Your Little Secret (30 page)

"Eva, what the fuck!" Ethan shouted and stormed towards her. He grabbed her shoulders and stared into her eyes. "You fucked up. Not me. You don't get to come here, drink my alcohol and break my glass, my property. You are nothing to me. You never were. Do you understand Eva? I love Amber. I will always love Amber."

Nodding sarcastically, Eva pushed him away. "All of those nights, Ethan. All of those fucking nights that you laid awake with me and we just talked. About life, about what we wanted. All the times we made love." Eva stared at a shocked Amber, "Oh yeah Amber, over there on the table, on the kitchen surface, against the wall over there. He fucked me hard every time. So many times over I had him when you were getting fucked over in
Uni and you know that. I had Ethan from day one. He told me you were nothing to him. That you were a piece of trash -"

"Eva
stop-" Ethan roared.

"Worthless." Eva spat and smirked at Ethan.

There were the tears. Her mother used to call her worthless. Bullied her from day one, and to hear that's what Ethan said made her heart explode. "You," Amber swallowed hard. "You called me worthless, Ethan?"

"No never, Amber. Baby she's
lying."

Amber dropped her head and played with the rings on her fingers. "I'm not worthless," she mumbled through tears. The tears soon turned to anger. "Eva," Amber hissed and snapped her head up to meet the fake blonde bitch in front of her. Walking forward, Ethan grabbed her and held her back.

"No Ambi-"

"You don't get to come here and make me feel as bad as you have been doing for the past God knows how long. I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt, I really did. Ethan left because of you. He sent me love letters, and I wasn't home. I was in London with my coward dick of a boyfriend trying to get over Ethan. I was trying to save myself."

"You're an emotional wreck, Amber, you need help," Eva laughed.

"I need help?" Amber asked pointing to her chest. "You are the one that needs help. You cheated on the most kind, loving man I've ever met. You're fucking stupid."

Eva growled. Like a full voiced growl. "I'm not stupid!" she shouted and stormed towards Amber. "You're the whore who thinks she can get whatever man she wants. You're the one with no fucking friends, no family and no life. Yet I've lost everything and you got it all. You got it all."

"Right, Eva, leave!" Ethan shouted desperate to get her out.

"No! I came here for a reason," Eva fought back with all her mite.

"And what's that?" Amber asked, the hot tears still falling.

Eva’s eyes sparkled as absolute glee flew into her orbs, she smirked and approached Amber. “You will get what’s coming to you. I pity you already, but when you’re out in the cold, with no man and no life, I will be the one pointing and laughing at you. Right now, you swan in and out as you please, and when Ethan realises that you’re just a waste of fucking space, he’ll want nothing more than to kick you out to the curb.”

“No, he won’t,” Amber
spoke, it was an empty bid to make herself believe it rather than anyone else.

“She’s right,” Ethan stepped in, and Eva smirked as Amber looked at him in absolute horror, her eyes welling all over again with impending tears. “I won’t do that. Eva, I love Amber. I loved her from the moment I met her, but I always saw her as off limits. I always thought she was never into me. She isn’t a mess, she got led astray and we all had a hand in that. From what I just witnessed, you especially had a hand in this.”

“Hang on.” Amber stepped forward. “The thing that makes me laugh most, is that you come here and tell me I’m a mess,” Amber just laughed in mockery at Eva. “I don’t just storm into people’s houses to raid the fridge for fucking wine then attack people. Sure, I will admit, I hit the bottle, but that was on my terms and it was my own alcohol, but I left that girl behind. The moment I caught Connor with a girl in the bed I literally just left, I decided that I couldn’t be like I was. I’m not going to be beaten by men, and I’m certainly not going to be beaten by you,” Amber pointed at Eva accusatorily. “You take a good hard look at me right now, because I can guarantee you that when we next cross paths I will be nothing like this.”

Eva literally snorted at that proclamation. “What are you going to be?
A full blown alcoholic? Amber, you’re pathetic and that’s all you’ll ever be.”

