“Love?” Ethan asked. He was wondering what Hank was getting at.
Hank laughed. “No, not love. Any old fool can fall in love. Of course you have to love each other. That’s a given, but you two have true compatibility, that little bit of secret sauce that brings the whole meal together.”
“I think I know what you mean,” Ethan replied. He took another bite of bacon.
“Before sending this deal over to our lawyers, I wanted to know what kind of man I was handing over my company to, and now I do.”
Ethan looked at Hank for a moment, and then he looked back out the window at the wide view of the fields and mountains off in the distance. His heart was pounding in his chest, and he wondered whether he was crazy for what he was about to say next. He had spent months building up to this point, and now he had a deal right in front of him. All he had to do was slap Hank on the back, shake his hand and then head out of town, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it, not yet anyway. “Before we finalize anything, there’s something I need to tell you, something about me and Amy.”
“Oh?” Hank replied. He wondered what in the world Ethan was going to say to him.
“Amy told me the story she told you about how we first became involved.”
“A sweet story, I thought.”
“Except, it’s not true,” Ethan said.
“Really?”
“Well, it is,” Ethan replied, “but it’s not the whole truth. If you give me a chance to tell my side of the story, I think you’ll understand what I’m going to ask you next.”
“And what’s that?”
“I want you to wait to sell me the company. I just need you to wait a few months, long enough for my wife to fall in love with me.”
Hank nearly fell over in his chair. “Long enough for what?”
“Like I said, it will help if I start the story from the beginning.”
Hank stood up from the table, walked over to the coffee maker and poured himself a fresh mug. Then he walked back over to the table and sat down directly across from Ethan. Looking him square in the eye, he said, “I’m all ears.”
Chapter 16
Amy spent the rest of the morning by Vi’s side, confident that in time she’d be able to help her aunt make a full recovery. In a strange way, this terrible incident had helped Amy regain her sense of control. It helped her feel more like herself. There, in the harsh light of the hospital room, she knew her place. There was no mistaking that this was a family crisis, and Amy knew what to do in a crisis. The happiness and excitement of the weekend, on the other hand, had left her disoriented and confused, but this, the anxiety and uncertainty, the lack of sleep, this she knew well. This was where she thrived.
For the first time since she had gotten the news about Vi, Amy allowed herself to relax a bit. She rested her eyes, opening them only when she needed to respond to the nurses and doctors who came and went, checking on Vi and making sure everything was on track. Before long, Amy had stopped paying attention to the people entering and leaving the room, so much so that she failed to notice the man now standing in front of Vi’s bed, but as soon as he started to speak, Amy jolted up in her seat. She couldn’t believe her eyes. Ethan had flown across the country and was standing right in front of her. What the hell was he doing there?
"You must be Vi," he said. He couldn’t help but notice that she looked to be in good spirits for someone who had just had a heart attack.
Vi looked up and smiled. "Are you my new doctor?" she asked.
"I'm afraid not," Ethan replied.
"Would you like to be?"
"Vi!" Amy exclaimed. "This is Ethan, and I thought we talked about how you shouldn't hit on the hospital staff."
"Well, dear, since he's apparently not my doctor or my nurse, it looks like I'm free to say what I please. Seeing as he's your husband, I'll try to keep things PG." She turned her attention back to Ethan. "It's a shame. He's so handsome. He looks like he'd be great with a sponge."
Ethan, who had been hit on so many times over the years, couldn't help but blush. He shook his head and tried to figure out a polite response.
Amy looked at Ethan and then back at Vi. "It looks like you've finally met your match."
Vi reached over and placed her hand over Amy's. "That's what I was trying to tell him."
Finally, Ethan cleared his throat and said, "Vi, I don't think I could possibly keep up with you."
Vi laughed and let out a long sigh. She looked off toward the window. "No man ever could. I have trouble keeping up with myself sometimes. That's what landed me here."