For the Love of Ethan

35b Broken

This is short but it the ending to 34a which left you hanging mid chapter.  I'm slowly getting settled in at my new job and home so I do hope to get my updates to you more frequently.  We are getting close to the end and it is time to wrap this up and begin editing!

I would like to THANK ALL OF YOU who support me with encouragement and kind words.  You truly do not know how much you are appreciated!   Thank you for all your votes and reads because you have truly amazed me and pushed this beyond anything I ever imagined for this story!  

Ryle Cate

35b

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Dane kept to himself all day.  He barely left his office.  He ran all the numbers at least a dozen times and then he spent the rest of the afternoon thinking of ways to make this right.  Grace had called him at noon to let him know that she was leaving.  Berkley had made mention of leaving early if she was going to be working a full day.  He knew that she only wanted to leave to avoid seeing him at the end of the day.  This was killing him.  His heart was physically aching in his chest.  He wanted nothing more than to take back this past weekend.  Sure he wanted to do right by Ana but Berkley was the woman in his life.  Berkley was the woman that he wanted to spend his life with and whether that was the case or not, he would spend a lifetime loving her.  She wasn’t the kind of women that you let walk away, even if you were stupid enough to give her reason to.

Dane spun in his chair to face the large plate-glass window and looked out over the city.  He was too distracted to work.  His thoughts were of home.  His home wouldn’t be complete without Berkley.  Berkley was the only home his heart had ever known.  He had no way of knowing the love he had been missing until he experienced it.  No woman even came close to what he felt for Berkley.  He picked up his phone and called her.  Much to his surprise, she answered causing his stomach to turn a flip and his heart to beat wildly in his chest.  Don’t blow it.  He thought to himself as his mind searched for the words to say. 

“Berkley…”  The silence on the end of the line was deafening, awkward and for Dane unbearably painful.  He closed his eyes for a moment and pinched the top of his nose to massage away the tension, as he jumped to his feet and began to pace the floor nervously.

“Dane, are you still there?”   She asked softly as her voice waivered with doubt.  Dane let out a long breath in reaction to the pain he heard in her voice.  He couldn’t let this continue.  She was too stubborn for her own good and they both knew it but how was he supposed make this right when he couldn’t go home to her at the end of the day.

“I’m here.”  He sighed again.  He could hear Ethan playing in the background.  He smiled.  Soon there would to children laughing and playing in the background.  “How is Ethan?”

“He is fine.  I’m not going to disrupt his routine so you don’t need to worry about him.  I want him to be happy and there is no need to bring attention to any of this as far as he is concerned.”

“Berkley, we need to talk.  We need to sort things out.  You’re talking like were over.  You can’t seriously be giving up on us before we have even had a chance to discuss things.”

“There is nothing to discuss.  I’ve been competing with Ana all along and it’s obvious that is going to stop.  I’m not going to do it anymore.  I can’t.  Besides pretending isn’t doing anyone any good.  I told you early on that I did not expect you to marry me simply because I’m pregnant.  A marriage should be built on love and a desire to be with someone and share a life together.  I would never want to be married to someone because they carried guilt and felt obligated to me.  You’re dad has made it clear that I’m not worthy to be a part of your family and for the grief I have caused you there, I apologize.  You need to be with someone who can make you happy and someone that your family will accept.  I will never be that person.  I see that now.”

“I agree with you completely about sharing a life with someone.  I want that for us.  Berkley can’t you see, you are that person.”

“I see Ana as that person.  Dane, let’s not do this now.  It’s just not a good time.  I’m alone with Ethan now.  Grace left and I really need to stay happy while I’m with Ethan.  I don’t want to upset him by getting emotional in front of him.”

“Then stay for supper tonight.  We can talk after he goes to sleep.  Don’t even answer right now.  Just think about it.  I’ll be home at five.  I’ll see you soon.  I love you.”

He didn’t wait for a response.  He couldn’t give her time to say no.  He hung up before she could say anything.  He wanted nothing more than to hear her say those three words that made his heart swell beyond its limits.   He knew had he stayed on the line he wouldn’t have heard them today.

He loosened his tie and unfastened the buttons that were seemed to be choking him.  He usually waited until late in the afternoon before doing so but right now, he just didn’t care.  He took the stairs down to accounting in hopes of avoiding any attention in the elevator.  He wasn’t sure if he looked as bad as he felt or if he was just being paranoid but it seemed that everyone noticed his appearance today.  He must have appeared off in some way.

He snapped at one of the girls in accounting before he realized it.  After apologizing to her he headed back up to sales and again took the stairs.  He needed to burn off a little negative energy.  Sales were up but not in the expected areas.  He sat in on a meeting and seemed to make everyone uneasy.  It had been a while since he had set in on a sales meeting but he was no stranger to the team.  He listened to the breakdown and realized that he was soon growing bored with it.  No wonder everyone sitting in the room looked miserable.  He was miserable just listening to the statistics but then Ana was constantly tossing them at him.  He made a few notes and when he did the marketing manager looked over at him nervously.  There was a pretty brunette that didn’t seem to mind his presence.  She made it obvious that she was glad to see him there.  She smiled politely but then kept making eye contact with him throughout the whole presentation.  He wouldn’t have paid her any attention had the presentation been as interesting as the spot on the wall next to where she was sitting.  Still as beautiful as this girl was in comparison to many, she held little to no interest to him.  He was no longer surprised by his lack of interest in women. Sure for a while he didn’t realize what it was but now he was content and comfortable with the fact that he was without a doubt hopelessly in love for the first time in his life.

The meeting came to an end and he made a quick exit to avoid getting into a conversation with anyone.  He checked his watch and it was four thirty.  Close enough.  He returned to his office for his phone and his keys and left for home.

He didn’t call Berkley to see if she was going to stay for supper.  He almost didn’t want to know in advance.  He was certain she would say no and if he knew that at this moment then he would have nothing to look forward to or hope for on his way home.  Feeling defeated he drove on mindlessly.  He turned into the drive and pulled into the garage not recalling anything from the drive home.

He walked into the kitchen and into the open arms of Ethan. 

For the Love of Ethan

© 2014, Ryle Cate

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. This book contains material protected under International and Federal Copyright Laws and Treaties. Any unauthorized reprint or use of this material is prohibited. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without express written permission from the author / publisher at rylecate@gmail.com

This book is a work of fiction and any resemblance to any person, living or dead, any place, events or occurrences, is purely coincidental.  The characters and story lines are created from the author's imagination and are used fictitiously.   

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