“No,” Amber exhaled the word hard and fast, her eyes narrowing more at Eva. “I vow
, right here, right now, that I will be better than you will ever be. I might not have the career right now, or the money you do, but I won’t be like this forever. Mark my words; I will be more than you can ever dream of being.”

Ethan, feeling proud of Amber for finally finding some self-worth, walked to Eva, grabbed her arm and literally pulled her from the kitchen to the front door. “Leave and don’t come back. Seeing as you and Connor have struck up a new relationship go and cry to him. By the sounds of it he likes a good notch on the bedpost. I know how you like those too.”

“You’re making a mistake,” Eva told him, shaking his hand off of her arm, and forcing her back to the door.

“My only mistake was listening to you in the first place,” Ethan snarled at her, unable to believe anything she had to say now. “Believe in Amber if I were you. When we next meet, you’ll see how serious I am. I will have my life with Amber. I don’t care if she’s jobless, poor, anything. I love her and I will love her regardless. So keep trying to kill this, but I can tell you now, your words don’t affect me anymore, Eva. You hold no power over me.”

Not allowing her to have another venomous word, Ethan pulled her away from the door, opened it and literally threw her into the hallway. He gave her no closure, or farewell, he just slammed the door and hoped that when he turned around he wouldn’t see the broken remnants of his newfound relationship with Amber lying around on the floor.

What he
found, proved that not all was lost.

Amber stood impishly in his line of vision. Her foot rubbing the floor in a shy manner, her head dipped in a similar way and she looked up at him with a small smile. “Do I hold a power over you?”

Rubbing his jaw at the mere sight of her in his shirt and pink knickers, Ethan realised there was no way he could deny it. “You always have,” Ethan said as he approached her and drew her to his body. He held her close. “I only ever seem to do things because of you, Ambi. Good or bad, it’s all down to you.”

Amber bit her lip and took a deep breath. “I have a question to ask,” Amber began to say, wondering how much her next question would destroy the moment.

“What’s that?” Ethan asked her, remaining in his stance with her in his arms.

Amber’s eyes watered heavily. “Why did you promise never to leave me then left without a word?” She couldn’t stop the pain from hitting her voice as she remembered finding the house how she had. “When I went to your house and found it empty I felt the life literally leave my body, and I just can’t understand what happened.”

“You really want to know?” Ethan asked softly, his voice praying she wouldn’t press, but when she nodded at him, he knew he had to find the real reason and tell her it. “When I said you’re my reason for making good and bad decisions, it’s because it’s the truth. I left because I was in denial, and I panicked. I couldn’t handle the thought of you coming back to Leeds and being all loved up and happy. I couldn’t deal with the thought; how the fuck could I handle the real deal? I felt like a mistake to you, after that proposal as well, I just thought I had lost you. So I forced you to the life with Connor and cut my losses. I didn’t want to, but ultimately, I wanted you happy. In the same way, I needed to be happy.”

Accepting the truth of his words, Amber dared herself to ask the one question left to her right now, “And now? Are you happy now?”

Breaking in a huge grin, Ethan moved a little so he could lift Amber from the floor and hold her up. He waited for her legs to be wrapped around his waist before he kissed her. “Catching you, Amber, was the best thing I’ve ever done. Having you back, single and with me is a dream come true. I will make you see how happy I am. I will make you see for a lifetime how right this is.”

“I think I already know how right this is,” she whispered, releasing her arms from his neck to cup either side of his jaw lines. “I love you, Ethan Mitchell. I don’t know a lot anymore, but that I know, and that I will always know.”

“I don’t think you need to know much more right now,” Ethan said as he carried her to the kitchen, and settled her down onto one of the counter tops. He watched Amber’s face, “We never had sex in the kitchen,” he stated firmly. "Or rough for that matter."

Before Amber could reply, Ethan's mouth smashed to hers in a breath-taking kiss. He let his tongue work against hers for a few minutes before he moved down to her neck. Amber dropped her head back and gave him easy access.

"Ethan," Amber moaned breathlessly. He gave a dignified mumble as an answer and Amber pushed him away.

