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“Yeah, I did,” he shrugged and looked at Andrew who stared at him with wide eyes. Poor kid had the same reaction when his mother explained to him that Santa wasn’t real.

Ethan cleared his throat and added, “I punched him because he was harassing a woman.”

His dark eyes flickered to me when he said the last words. I clenched my hand in a fist under the table. I didn’t know that there was a woman involved when he punched the reporter.

My friend smiled at Ethan, “I am glad you punched him then. So, that’s why your image is bad right now in the media.”

I kicked her leg underneath the table, but she kicked me right back. What was she up to? Why was she grilling him with questions? This was none of our business.

“Ethan,” I said, “You don’t have to . . .”

He flashed me a small smile, “I don’t mind, Bella.” He looked at my friend and answered, “You are right, my sponsors have paused my endorsement deals until I volunteer for some community service.”

I talked to him about the charity for kids fighting cancer and that I had their office card too. I had yet to pay them a visit, so taking a deep breath, I asked him if we could go there sometime together.

“Andrew, didn’t you complain about the swimming coach needing help for your school?” Anya asked and then looked at me, “Didn’t you say this too? That the swim coach was going on her maternity leave?”

“I did, she is already on her maternity leave, so Mr. Davis is looking for a swim coach to fill in for a few months,” I explained.

Then it struck me. When I saw the mischievous glint in Anya’s dark eyes.

But I was too late.

I snapped my head at Ethan, and he was looking at me, searching my face for any emotion while Andrew exclaimed, “Wait, Mom, Kiara! Ethan is a swimmer, right?”

“Why don’t you ask him, Son?”

“You are a swimmer, right, Mr. Ethan?” he asked politely.

Ethan smiled at him, his cheeks flushing, “Yes, I am a swimmer.”

“Then can you be our swim coach?”

Ethan turned to me, raising his brow. Then Anya and Andrew looked at me. When I didn’t give in, they tried harder with their puppy-dog eye looks.

I sighed as if it was my decision when it clearly wasn’t. My lips curled into a small smile. “I will give you Mr. Davis’ number and talk to him about you.”

Andrew cheered and started rambling how he was going to tell Ben and every one of his classmates that he knew Ethan and that he was my close friend. I hid my face with my hair when he said that and focused on eating. But I could feel Ethan’s warm gaze on me.

It was late when I stepped out of the elevator with Ethan to bid him goodbye. The night air was chilly. It was a polite thing to do, and I needed to thank him for today.

“Are you sure about me being a swim coach?” Ethan asked.

By the tone of his voice, I knew he thought he wouldn’t be able to do it or might be a bad influence on the kids. My heart tugged at the vulnerability behind his voice.

I grinned at him and nudged his shoulder, “Of course, E, you will be a great swim coach, and I am sure Mr. Davis would accept you in a heartbeat. So would the kids.”

He gave me a relieved smile, and when he opened the door of his car, I told him to wait. Without thinking, I leaned closer and wrapped my arms around him.

“Thank you for today, Ethan. I missed you.”

His arms embraced me tightly, and I felt his lips on my hair, kissing it. “I missed you too, Bella.” He pulled away to cup my cheek and my breath hitched in my throat at the intensity of his piercing blue-green eyes. “Promise me you won’t leave again.”

I squeezed his hand on my cheek, “I promise, E. Never again.”

As soon as those words left my mouth, I knew I would keep this promise no matter what happened. Ethan was important to me. Losing him once had wrecked me, and I didn’t want to go through that again. He meant too much to me, even after all these years. He was still one of the few people who truly knew me, understood me and accepted me for who I was. So, for him and me, both, I wouldn’t even dream of leaving him again.