needed to feel love.
“I love you, Ethan. No matter what, no matter our circumstances, I know that I do love you. And I don’t want to live my life in fear for when the mountain snow melts.”
Chapter Six
The knock on the door gave me the flip in my stomach I had grown to love. I hated being away from Ethan and was always happy to have him back with me. I ran to the door and flung my arms around his neck the minute I saw him.
Ethan kissed my cheek. “Well hello. I sure do love those types of greetings.”
I smiled flirtatiously. “Come on in here, and I may just give you a greeting like no other.”
Ethan smiled and reached for my coat and handed it to me. “Later. I’ve got dinner ready back at my place. We don’t want it to get cold.”
We walked in the cold faster than normal. The chill in the air had a bite as a new storm was supposed to hit us that night, and both of us were anxious to get back into a warm house. As we walked in the door, I smiled to see a blanket spread out on the floor in front of the fireplace, with the fire already going. There was a large pizza and a bottle of red wine with two glasses. The romantic image was so sweet, and so touching.
“Pizza!”
“It’s too cold to use the brick oven in the back of the main restaurant, but I managed with the one in the kitchen. Pizza is one of my specialties. Since you haven’t picked out any furniture for me yet, we have to resort to the floor.” Ethan smirked mischievously.
I giggled. “Oh really? And how exactly am I supposed to go shopping to add that lady’s touch? Last I checked, we were snowed in.”
Ethan grew serious. “I can’t believe I’m saying it, but I hope the snow never stops.” Ethan grabbed me by the hand and led us to the blanket. “Let’s eat before this gets colder than it is.”
Dinner was spent talking about the resort. We laughed over stories about our childhood and our parents. We talked about our memories of playing together, trying to not avoid the topic of what was our reality. We also talked about his business. Ethan beamed with pride whenever the resort was discussed. His love and his passion for his land were remarkable. I watched and listened. The man before me was more than I could ever dream of. He was masculine, lovely, sexy, rugged, charming and so full of life.
“So, do you really want me to pick out furniture for you?” I asked. “I mean, when we can dig ourselves out.”
“Well, unless you want to eat on the floor for the rest of our lives.” Ethan smirked.
I looked at my wine glass and then looked up slowly. “How do you talk about the rest of our lives like it’s actually a reality? You make it seem so simple and obtainable.”
Ethan looked at the fire and shrugged. “Isn’t it? The way I see it, the hard part is over. We found each other; we love each other. Rest is pretty easy.”
“What about when I leave?” I asked as I felt panic work its way into my heart.
Ethan looked deep into my eyes. “Well… let’s start with option number one and the one I hope you choose. Don’t leave. I want you to stay.”
“You do?”
“I do. I understand if you don’t want this, and I would never hold it against you, but… I think you could write some amazing books here… with me as inspiration.” Ethan smiled with a wink.
I chuckled. “You definitely are inspiring me.” I went solemn and took a deep breath. “But are you really serious? Stay at Mill Creek… permanently?”
“I could be wrong, but I get the feeling that you weren’t exactly happy where you were. Or why spend an entire winter here? Most people plan to be with loved ones during the holidays, and as we approach that time, you haven’t even hinted about being sad or lonely. You said you were trying to figure out the next chapter in your life. Well... Help me with the resort. Help me make this our dream and not just mine. Write and create like you’ve been doing. Start the new chapter here with me.”
“My new chapter…”
“At least try it out. If it doesn’t work, then we figure out option two. But regardless, we’ll figure it out together.”
The fire blazed