"Not yet okay?"

Ethan groaned. A loud rejected groan. "Ambi, whatever you want." He gave her a long deep kiss and moved away.

"So, stir fry sound good?
Wine? Movie?" Ethan asked as he raided his fridge.

"Sure." Amber smiled as she watched Ethan walk around. Still half dressed with Hollister sweatpants hanging low on his hips. He reached up to the top of one of his cupboards for something and the defined muscles in his back caught her attention. How had she never seen the beauty of him before? He was beautiful.

"Do you want me to set the table?" Amber asked, amusement on her lips.

Ethan scoffed. "When have we ever set the table?"

Amber shrugged and swung her feet underneath her. "We could attempt it?"

"Amber, I haven't lived here two weeks yet, I have nothing to eat off, and I'm not ruining my brand new oak dining table. Fuck the sofa, plus we're more comfortable on the floor eating from the coffee table right? Like old times?"

"Sure." Amber smiled and jumped down from the top. She walked over to where Ethan was chopping vegetables and snaked her arms around his waist. She put her cheek against his back and smiled. "I've waited so long for this."

"You've waited for this?" Ethan asked, spinning her around with him. "I'm sure I've waited longer." Ethan moaned, spinning the knife in his hand. Amber backed off and he put the knife down. "Sorry." He laughed and grabbed her hand. "
Me and you now, baby girl. No more shit to fuck us up. I can't lose you again, not ever. You're all I need, all I want, you're everything to me. Okay?"

Amber nodded and let him kiss her again.

"Sort out the wine please, baby."

Amber smiled at being called baby and opened the fridge to find the wine Eva drank from. Unscrewing the top, she walked over to the sink and let the wine flow freely down the sink.

"Fair enough," Ethan muttered, and went back to chopping vegetables. Amber reopened the fridge and grabbed another cooling white wine. Grabbing two glasses she poured a small amount in hers, but more in Ethan's. She didn't want to drink anymore, even if it was just causal with Ethan. She didn't like what Eva had said to her and felt guilty for wanting a small drink.

Turning on the radio, she carried the two glasses to the living area and put them on the coffee table. Scanning the DVD case she found a Jim Carrey feel good film and pushed it into the
Blu-ray player ready to go. Humming to Daft Punk's 'Get Lucky' she did a few small happy dances, because she was happy, and for once she was going to embrace it. She couldn't remember the last time she felt this free. She wasn't this happy when she spent time with Connor. She felt elevated, like a huge weight had been lifted. Amber ran into the kitchen and smiled at Ethan.

"What are you doing you weirdo?" Ethan asked as she turned to look at his lunatic best friend.

"I love you, you know that?" she told Ethan, her face still split into a grin. "Thank you for being a part of my life."

"Thank you for being a part of mine," Ethan whispered and Amber gave him a peck on the cheek before heading to the bedroom to get changed into her
onesie and tie her hair into a very unladylike mess.

She took a look at herself, pleased with
herself for literally taking the time to sit on her suitcase to make it fit. Walking back out, she found Ethan walking towards the coffee table, two bowlfuls of food in his hands, but the moment he saw her, he stopped and looked at her.

“Do you still have yours?” she asked, shooting him a wicked look.

Ethan literally chortled at that question. His laughter hearty and heavy and literally infectious, and he couldn’t help but watch Amber as he finally allowed it to die down. “You ask such stupid questions sometimes.” Placing the bowls down, he walked to her, smirked and just pushed her in the direction of their meal. “Eat, I’ll be right back.”

Listening, she sank onto the floor, legs stretched out under the table and she began to eat, not realising how hungry she was. As she ate, a sudden memory struck her hard and she
remember the uneaten stir fry that had been left in her fridge. It shocked her how one piece of food struck a painful chord on her heart strings. Her head filled with so many ‘what if’ scenarios and it scared her how easily this moment could never have transpired. What if he hadn’t been the one to catch her? What if Ethan had come to resent her? What if Eva never cheated? The scenarios were dire, but she couldn’t help but fall victim to watching them play out in her mind.