Chef Benjamin and his team had prepared a special dinner to welcome Anna and Ethan home, and several team members joined in the feast."Ethan," said Cliff, who was stirring the dressing into his salad."Yes?" answered Ethan, pushing around pieces of his own salad with his fork, purposefully not looking at Cliff."I got a call yesterday," Cliff said matter-of-factly."I imagine you get several calls per day," Ethan said, still not looking up from his plate.Anna was giggling."This particular call was a person who asked for me by name," Cliff said."Well, you're a pretty popular guy. Good looks and all...." Ethan said while chasing a golden grape tomato around his bowl.Cliff laughed. "I'm not mad, actually. Dave's a nice guy and he seems to have some good ideas for his start up. We can probably help him out."Finally, Ethan looked up. "I knew it all along," he said with a confident smile."Next time, though, I'm going to check your wallet before you leave town to make sure you only hav
Anna had texted Kelly before leaving Ethan's mansion to tell her she was on her way. She pulled into her friend's driveway and headed to the door. Kelly met her in the doorway, opening it so she could go inside."Hi there, stranger!" Kelly exclaimed. "You must sit, and you must tell all before I release your furbaby into your custody."Anna laughed. "Well, there is a lot to tell. Has he been good?""Mister Sammy only shredded one roll of toilet paper, so that's a record," Kelly reported with a laugh."Oh, I'm so sorry!" Anna said, chastising her cat as he jumped up in her lap."It's nothing. But I must know gossip immediately. Did you wear the dress?" Kelly asked."Yes!" Anna squealed. "I can't believe I wore that thing in public. It's practically a piece of lingerie."John had walked into the room, but he spun around on his heels and headed back out. "Men must exit. Men must exit," he mumbled. Anna laughed."You're a big goof," Kelly said to him, then she turned back to Anna. "I bet h
Anna and Ethan woke up together the next morning to find Sammy curled up on their feet.Ethan laughed. "Well, hello there," he said."He always sleeps here," Anna explained, moving to pick him up."No, no. He's fine," Ethan said, running his hands over her exposed arm. "Good morning," he said, gazing into her eyes and cupping her cheek with his hand."Good morning," Anna said with a smile, and their lips met. She rolled over on top of him to deepen the kiss.He moaned softly. "If you keep this up, we're getting nothing else done today," he laughed."I could live with that," she laughed. "Although we'd probably be letting the team down.""Yes, we had a whole weekend of fun, so we probably should be joining them to help with the work," he said."Alright. Do you want to shower? Or head home first? I guess you should leave some clothes here for sleepovers," she said."Hmm," he said thoughtfully, eyeing her with a sexy smile. "You haven't shown me your shower yet.""I thought you said we ne
When the elevator opened to the waterfall lobby, Ron and Ellen Shelby gasped in amazement."What is this place?" Ron asked."It's hard to explain until you've seen more of it," said Anna.Ethan took the lead, showing Anna's parents the different parts of the underground mansion. The couple walked around wide-eyed and stunned, looking like they wouldn't even be able to walk on their own had they not been latched arm-in-arm on either side of their daughter.They walked through the communal living and dining areas, the lounge, the gym and pool room, the gaming center, and finally headed into the communications room.There, most of the team had finished work for the day, but Ethan showed Anna's parents a few of the projects they were working on at the workstations."So, Mom and Dad, Ethan built this whole thing as a sort of compound where he and the team could do the best charity work that would make the most difference in the world," explained Anna.Finally, Ron Shelby spoke. "This is jus
Instead of heading for the elevator, Ethan led Anna by the hand to the back bedroom of the charming country farmhouse."Let's sleep here," he said."Oh, we're going to sleep?" laughed Anna.He led her to the bed and took her in his arms as they sat down. As they kissed, he spun her around gently until he was on top of her, caressing her hips and pulling her toward him."I love you, Anna Shelby," he said."I love you, Ethan Greenfield," said Anna in between kisses.This time they undressed themselves, eager to get the clothes out of the way quickly. Once joined as one, they pressed into each other with slightly more force than they had before, each moaning with pleasure as they reached their climax together.They stayed fixed in each other's arms, drips of sweat melting into one another as a cool breeze blew through an open window. For several minutes, they laid together without a word, the only sound being the gentle rhythm of crickets in the country night."That was wonderful," said A
Ethan got up from his desk and practically ran over to Anna. "Move in?" he asked excitedly."Yes," she said, then gave him a kiss. "I'm moving forward with my life, and it's all about the animal shelter and my work here… and you, of course.""I couldn't be happier. I love you, Anna," he said, gazing into her emerald eyes."I love you, too," she said, wrapping her arms around him. Time stood still as they embraced tightly, their hearts beating in simultaneous rhythm as they basked in a feeling of contentment."We have a lot to do," he said after a while."Yes," she agreed. "I don't want to leave my house empty, so I think I'll ask if any of the new teachers need a place to stay.""That's a great idea," he said."I need to plan!" she said excitedly. "So I'll see you tonight.""No lunch?" he asked."Oh, I forgot to tell you. I'm having lunch with my parents. I need to talk to them about not teaching anymore. Do you want to come?""No, Anna. I know how much your mom loves that you're a tea
About a week later, Anna was starting to settle in. She'd taken one of the rooms in the mansion as her own, although she shared Ethan's bed every night. She had so many things that she didn't want to give away, so she used them to decorate a room as a quiet place she could go when she wanted to unwind. She also put Sammy's favorite chair in the room so he could feel more comfortable, although he loved the pets' room and was already warming up to Milo.Kelly helped her decorate. "This stuff looks even better in this room," she laughed."That's true," Anna agreed."When do I get to be a maid of honor?" asked Kelly, raising her eyebrows at her friend."I'm sure that'll come soon enough. We're so busy with everything, it's hard to even have much time together," explained Anna."Well, make time," said Kelly bluntly. "There's more to living here than building an animal shelter or working with the team. You need to take time to communicate so your relationship grows.""You're right," said Ann
Ethan called David early that next morning. He wanted to get the problem taken care of right away so that Anna didn't have to keep worrying. She had a lot on her mind planning the construction and opening for the animal shelter, and she was still working on the team's educational projects. All that was a lot on her plate, and she didn't need to have some drunk old business partner to worry about on top of it all."We need to talk," he told David on the phone."Yes, we do," said David."Let's meet in Bluewater. Name the place," said Ethan."Delany's Café. It's over on Melvin Street," he said."Alright," said Ethan. "I'll be there at noon."***Delany's was a rustic place. It was clear the owner wasn't too worried about decorating, but the food was good. Ethan and Rick had gone there many times when planning the mansion's construction.Ethan walked in the door and saw David already sitting in a booth. He slid into the seat on the other side."So why don't you tell me why you were screami