“Well, Ethan has always excelled at anything competitive, and it’s no secret that you give him a run for his money at work. You’re obviously a cutting-edge competitor. Otherwise, Jon wouldn’t be considering making you partner. You’ve lit a fire under Ethan’s ass and it shows. You push him in a good way. And maybe he does the same for you.”
I swallowed and hoped the burning sensation in my cheeks didn’t mean they were flaming red. “He does.”
Casey shrugged a shoulder. “Sometimes, the best friendships start from rivalries. There’s a certain level of respect that comes into play. You really see the grit and values of a person when you’re trying to beat them. And Ethan? Well, he knows you’ve got grit, Kathryn.” She giggled. “We all know that, don’t we?”
Eli and Naomi nodded their agreement and I blushed even more fiercely.
Ethan and Dana returned. In one hand, he held a pack of cards and he challenged us all to a game. It was a game I’d never heard of and he needed to explain the rules to me. When he finished, he asked if he needed to go over them one last time.
I held out my hand for the cards so I could shuffle and deal them out. “Did you forget who you were talking to? I’m going to wipe the floor with you, Ethan Collinder.”
Casey snorted into her wine glass. Naomi gave me an approving smile.
I wasn’t sure what it was about the family but I liked being with them. They laughed easily and they poked fun at each other every chance they got. It became quickly apparent that Ethan was the one in the family who made everyone laugh the most. He never missed a beat. Every joke was clever and quick, and part of me wondered if he’d become this way after his father passed in an effort to lift his family’s spirits.
It wouldn’t surprise me if that was the case.
I threw down my cards when I kicked everyone’s ass for the third time in a row. “I thought you Collinders would put up more of a fight than this! Where’s the challenge?”
Ethan collected the cards and shuffled. “We’re taking it easy on you because you’re a newcomer. Don’t let it go to your head.”
“You?” I challenged. “Letting me lose? Yeah right. You’d much rather beat me and rub my nose in it.”
“Naturally,” he admitted. “But I don’t want my family to see that side of me.”
“He’s really horrible at work,” I told them.
They all laughed and watched us bicker back and forth.
“I’m not that bad,” Ethan insisted. “You’re the one trying to call vendors at ten o’clock at night thinking they’ll want to help you, not me. I have boundaries. I have quality work ethic.”
“You have an inflated ego and an uncanny ability to get under my skin,” I said.
Eli roared with laughter. Casey, despite her dangerously round pregnant belly, rocked forward and slapped her knee. Dana howled.
Naomi smiled quietly and collected the cards her son had dealt to her. Her gaze slid from me to her son before she returned her attention to her cards. All the while, Ethan steadfastly insisted he did not have an inflated ego.
I doubted any of them believed him.
Chapter 20
Ethan
My mother drew her knit cardigan tighter around herself as she followed Kathryn and me out onto the front stoop. Eli and Casey had already gone home and Dana was crashing at my mother’s place for the weekend. They had plans to go to their usual Christmas craft fairs this weekend and would start gift wrapping together while they had the house to themselves. It was an annual mother-daughter tradition that always meant the most to my little sister.
Dana hollered goodbye to us from the kitchen where she was scrubbing the dishes.
My mother smiled and pulled the door closed behind her. It was snowing and fluffy white flakes clung to the shoulders of my jacket when I stepped onto the drive to go wipe the snow off the car. I told Kathryn to stay out of the snow with my mother and I could hear them talking while I cleaned off the roof and windows.
I couldn’t tell what they were saying but it was obvious they were talking about me.
Once the snow was cleared off, I went back up to the step to give my mother a hug. “Thanks for dinner, Mom. As usual, it was delicious.”
She patted my cheek when I stepped back. “I’m glad you could make it.