be anything more than it was.
I figured the heat would start to cool, and he’d move onto the next hot woman who caught his fancy.
So I needed to stop being stupid and think clearly.
The last thing I wanted was to tarnish the professional reputation I’d cultivated so carefully.
The smart move would be to put the brakes on what was happening with Ethan.
I’d managed to wave goodbye to my annoying virginity, so I could probably have more luck with a normal dating life as a twenty-nine year old woman now.
Problem was, just thinking about trying to be with anyone other than Ethan made my heart ache.
This was bad. Really, really bad. I could not fall for him.
Why not? He’s totally into you. You’re not just another woman to him.
Yeah, right. Don’t be so stupid. I’m a novelty right now. It will wear off and then where will I be if I let myself think we can have something more?
This internal debate was replaying like an intense match day in and day out.
I needed to get a grip and fast. As I strode quickly down the sidewalk to return to my office, my phone vibrated in my pocket.
I slipped it out to see Ethan’s name flash on a text banner.
A smile bloomed from the inside out. I tapped it open.
Please.
He was back at inviting me to every meal of the day. Meanwhile, I’d been staving him off by telling him I was busy.
I couldn’t help myself.
Fine. Dinner tonight.
Yes! Okay, meet you at your place at 5:30.
My heart did a little dance and my belly somersaulted. I was screwed, so totally screwed.
I took a gulp of wine as Liam regaled the table with an amusing story about him and Alex when they were boys.
We were at a large round table in the back corner of a newer Italian restaurant on the Seattle scene.
Seattle was a foodie city. Restaurants churned through here, some surviving the onslaught of attention and others slinking away.
I didn’t even recall what this place was called, but the food was divine.
The menu hewed to fairly classic Italian dishes with fresh ingredients.
Ethan had arrived promptly at five-thirty to pick me up as he’d promised.
I’d come to learn he was a punctual man.
His outer image as a lackadaisical player didn’t mesh with much of what I’d come to know about him.
He was unfailingly polite, although he never missed an opportunity to tease.
Tonight was more eye opening than I could’ve imagined.
Dinner included Liam and Olivia, Tristan who was Ethan’s flat-mate and another player for the Stars, along with Harper Jacobs who I’d met when I was representing Alex Gordon last year, and Daisy Knight who was a good friend of Olivia and Harper’s.
Alex wasn’t here, which had surprised me until Harper shared he was out of town for the weekend.
It felt strange to be here with Ethan. For starters, there was the obvious fact I hadn’t had anything resembling a relationship since I’d been in law school and even then, nothing had gone far.
Aside from Olivia and Liam, Ethan and I were the only other two who could be considered a couple.
Despite my renewed worries about what the hell I was doing to my career by doing anything with Ethan, I hadn’t even thought about being seen in public with him until we were here.
When I wasn’t caught up in conversation, I was busy trying to convince myself if anyone saw me here, I could easily explain it since I was with an entire group, most of whom weren’t on dates.
Truth was, I didn’t really want to think about it, what with Ethan alternating between keeping his hand curled over my thigh, or sliding it in between my legs.
The end result was I was hot, bothered, flustered and drinking too much wine.
“Mate, Alex tells a different story,” Ethan said with a sly grin. “According to him, you’re the one who fell in the lake.”
Liam flashed a grin. He didn’t give me the crazy zing Ethan did, but I had to admit Liam was ridiculously handsome with his jet black hair and blue eyes.
It was beyond obvious he adored Olivia, so I imagined he’d left many a broken heart in his wake.
“Aye, Alex isn’t here to debate that point,” Liam countered.
Tristan, a quiet sort, winked toward Ethan. “My bets are on Alex, mate. He’s more methodical than you.”
I’d lost track of Liam’s story, but I knew it involved one of them falling in a lake. Conversation moved in another direction. I didn’t mind groups like this, but I tended to be a quiet participant. My ears perked up when someone mentioned Ethan’s sisters.
“You have sisters?” I asked, glancing his way. I didn’t ponder my intense curiosity, but it was there. I wanted to know him and was hungry for every little personal detail I discovered.
“Oh luv, he has four,” Liam interjected, answering for him. “For that reason, I always turn to him when I need a female perspective. All through university, he was our go to for advice. He’d call up one of his sisters and hand the phone over.”
Ethan chuckled and shrugged. “Forgot about that. Loads of questions back then about how not to chase girls.”
“Four sisters?” Daisy said, brushing her long blonde hair back from her shoulders.
She reminded me of Jana in ways. She was bold and beautiful with her bright blonde hair and wide brown eyes.
She didn’t shy away from any topic. I’d also noticed her attention flicking to Tristan with frequency.
He took tall, dark and mysterious to a new level.
If he noticed her attention, it didn’t show. Back to the question at hand.
“That’s correct. Four whole sisters. Three older and one younger, and every one of them bosses me around,” Ethan answered with a grin.
Liam caught my eyes. “Zoe, if you have trouble with Ethan, just sic one of his sisters on him. They’ll whip him into shape inside of one phone call.”
Ethan gave my thigh a squeeze while he laughed at Liam’s comment. “True. I tend to do what they say.”
Daisy flashed a grin. “You’re smarter than you let on, Ethan.”
The banter continued, and I drank another glass of wine.
I didn’t realize quite how tipsy I was until we were leaving, and I began walking out of the restaurant.
I wobbled a bit, and Ethan caught me around the waist. I was relieved everyone there with us was ahead of us because I didn’t like to think about how this looked.
I leaned into him because I was like a cat looking for affection when it came to Ethan.
I leaned into every touch, my body thrumming.
“Easy luv. I think you might’ve had a few too many glasses of wine,” he murmured, his voice near my ear and his breath gusting against my neck.
A shiver ran through me. I glanced up to him. “Too much is one way to put it,” I managed. “Did you have anything to drink?”