Sadie (28 page)

“U
m, no,” Jared said awkwardly.

Elisa looked at her
brother. “You really don’t mind?”

He rolled his eyes. “Of course not. Now get out of here.” He turned to Jared. “She hasn’t gone out in a really long time, so she might act like a monkey. I had to warn you.”

Jared smiled. “I like monkeys.”

Elisa grabbed her coat from the rack. “Thanks, Ethan.”

“Have a good time,” he said.

Jared opened the door for her. “I’ll have her back before midnight.”

“Thank you,” Ethan said.

They closed the door behind them.

Ethan sighed. “Now we’ve got to bathe these guys and get them to bed.”

“Sounds simple.”

He laughed. “Oh, Sadie.”

We bathed both of them, despite their angry protests, and then finally got them into bed. Tommy cried for his mother for a while, and Becky refused to go to bed. After Ethan read a children’s story to her, she finally went to sleep.

We went back in the living room and watched television as we waited for them to come home. Ethan glanced at the clock every few minutes.

“Calm down,” I said.

“It’s almost midnight,” he said.

“So?”

“I told him to bring her home before midnight, not at midnight.”

“You’re so annoying.”

The front door opened and Elisa walked in. She was crying.

I felt my heart fall. This was not going to be good.

Ethan jumped from the couch quicker than I could process. “What happened? What did he do?”

She wiped her tears away. “Nothing—”

Ethan stormed away and dashed out the front door. When I heard the sound of yelling, I ran after him.

“What the fuck did you do to her?” Ethan said, pushing Jared hard.

“Nothing!” Jared yelled.

“Ethan, stop,” I said.

Ethan pushed him to the ground then stepped on his neck. “You motherfucker!”

“Ethan, knock it off!” I screamed.

Elisa ran to him and pulled him off. “Stop it, Ethan.”

“What did he do?” His eyes were livid.

“Nothing,” she said. “He did nothing wrong. It’s me.” She turned to Jared and helped him to his feet. “I’m so sorry about this.”

He wiped the dirt from his clothes. “It’s okay.”

Elisa walked back to the house.

After one last glare at Jared, Ethan followed behind her. I
left my brother and followed them. I had to know what Jared did to Elisa.

“Tell me,” Ethan said. “Did he hurt you?”

“Of course not,” Elisa said. “I—I’m just not ready to be anything with anyone. I told him nothing would happen between us.” She wiped her tears away. “I—I can’t do this to Tom. I can’t be with anyone else.”

Ethan sighed. “That’s all?”

She nodded.

“
So you don’t like him?”

“It’s not that.”

“Then where is this coming from?”

“I’m just not ready to be in a relationship. I don’t want to be in one ever.”

“Please don’t be scared, Elisa. It’s okay to move on.”

“No,” she said. “I can’t.” She turned around and walked to her bedroom, her cries following her.

I returned to the front door and went after my brother. He was still standing there.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

He was quiet for a moment. “No.”

“What happened?”

“Nothing. We were having a great time. I made her laugh, smile—everything. When we got home, she started crying. She said she doesn’t want to see me again.”

I sighed. “I’m sorry, Jared.”

“Me too.”

“She’s just scared. I know she wants to be with you.”

His eyes looked sad, lifeless. “No, she doesn’t.” He started to walk away.

“Jared?”

“Yeah?” he asked as he turned around.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.” He walked down the street until he disappeared in the crowd. I had never seen him look so sad. He was crushed.

23

“When the hell did all of this happen?” Natascia asked.

I shrugged. “I know it’s quick but—”

“
Quick
? This is definitely faster than quick.”

Both of my friends were speechless after I told them everything that happened with me and Ethan.

“I’m happy,” I said.

Stephanie nodded. “We can tell.”

“I’m happy for you too,” Natascia said. “It’s just a lot to process.”

“I know.”

“So, Jared and Elisa aren’t going to happen?” Stephanie asked.

I sighed. “It doesn’t seem that way.” I looked at the clock on the wall. Jared was meeting us at the restaurant. I was trying to spend as much time as I could with him. I knew he was heartbroken.

“That sucks,” Natascia said. “That would have been so perfect—siblings with siblings.”

I smiled. “Yeah. It really would have been.”

“So, how’s the job hunt?” Natascia asked.

I rolled my eyes. “All you care about is work.”

“No,” she said sternly. “I care about my friend. You need to get out of that bookstore. You are better than that.”

“I’ve tried!”

“No, you haven’t.”

“I’ve applied to at least fifty jobs in the city. No one’s is hiring.”

“You’re full of it,” she snapped. “You have a 4.0 GPA from an Ivy league school and you have experience.”

