Chapter Thirty-Nine
Carter kept an eye on Ethan the entire time he was making dessert.
Nothing fancy—chocolate cupcakes with icing—but it gave his hands something to do, something steady.
Ethan sat still at the counter with a little pink around his eyes.
Now and then, Carter caught him watching, like he was checking to make sure Carter hadn’t changed his mind about… everything.
When they sat down to eat, Ethan pushed his cupcake around for a minute before speaking. “You’re not… mad anymore, right?”
Carter shook his head. “No. I told you—we were done.”
Ethan nodded, but his shoulders remained tight. “I just… I worry sometimes.”
“About what?”
Ethan hesitated, chewing his bottom lip. “That you’ll get tired of dealing with me. I know I’m… a lot.”
Carter set his fork down. “Ethan.”
Ethan kept going. “I have a hard time controlling it. That need to feel high. Doing dangerous stuff. Bikes, speed, whatever. It’s like… it’s the only time I feel free. And I know it scares you. I don’t want you to think I’m broken or something.”
Carter reached across the table, resting his hand over Ethan’s. “You’re not broken.”
Ethan looked up, eyes wide and uncertain.
“And I’m not leaving,” Carter said. “I love you too much to hurt myself like that.”
The words slipped out before he could second-guess them. Honest. Bare. Real.
Ethan froze. Completely still. Like the world had stopped spinning.
“You… love me?” he asked.
Carter nodded once. “Yeah. I do.”
Ethan’s breath hitched, and then he let out a nervous laugh—half disbelief, half relief. “Carter… I’m dangerously in love with you.”
Something warm settled deep in Carter’s chest. He squeezed Ethan’s hand. “Yeah. I figured.”
They finished eating their cupcakes slowly after that, talking in softer voices, the kind that only came out when the worst was behind them. When they cleaned up, Ethan kept brushing against him with small touches, accidental or maybe not. Carter didn’t mind. He enjoyed knowing Ethan was close.
Ethan had just finished drying the last dish when Carter’s phone buzzed on the counter.
Mr. Evans.
Carter’s stomach stiffened. “Yeah?”
Mr. Evans didn’t waste time. “We got the surveillance footage.”
Carter straightened. “From the house?”
“Yes. And you’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you.” There was a pause, a heavy one. “It was those same two boys, Alexander and Mateo. The ones who bullied Ethan for money. The same ones I paid off after he burned the bikes. And Tomás González joined them.”
Carter clenched his jaw. Hard. The anger rose fast and hot, but this time it wasn’t at Ethan. “It figures it was those same thugs. Not surprised about Tomás joining them either.”
Ethan, who had been wiping the counter, froze mid-motion, eyes locked on Carter’s face.
Mr. Evans continued, voice grim. “They broke in. They were looking to destroy Ethan and everything important to him.”
Carter’s grip tightened around the phone. “What did Officer Duarte do about it?”
Ethan swallowed, fear flickering across his face.
“He arrested them. They are in jail awaiting trial. My attorney says we have a tight case.”
“Duarte finally did his damn job instead of blaming Ethan.”
“He has a history of hating my son.”
“I saw his hate and Ethan felt it.”
“There’s no threat now. And I need you back at the ranch as soon as possible.”
“We’ll leave in the morning. But Ethan and I want to have a meeting with you at the cabin.”
“Call when you’re home. I’ll come straight away.”
“Will do.”
Carter ended the call and set the phone down slowly, like he needed a second to steady himself.
His pulse was still running hot from the news, but when he looked over at Ethan—wide-eyed, tense, trying to read his face—everything in him softened.
Ethan always did that to him. Pulled him back from the edge.
“I knew it was those assholes,” Ethan said.
Carter nodded. “Yeah. And they’re not touching you. Never again.”
Ethan’s eyes softened, but there was fear there too.
Carter stepped closer, sliding a hand to Ethan’s back, fingers brushing circles. “Hey,” he said. “Look at me.”
Ethan did, and Carter could see the worry there—deep, old, the kind that didn’t go away easily.
“You’re safe,” Carter said. “Do you hear me? You’re safe with me.”
Ethan swallowed. “But the meeting with my dad—”
“Don’t worry about that,” Carter cut in gently. “I’ll handle it. Your father and I will talk. You don’t need to stress over it.”
Ethan’s brows pulled together. “But… the trust thing. You think he’ll—”
“Yeah,” Carter admitted, because lying wasn’t something he did with Ethan. “There’s a trust lapse. I’m not pretending there isn’t. But that’s between him and me. Not you.”
Ethan blinked, surprised.
Carter stepped even closer, their foreheads almost touching. “I’m not playing around, Ethan. I’m in this with you. All the way. No one is breaking us apart.”
“You mean that?”
Carter nodded. “We’re a team now. We’re… one.”
Ethan stared at him like he was trying to memorize every word. Then, in a voice barely above a whisper, he said, “I don’t want to lose you.”
“You won’t,” Carter said. “Not now. Not ever.”
Ethan’s eyes softened, filling with something warm and overwhelming. “Carter… I’m dangerously in love with you.”
Again, the words hit Carter like a punch straight to the chest—good, sharp, real. He didn’t hesitate. He cupped Ethan’s face with both hands and kissed him.
It wasn’t rushed or frantic. It was slow, steady, full of everything he hadn’t said yet. Ethan melted into him instantly, hands gripping the front of Carter’s shirt like he needed an anchor.
Carter pulled back just enough to breathe, resting his forehead against Ethan’s. “I love you,” he murmured. “And I’m not going anywhere.”
“Good. Because I’m not letting you go.”
Carter smiled—small, real, the kind he only ever gave Ethan. “Then we’re on the same page.”
They stood there for a long moment, wrapped up in each other, the weight of the day easing. Outside, the waves kept rolling in, steady and calm, like the world had decided to give them a break.
Inside, Carter held Ethan close, and for the first time since the break-in, he felt like everything might actually be okay.