Page 87 of Ethan & Grace

I hadn’t planned on falling asleep, but when the mattress shifted beneath me and I opened my eyes, I realised I must have drifted off. Ethan had returned from the bathroom and turned off all the lights except for the bedside lamp on his side of the bed.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“And I didn’t mean to fall asleep,” I said, rolling onto my side. Ethan did the same, so we were facing each other. Since the only light in the room was behind him, his face was almost entirely in shadow. “I owe you for tonight.”

“You don’t.”

“I do. You left Henry and Logan for me.”

“Like I said, I was happy to do it,” Ethan murmured. “But are you sure you’re OK? You seem a bit distracted.”

“I had a fight with Rose.” Sooner or later, I’d have to tell Ethan about the threatening letter, but I was still putting it off, afraid he might try to stop our investigation if he found out. But I couldn’t stop. Not now, when it seemed like we were only one phone call from Edgar away from finding out who had killed Amy.

“What was the fight about?”

“You,” I replied. I didn’t want to lie. “She doesn’t like you.”

“Because I used to be mean to you?”

“No, because you’re a Darlington.”

He nodded, as if he understood Rose. Which he probably did—perhaps even better than either he or Rose realised right now. If they would only talk to each other, really talk, they’d see that they had more in common than they thought, bound by their hatred of Mr. Darlington.

“And what did you say to Rose?”

“That I like you, and I enjoy spending time with you,” I replied honestly. I had no reason to hide it, not anymore.

Ethan reached out and gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear, brushing my cheek as he did so. His fingers touched me so lightly that they sent a shiver through me, despite the warmth of the bed. “I like you too.”

My heart skipped a beat. “So I’m more than just a chambermaid fantasy to you?”

Ethan laughed, a bright, unguarded sound that felt as though it could chase away the darkness. “God, Grace, yes. You’re so much more than just a fantasy to me. You’re a dream come true.”

His words pierced me. I felt them in every fibre of my body, yet I couldn’t say anything in return. I didn’t know how to respond to such a beautiful, intimate confession. But I didn’t have to speak. The fact that I’d called him tonight—not Kate, not Rose, not my parents—said more than my words ever could.

“Come here, Dreamgirl.”

The endearment made my knees go even weaker. But before I could move, his hand was already at the back of my neck, drawing me towards him. His warm breath brushed against my lips, and then he kissed me, tenderly, almost lovingly.

And in that moment, I realised I couldn’t give Ethan my broken heart.

He’d already stolen it.

32

Hey, how are you today?

Do you want to talk to Rose again?

Message from Kate to Grace

Grace

The moment I woke up, I knew I wasn’t in my own bed. The familiar sounds of a Claymore morning were missing: I heard neither Jason’s music nor my mum yelling at him to hurry up in the bathroom. The faint smell of burnt toast and coffee was missing too, as were the heavy footsteps of the family upstairs. Instead, I had another body beside mine, and everything was wonderfully quiet and deliciously warm. I could get used to this.

Blinking sleepily, I turned my head to look at Ethan. He was lying on his side, facing me, eyes closed, breathing deeply. I wanted nothing more than to stay curled up next to him and drift back to sleep, but one drawback of my job was that weekends didn’t really exist.

Reaching for my phone, I froze when I saw the time. Carefully, trying not to wake Ethan, I slipped out of bed and tiptoed to the bathroom. I helped myself to a fresh towel and stepped into the shower, which was far better than the one at home. The water pressure was perfect, and even after a few minutes, the temperature remained miraculously warm. Wrapped in a towel, I stood before the mirror and patted my hair dry with a second one before brushing my teeth.