I sighed. “I’ve applied to every opening available. I’m not lying. I real
ly do want to get a better job. Now that I want a future with Ethan, I definitely want more money.”

Natascia shook her head. “It shouldn’t be taking this long.”

“I said I was trying,” I snapped.

Stephanie leaned back in her chair, trying to stay out of the argument.

“Why is this such a big deal?” I said. “It’s not like I’m poor.”

“You
’re better than this, that’s why,” Natascia said. “I’m not going to let my best friend settle.”

“I’m not settling. I’ll inherit that bookstore when my father passes.”

“But there’s no guarantee that the store will even last that long. No one buys hard copies anymore, Sadie.”

Jared walked into the restaurant, his eyes looking lifeless. I was relieved he was
there. “Over here,” I said with a wave.

He sat down next to me and I kissed him on the cheek. I wasn’t normally th
at affectionate, but I was worried about my brother. “How are you?”

“Fine.”

“Have you talked to her?”

“No.”

“Are you going to?”

“No. She doesn’t want to see me anymore.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. I understand her situation. Her husband has been dead for years but she can’t move on. It’s better that she told me now rather than wait until we were in a serious relationship or something.”

“I think you should talk to her.”

“She told me she didn’t want to see me anymore. If I pursue her, I’ll scare her. That’s the last thing I want, especially since that watch dog will come after me.”

I knew he was referring to Ethan. “I’m sorry about him. He’s just protective.”

“I picked up on that,” he said
sarcastically.

“Don’t give up,
Jared.”

“She has kids, Sadie. I can’t just pressure her like that. I don’t want to be around her kids if she doesn’t want me to. As much as I wanted to be with her, it’s not going to happen.”

“Let me talk to her.”

He glared at me. “Don’t you say a word to her. Leave her alone—I mean it.”

“I’m not going to lecture her if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“No, but you are going to make her feel bad. I know she wants to be with me but she feels too guilty to reach out to me. Telling her that she should give me a chance is just going to confuse her and hurt her. I respect her decision. Leave it alone, Sadie.
”

“I thought you loved her? Why are you giving up?”

“Because I love her, Sadie. She has to come to me. I won’t chase her down and make her cry again. I can’t rush her.”

“But—”

“Drop it.” He grabbed the menu and looked at it.

Natascia and Stephanie looked
uncomfortable. Stephanie pulled out her phone and Natascia looked at the menu even though she knew what she was ordering.

I looked Jared. “Alex isn’t coming, right?”

“No.”

“Good.”

We had our meal together and said very little. There was tension between me and Natascia because of our argument about my job prospects, and Jared was annoyed with me for discussing Elisa. Stephanie was the only person that didn’t seem to hate me at the moment.

After we paid our bill, I felt my phone ring. Excited, I reached for it, hoping it was Ethan. I was with him nearly all the time, but when we were apart it was unbearable. My smile disappeared when I saw my mother’s name.

Jared looked at the phone. “Why is she calling you now? It’s like six in the morning over there.”

“I don’t know.”

“Are you going to answer it?”

I answered the call. “Hello?”

“Darling!”

I rolled my eyes. That fake British accent
was annoying. “Hi, Mom.”

“I have wonderful news!”

“Are you getting married?”

“God, no,” she said with a laugh. “I found a job for you.”

“What?”

“You know that boyfriend I told you about that worked for that magazine? Well, his copy
editor was just fired and they need a replacement. Of course there are at least a thousand resumes that need to be evaluated, but I asked if he could pull some strings for me.” My heart was beating so fast. “So, do you want it?”

“Is this a serious question?”

She laughed. “I knew you would say yes.”

“What magazine is it?”

“The Royal.”

I was starting to sweat. That was one of the biggest fashion magazines in the world. I didn’t care for fashion, but with a job like that
, I would get a better one. Plus, I would make great money. It was too good to be true. “Oh my god!”

“I know. It’s wonderful.”

Jared smiled as he listened to the conversation, his head pressed against mine. He turned to Natascia. “She just got a job!”

“Yes!
” Natascia said. “That’s awesome.”

Stephanie clapped. “Yay.”

I hushed them. “Do I need to have an interview?”

“No, of course not. I’m sleeping with him. You don’t have to do anything like that.”

That was way too much information. “Okay. So, do I just go down to the office?” I knew where the Royal building was. It was only a few blocks from the bookstore. It was an extra walk, but I wasn’t complaining.

“Yes, he’ll take you to work with him.”

“Wait. What?”

“So, you can stay with me until you get back on your feet then we’ll go from there. I’m so excited to see my daughter. It’s been so long.”

I stopped breathing. “Wait. You’re talking about Royal in London?”

