Addicted (Ethan Frost #2)(64)

“Really?” I ask him, crossing my arms over my chest and glaring at him.

He holds his hands up in surrender. “Hey, I’m just asking. Want to make sure I’ve got the rules clear.”

“I don’t know. If you intend to be this big of an *, then I think I’ll be paying for my own food, thank you very much.”

“I’m the *?” He slams the car door, then leans back against it like he has no intention of going anywhere until we have this sorted out. Which is more than fine with me, since it’s a fight that’s been brewing for a while between us. “Do you ever think how it makes me feel that every time I try to give you something, it’s a fight?”

“That’s not fair.”

“No, it isn’t fair, to either of us. But it is true. So why don’t we get to the bottom of this once and for all so we can go back to enjoying the day. What is it about me buying you presents that makes you so goddamn uncomfortable?”

“First of all, when I said it wasn’t fair, I meant that it’s not all your presents that make me uncomfortable,” I tell him. When he looks at me like I’m not being honest, I insist, “It isn’t. I love the things you send me—the seashells, the tea, the books, the hair combs. I even kept the suit without a hassle, though I have to admit that grated on me a little bit. But I needed it and I knew it was your way of making up for what happened on the beach.”

“Just to be clear, there’s nothing I regret about what happened on the beach that night. And nothing that I want to make amends for.”

“You know what I mean. The rain ruined my suit which probably wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t …”

“If I hadn’t … Oh, right. If I hadn’t ripped your clothes off and f*cked you up against a building?”

I roll my eyes, try to pretend I’m not blushing. “Yes. Exactly. That.”
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“So you took the suit because I was at least as responsible for ruining its predecessor as you were.”

“Uh, no. You were way more responsible for it. You ripped every button off my blouse. And broke the zipper on my pants.”

He smiles reminiscently. “I was in a hurry.”

“Yeah, I’m aware of that.”

“So, you took the suit. But the blender, the scarf, the belly chain—they don’t sit well with you.”

“They don’t. No. I mean, I love the belly chain and if you want it back at this point you’ll probably have to pry it out of my cold, dead hand. But if I’d had any idea what it cost when you first gave it to me, I never would have accepted it.”

“Why not?” Ethan demands, and for the first time since we started the discussion he seems truly frustrated. “That chain is more than just a piece of jewelry and we both know it. So why would you object to something that’s a symbol of the commitment we have to each other? Something that helps ground you and makes you feel more secure in yourself and in our relationship?”

“Don’t talk about it like it’s a collar,” I tell him.

“That’s exactly what it is and you and I both know it. And I don’t appreciate you pretending otherwise. You want to talk, we’ll talk. But I’m not up for bullshit right now.”

It’s probably the toughest Ethan has ever talked to me and it gets my back up a little. Then again, a look into his stubborn blue eyes tells me that that’s exactly what he’s going for. He’s trying to piss me off. Trying to get me to react when I’m trying so hard to be calm about this.

But even knowing what he’s doing doesn’t stop me from reacting to it. “And I’m not up for this macho act you’ve got going on, either, so you might want to reconsider it,” I say with a definite bite.

“If you don’t like it, then tell me what’s really going on. Don’t hand me some bullshit line about liking sea glass but not being able to accept anything that costs over twenty bucks.”

“It’s not bullshit!” I tell him, and for the first time, I’m getting angry.

“It kind of is,” he answers. “And I’m getting damn sick of it. So tell me the truth. What do you have against my money?”

“Nothing!” I assure him. “I know how hard you’ve worked for everything you have. You deserve everything you’ve got.”

“Okay, then.” He eyes me skeptically. “If it’s not the money you’re upset about, then what do you have against me personally?”

“Seriously? Now you’re just being stupid.”

“Am I? I don’t think so. Because it has to be one or the other—you don’t like my money or you don’t like me. Nothing else makes sense.”

“I’m completely in love with you, Ethan. You know that.”

“Then I don’t get it, Chloe. If it’s not the money and it’s not me, what is it?”

“Your family bought my silence for three million dollars.” The words come out before I even know I’m going to say them. But it’s the truth and if we’re going to make this thing work, Ethan might as well know exactly what it is he’s dealing with. Exactly what it is he’s up against.

“They threw their money at me to get Brandon off the hook and it worked, just like they knew it would. I mean, I took it, right?”