---- Chapter 10 10 Ethan stared at Chloe. Then at Mark and David. "What's going on?" he asked, his voice flat. Mark chuckled. "Chloe just wanted to see how fast you'd come running, buddy." David grinned. "New record, | think." Ethan felt a flush of anger. Humiliation. "She said Ava was harassing her staff." Chloe pouted. "Well, she might! You know how jealous she is." "Ava's not jealous, Chloe. She's... hurt." The words surprised him. Mark clapped him on the shoulder. "Relax, man. We were just teasing. Chloe was bored." David smirked. "You're always so tense when it comes to Chloe. Or Ava. Hard to tell which one winds you up more these days." He saw Ethan clench his fists. Ethan took a deep breath, slowly unclenching his hands. A strange thought occurred to him: he was almost relieved Ava wasn't there to see this. To see him being played like a fool by Chloe, egged on by his idiot friends. The rest of the day was a blur of Chloe's demands and his friends' inane chatter. ---- His mood remained dark. Eventually, Mark and David made their excuses and left. Chloe, sensing his distraction, sidled up to him. She ran her hands up his chest, her eyes sultry. "Forget about them, Ethan. Forget about Ava. Let me make you feel good." She pressed her body against his. He felt a flicker of physical arousal. Conditioned response. But emotionally, he was numb. Detached. His mind kept replaying Ava's face. The quiet sadness in her eyes. The way she used to look at him, with so much love, so much hope. A hope he had systematically crushed. He remembered how Ava would blush when he whispered silly, affectionate things to her during their more intimate moments. How her eyes would shine. How genuine she was. No games. No manipulations. Just... Ava. A sudden warmth spread through him at the memory. A stark contrast to the coldness he felt with Chloe's practiced seduction. Chloe, sensing his withdrawal, intensified her efforts, her hands becoming more insistent. She pulled his head down for a kiss. He let her. It was easier than resisting. ---- She backed him towards the bedroom, her movements urgent, almost desperate. He felt a brief, detached sense of her falling on top of him on the bed. Her lips were everywhere. "See?" she whispered breathlessly against his skin, later. "I can always pry you open, Ethan. You can't resist me." He made some noncommittal sound. His phone rang. His home number. Maria. He grabbed it, a surge of anticipation, of hope. Ava? Chloe scowled. "Don't answer that." He ignored her. "Hello?" "Mr. Cole? It's Maria." "Is Mrs. Cole there?" he asked, trying to keep the eagerness out of his voice. "No, Mr. Cole. But she... she left you a gift." A gift? He tried to appease Chloe, who was now glaring at him. "Maria, tell Mrs. Cole... tell her I'm having a small celebration tonight. For Chloe. She should cook something. Her pasta. Chloe loves her pasta." It was a stupid, manipulative thing to say. He knew Ava wouldn't cook for Chloe. But he wanted Ava to react. To be angry. To be something other than absent. Chloe, hearing this, smirked triumphantly. She leaned into the phone, her voice loud enough for Maria to hear. ---- "Oh, Ethan, you're so naughty!" She then did something overtly sexual, trying to distract him, to mark her territory. He let her, his eyes still on the phone, hoping for some sign from Maria that Ava was there, listening, reacting. Maria's voice was hesitant. "Mr. Cole... the gift... it's on your desk." "My desk? What is it?" Then it hit him. Their anniversary. He'd forgotten. Again. The dinner at Chloe's restaurant. That was supposed to be their anniversary dinner. He'd used it as a pretext to celebrate Chloe. Guilt, sharp and sudden, mixed with a strange dread. A gift. What had Ava left him?