Page 98 of The Toy Maker

I scoffed at his cheap shot and raised the bottle to my lips. “Fuck you for making me admit that.”

“Hey, at least you got to drink for it.” He took the liquor and held it up. “Cheers.”

“You fell in love with your boss?” I raised an eyebrow.

“What can I say? Authority revs my engine.” He was definitely drunk.

I laughed. “Don’t ever say that again.”

“Well, it made you laugh, didn’t it?” Ethan smiled as I stared at him for a long moment.

Ethan was good. He was kind, thoughtful, and honest in a way Jason never was.

But he wasn’t Jason.

“Never have I ever fell in love with the wrong man.” I reached for the bottle and accidentally brushed my fingers against his.

I could feel my heartbeat in the most obscure places as he leaned in. My body, numb from a cocktail of pain and poor alcohol tolerance, didn’t move away.

Then his lips were against mine, tasting like warm caramel and wanting.

But then reality snapped back into place. I pulled away, searching for words that didn’t exist. “I?—”

Ethan held his hand up for me to stop. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Are you sure?” I asked as he helped me to my feet.

“Yeah,” he sighed. “I know how much you, well, you know.” He turned and started walking toward the stairs.

He was gone before I could say another word. Not that I would know what to say. I leaned against the door and groaned at my poor judgement.

A knock startled me out of my pity party. “Ethan, I’m so?—”

But when I opened the door, it was dark green eyes staring back at me.

“Ethan?” Jason asked. His voice was rough, but the expression on his face was soft.

“Yeah,” I croaked. “He was just here.”

“Did he come in?” He leaned forward, his eyes sweeping through my apartment behind me. He seemed…jealous, and after the day I had, I didn’t feel bad about that.

I crossed my arms. “Yes, actually.” I shot him a sharp glare. “I put on some sexy Latin tunes, and we did the tango.” I paused, before the alcohol got the best of me. “Butt-naked.”

Jason exhaled, rubbing his chin as he stared off into the hallway like he was actually picturing it. “I suppose I deserve that.” I didn’t disagree.

“What do you want?” I demanded, my patience hanging on by a thread.

“Can I come inside?”Why does everyone keep asking me that?I considered slamming the door in his stupidly handsome face.

I chose the less violent approach. “Fine.” I moved out of the doorway, setting the whiskey bottle on the entry table so I didn’t keep reaching for it and end up in the hospital for alcohol poisoning.

Jason walked in cautiously, like he wasn’t sure if I was going to throw something at him.Smart.

I leaned against the counter and motioned for him to start talking.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay,” Jason elaborated, voice wary.

“Okay,” I repeated, shrugging as if I wasn’t seconds away from falling apart.