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“Yeah, fine. You just startled me is all.” I drop my hand from my chest, eying him.
He takes me in, his brows going even higher when he realizes I’m dressed. “Going somewhere?”
“Y–yeah. I have a meeting scheduled for eleven that I can’t miss.” My gaze moves to somewhere over his shoulder, as I spew the lie all too easily.
“Hmm.” He nods, the movement reminding me of Alex. Now that I think about it, the two Beaufort brothers are a lot alike physically. The resemblance isn’t exactly identical like Ella and me, but it’s still uncanny. Emotionally, they couldn’t be more different; Alex is hard and cold while Ezra is friendly and endearing. He makes men feel like they’re old friends, and women feel like they’re in love.
He gives away his smiles easily, giving the illusion of being carefree, but I know it’s a ruse. His family, and this whole town, has him pegged as being a bit of a screw up; that can’t be easy on him. By the look of this place, minus the landscaping, he’s clearly got his shit together.
“Do you want to go for brunch in town before you leave?” he asks, a trace of hopefulness in his voice.
I’m not sure if he believes me about the meeting or not, but I can’t back out of my lie now. “I’m sorry. I really have to go.” I scurry out of the room, feeling his gaze hot on my back as I walk away. “At least let me walk you to your car,” he calls after me.
Ten minutes later, we’re both outside. I ran to the garage to slip into a fresh change of clothes before he followed me out, then pulled my car into the driveway, leaving it idling so I can’t have any sudden change of heart. I glance around at the drooping leaves, the early morning sun making the ice that dropped on them melt.
I glance at Ezra to see that he’s doing the same, his mind wandering off to some distant thought. We’re both avoiding theinevitable conversion; a goodbye. It’s best to get it over with, so I can finally move on.
“Thanks for the gre–” I start, before he starts to mumble a similar sentiment about the night we had spent together. We both stop and smile awkwardly at one another. At least I’m not the only one finding this a little difficult. I’m sure he’s had plenty more morning after farewells than I have, but he’s acting like a rookie.
“So, this is it, huh?” he asks quietly, finally turning to face me fully.
I swallow, heart clenching painfully at the thought of never seeing him again, but it wouldn’t work out between us anyway. “Yeah, I guess so.” I whisper.
Deciding it’s best not to linger any longer, I move toward my car, but Ezra rushes ahead. I admire him as he jogs over to open my door for me. He really is a fine specimen of a man.
I pause in the doorway, searching for the right words; deciding they don’t exist, I lower myself onto the seat. Ezra quietly watches me as I buckle my seatbelt, one hand braced on the hood of the car the other still on the door. “I had a great time last night, Charlotte.”
I nod, foolishly wishing he’d call mebébéin that sexy way again, even if it’s just one last time. “Yeah, me too.” My voice is low so I clear my throat. “Bye, Ezra.”
He nods curtly, “Drive safely. No speeding while the roads are still icy.” He closes the door gently. He stands there like a sentry as I put my car in drive and watches me drive off. I glance once in my rearview mirror to see that he’s still watching me as I descend down his long, overgrown driveway.
I blink the salty sting of tears in my eyes away angrily when I turn onto the road and he disappears from sight. “Don’t be silly, Charlie. It was just one night.”
The problem is that’s not really true, is it? Ezra Beaufort has been in the back of my mind for years. And sure, we only just acted on it last night, but I’ve always wondered about him…worried about him. I’ve often found my mind wandering to thoughts of his icy blue eyes and wondered what exactly gives them that sad hidden quality. And who else notices? Does he have anyone on his side, anyone he can talk to?
Sometimes, I wonder what it would’ve been like if we’d just gone through with the marriage. Even if we were pissed at our parents at the time for trying to force us into it, there's always been feelings involved where Ezra is concerned…I literally shake my head to dislodge the pointless thoughts. Maybe the one-night stand wasn’t such a great idea after all, but it was amazing. Maybe now that I’ve had him–manytimes–I’ll finally be able to get him out of my head and move on. He’s not husband material, anyway.
I dial my sister’s number when I get on the interstate.
“Charles!” Her voice is scolding through the Bluetooth speaker. “I know we said you might end up not coming home last night, but you still should have texted me.”
“I’m sorry, Daniels. I just got caught up is all.” My lips tilt up. Yeah, talking to my sister is just what I need to get me out of the funk I seem to be descending into.
“Please tell me you didn’t chicken out and got caught in Ezra Beaufort’s arms instead of a sterile hotel room.”
I bite my bottom lip to keep from giggling like a teenager. “Yeah. I was with him all night.”
“Yass! Finally. On a scale of one to ten, how was it?”
“A hundred.” I answer, and she gasps dramatically.
“Hold on, I’m at the site in Old North End, give me a moment to get into my car, then tell me everything. Don’t leave anything out!”
CHAPTER 6
EZRA
After Charlie leaves, I immediately go back into the cottage where I change into my standard outfit–you might even say it’s become a sort of uniform–that I wear when I’m completing assignments for the Morattis. A pair of black pants and a faded gray shirt. I tuck the coat and cap under my arm as I make my way to the garage. The last piece of my uniform, the glasses, are in my truck.
