Page 13 of Enemies Under One Roof

Ivy huffed her impatience. ‘Where’s your permanent home, or homes?’

‘I don’t have one.’

‘You don’t? So where do you live?’ Surprise drew out her Australian accent.

‘I live in my hotels while they’re being built, then once completed, I move to the next one.’

‘You don’t have a permanent base?’ she repeated, her confusion clear. ‘I didn’t realise. Since when?’

‘Since I lived here.’

‘Oh, Ethan, this is your home.’ Compassion and confusion coloured her voice.

‘Ivy, no… It was only ever home because of Ruby,’ he said in attempt to alleviate her obvious distress, making him want to reach out and hold her, tell her it would be okay. Not to worry about him.

He prevented a snort of disgust. Reach out and hold her? Yeah, that would really help. She’d be disgusted, and he’d be rammed up against her softness, enveloped in her mind-losing scent.

He. Would. Not. Be. Distracted.

With great effort he turned his attention back to WillowGlen. He loved it, always had, because of Ruby. But he couldn’t contemplate living anywhere permanently, not even here. It was a lifestyle choice he’d made when growing up, and he saw no reason to ever change it.

Ivy gnawed on her lip with a flash of white teeth and he shifted uncomfortably in his chair. Everything she did seemed to elicit a visceral response.

‘We’ll still list it as an option. You might change your mind, and at this stage let’s put everything on the table.’

A totally inappropriate image took hold, of her spread on the table, skirt pushed up, dark hair a halo. His body surged; he’d lean over and run his…

He was losing his mind.

He gripped the back of his neck so tightly he was amazed any blood made it to his head. ‘Okay,’ he said, sounding only slightly strangled. ‘What about you? You live in LA, don’t you?’

‘Yes,’ she answered without an ounce of enthusiasm. Ethan prevented a shiver; he hadn’t been back to the City of Angels since his parents’ deaths. Would never go back.

‘Any other homes?’ he asked in a desperate need to distract himself from the memories.

‘None.’ Bleakness flooded her voice and she momentarily glanced away.

‘Do you have any desire to live here permanently or semi-permanently?’ he asked softly, instinctively responding to her discomfort.

‘I wasn’t thinking along those lines.’ She plucked at the V-neck of her dress, then seemed to realise she was doing it and stopped.

‘I’ll include it. It doesn’t mean I’d agree, but we are listing everything,’ he reminded her.

She looked over at him, surprised, and something flickered across her face. Slowly, her whole demeanour altered before she twirled a red-tipped finger through her hair and pouted.

‘Why thank you, Ethan,’ she practically purred, Ivy Flame in full force. ‘I’ve had enough for today. Let’s finish discussing it tomorrow.’

Disconcerted and disgusted at the sudden change, Ethan gave himself a mental shake and remembered what his focus was. Ruby and WillowGlen. Absolutely nothing else, certainly not someone who stepped into a role whenever it suited her, just like his mother had. He refused to dwell on what was real and what was acting; he didn’t care, and it didn’t matter.

* * *

Later that day, Ethan drove into the village he’d known so well as a child. Past the tree that he, Luc and Cam had raced their bikes to; the café where they’d come to spend their pocket money on milkshakes—and later, to check out the local girls; and the park where he’d experienced his first teenage kiss.

For the first couple of years, he’d never ventured outside of WillowGlen to the village, the paps still following him until it became apparent the villagers wouldn’t stand for it. Ruby had been held in such esteem locally, and by extension Ethan, so they’d closed ranks around him and drove out any who’d dared venture. They’d protected their own. Even now, the locals enjoyed regaling him with stories of how they’d outwitted the paps. Ethan’s heart swelled with gratitude but crashed back to reality remembering the one exception, courtesy of Ivy.

His jaw clenched. Ivy. It all came back to her. He’d called Luc and Cam to fill them in on the Will, and they’d both been as surprised and dismayed as he was at the terms. But they’d adored Ruby and understood why Ethan had agreed to her wishes. He’d asked Ruby, at the end of his second year at boarding school, if Cam and Luc could visit. She’d readily agreed. And once she’d realised they never went home for the holidays, they’d been invited every school break, until they’d all graduated. Always welcome, always wanted.

Just like him. He owed Ruby so much, which was the only thing that made the coming weeks bearable.