“Duh. What else would I be talking about?”

“The one in New York.”

“Well, that doesn’t make any sense. And what does it matter?”

I said nothing.

“You still want it, right?”

“Uh, yeah.” I swallowed the lump in my throat.

“Great! I’ll tell Roger
. Start packing!” She hung up.

I placed the phone on the table and stared at it.

Natascia raised an eyebrow. “Why are you so sad? You were just ecstatic a moment ago.”

I didn’t say anything.

Jared leaned forward. “The gig is in London.”

“Oh,” Stephanie said sadly.

Natascia looked at me. “It doesn’t matter. This is your dream, Sadie. You need to go after it. Another opportunity like this is never going to come around. You would be stupid to say no.”

My throat was dry. “I—I don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know?” Natascia snapped. “This better not be because of Ethan. You are not giving this up for him. You just started dating.”

“I—I can’t leave him.”

Natascia glared at me. “You are going to throw this away for a guy? Really? Sadie, stop being stupid. I know you are infatuated with him, but there’s no guarantee it will last.”

I ran my fingers through my hair. I really wanted th
e job but I couldn’t leave Ethan. It was impossible. I was so happy with him. But that job was a once in a lifetime opportunity. Interns probably worked there for years before they were promoted to the job they actually wanted. I would cut through all of that.

Jared looked at me. “I agree with Natascia. I think you should go.”

“But I won’t see you anymore either—all of you.”

“This is more important,” he said gently. “And it’s not like you’re never going to see us again.”

“And Dad?”

“He’ll understand. He’ll be ecstatic, actually.”

“I don’t know.”

“If you really feel
that way about it, work there for a few years then come back. With that experience, you can find a job anywhere.”

Natascia nodded. “Yeah, Sadie. But you have to start somewhere.”

I sighed. “I don’t know.”

“Well, you nee
d to make up your mind soon, Sadie,” Jared said.

“No,” Natascia snapped. “Her mind is already made up. She’s going.”

I took a deep breath. “I—I need to go.” I rose from the table and headed for the door. When I reached the sidewalk, I felt Jared next to me. “I need to think.”

“I don’t want you to walk home alone.”

I said nothing. My mind was reeling with the decision before me. Do I lose this amazing opportunity, or do I lose Ethan? I didn’t have a lot of time to think about it. My mom was expecting me to make the move within a few days, probably earlier than that.

We entered the building then rode the elevator. Jared walked me to my door but didn’t come in.

“Good night,” he said.

“Yeah.” I closed the door.

Koku ran up to me and pawed my leg but I ignored him. I was too distracted to care. I sat down on the couch and stared at the blank television screen. My heart felt like it was going to burst. I didn’t know what to do.

My phone started ringing.

When I saw Ethan’s name, I moaned. I wasn’t ready to talk to him. I ignored his call.

He called
me a few minutes later. I knew he wanted to make sure I got home safely, and if I ignored his call, he would just come over because he was a crazy asshole like that.

“Hello?”

“Baby?” He heard the sadness in my voice. I tried to hide it but I was too upset. “What’s wrong? Are you okay? Where are you?”

“I’m fine,” I said.

“What happened?”

“I—I don’t want to talk about it right now.” I heard the sound of keys and the slamming of a door. He was coming.

“Are you home?”

I was quiet for a moment. “Yes. But please don’t come, Ethan.”

“I’ll be there in five minutes.” He hung up.

I sighed then dropped the phone on the table. He really pissed me off but I loved him so fucking much. What was I going to do? I couldn’t leave him.

He knocked on the door a few minutes later, startling me. Koku ran for the door, excited to get some attention. When I unlocked the door, Ethan opened it and stepped into the room. He ignored Koku and stared at me, making sure I wasn’t hurt. “What’s going on? Why are you upset?”

I shut the door behind him then walked away. “Everything is fine.”

“Then why are you upset, baby?” He followed behind me and wrapped his arms around me. He turned me around and made me face him. His eyes, lips, and nose were beautiful. I couldn’t stand not to see them every day. “Tell me.”

“I got a job.”

He raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I was offered a job as the copy editor for Royal Magazine.”

He smiled. “That sounds great, Sadie. Congratulations. You don’t need to be nervous. You’ll do great.”

“That’s not what I’m worried about.”

“I’m not following.”

“It’s in London.”

His smile dropped. The light in his eyes disappeared and his lips turned white. “London?”

“Yeah.”

He nodded. “Well, that’s a beautiful city. You’ll love it there.”

“What?”

“And you’ll get to see your mom.”

“You want me to go?”

His eyes still looked sad. “Sadie, I know this is what you want. Of course, I want you to go.”

“But then I’ll have to leave you.”