She propped her elbow on the doorframe and dropped her chin in her hand. She stared sightlessly at the passing traffic and blurry New York lights. Would her life be so bad if she didn’t have a husband and children? Could she be fulfilled without them? She’d seen her brothers and friends happy, and Isla had said it was her biggest regret before she died. God, she missed Isla. So many times, she’d pick up the phone to call her, only to remember she’d never hear her voice again. Her friends here, while great, weren’t the same. She needed to go home and curl up in bed before the night got any more depressing. Hopefully by morning, it would be a brighter day.
The next morning, while Chloe lay in bed, her phone vibrated on her bedside table. Stretching and yawning, she rolled on her side and picked it up, groaning when she saw Ethan’s name. What did he want now? Was he checking up on her after her date even though she’d told him to butt out of her life? She wanted to ignore him, but he wouldn’t stop calling until he’d talked to her.
“Hello.” She fell back on her pillow.
“Are you alone?”
She rolled her eyes. Would he ever learn to speak cordially on the phone? “Good morning to you too.”
“Well, are you?” His voice was distant like he had her on speaker.
“Yes. Not that it’s any of your business.”
“Chloe… I’m…arrhh…sorry about last night.”
She pulled the phone away and looked at the caller ID to make sure it really was Ethan. “Did Holly put you up to this?”
“Ummm…” Ethan said. While in the background, she heard her sister-in-law shout out, “Yes!”
“Oooooh, busted!” she teased. “Hi, Holly. Kiss my niece for me!”
She heard her brother shoo his wife away and pick the phone up, presumably taking it off of speaker. “Laugh it up. See if this isn’t the last time I apologize to you, you ingrate.” His tone shifted. “But really, I’ve had it made abundantly clear that I was out of line asking Theo to spy on you and owe you a giant apology. I hope I didn’t ruin your date.”
“You didn’t. He managed to do it all on his own.” Oh shit, she’d forgotten just who she was talking to; she blamed it on the out-of-character apology.
“What happened?” Ethan’s tone deepened, and she knew he was getting into protective mode.
It was too early in the morning for his crap. She needed coffee if she was going to deal with Ethan in full Papa Wolf mode. She swung her legs from the bed, padded into the kitchen, and flicked on the coffee machine. “We’re not as compatible as I first thought.” No way could she tell Ethan the truth.
“Can I do anything? I’ll come down and keep you company for a couple of days. Boston isn’t that far away.”
“Don’t. Please, just don’t,” she said, pulling her I Love Australia mug out of the dishwasher. “I’m fine, but you can stop treating me like a kid. I’m going to keep dating, and I don’t want to be looking over my shoulder for you or someone you’ve sent to spy on me.”
“It’s hard to let you go when I practically raised you,” Ethan said sadly.
“And I love you for it. It just sometimes gets a little too much.” Chloe sighed, slid onto a stool at the breakfast counter, and sipped her coffee. After their father died, Ethan had taken on the role of protector and provider. Even though she and Aiden were now adults with great careers, he still watched over them, making sure everyone was okay.
Ethan was silent for a moment. “I know. I thought I’d worked on pulling back. I guess it wasn’t enough. I just worry about you being alone.”
“I’m not alone. I have friends who check in on me and clients that keep me busy.”
Ethan let out a breath. She could sense his concern through the phone. “Promise me you’ll be careful.”
“I promise.” And she actually meant it. She had no intention of making the same mistake that she had with Owen by trusting someone else to play matchmaker for her. This time she was going to rely on herself.
“Call me anytime if you get into any trouble. I’ll be on the next train down.”
She laughed. “Stop worrying.”
“Promise you’ll call me,” he insisted.
“Okay, I will.” She wouldn’t. If she called Ethan, he’d wrap her in cotton batting and ship her all the way back to Australia.
“You can always contact Theo if I can’t get to you quick enough.”
Yeah, not in a million years. “Ethan, nothing’s going to happen. Don’t you have a movie you need to shoot?” She needed to end the call before her brother changed his mind and took the train to New York anyway.
“All right, I’m going. Love you.”