CHAPTER 2: COLLISION
829 Words
Ethan Blackwood had learned to control every reaction by the time he turned sixteen. Emotion was weakness. The surprise was vulnerability. His father's board of directors had taught him that before the man was even cold in his grave.
So when Ava Monroe stood before him after five years of silence, he kept his face neutral even as his heart tried to punch through his ribs.
But his hand betrayed him. It held hers three seconds too long.
She pulled away first, her expression perfectly professional, and something about that calm detachment made him want to break things.
"I wasn't aware you'd returned to the city," Ethan said, his voice level despite the chaos screaming through his nervous system.
"I've been back for three weeks." Ava's tone was pleasant, empty of anything personal. "Mrs. Blackwood was kind enough to offer me a position at your company."
"In what capacity?"
"Executive secretary. I start Monday."
Before Ethan could respond, Chloe materialized beside him. Her fingers dug into his arm possessively.
"Ava. What a surprise." Chloe's smile was sharp enough to draw blood. "We were just talking about trying for a baby again, weren't we, darling?"
Ethan said nothing. He and Chloe hadn't shared a bed in four years.
"How lovely," Ava said with zero inflection. "I hope it works out better than last time."
Chloe's face went white. Grandma Blackwood coughed to cover what sounded like a laugh.
"Losing our baby during the honeymoon was devastating," Chloe recovered, her voice dripping false sadness. "The trauma—"
"I'm sure it was difficult," Ava interrupted smoothly. "Miscarriages often are, even when they're—" she paused, "—unexpected."
Something flickered in Ava's tone. Some implication Ethan couldn't grasp. But Chloe clearly heard it. Her champagne glass trembled in her hand.
"Excuse me," Ava said, pulling out her phone. "I need to take this call."
She walked toward the balcony before Ethan could respond. He watched her go, his hands curling into fists.
"Why is she really back?" Chloe asked beside him.
"I don't know."
But he intended to find out.
Ava stepped onto the balcony and sucked in cold night air, her hands shaking now that no one could see.
Her phone buzzed. Nina's name lit the screen.
"Tell me you survived," Nina said.
"Barely. How's Noah?"
"Sleeping. Fever broke an hour ago. But Dr. Chen called. The test results—"
"I know." Ava's voice cracked. "We have four months. Maybe five."
"Did you tell him?"
"Not yet. I need proof that Ethan's a match first. One wrong move and I lose everything."
The balcony door opened. Ava turned.
Ethan stood in the doorway.
"I need to go," Ava said quickly. "Kiss Noah for me."
She disconnected. Ethan stepped closer, the door clicking shut behind him.
"Who's Noah?" he asked quietly.
Ava's blood turned to ice. How much had he heard?
"A friend's child. He's been sick."
Ethan moved closer. "Why did you really come back? Don't give me the job answer."
"Maybe I got tired of running."
"From what?"
"From ghosts. From unfinished business."
"What unfinished business?"
You, she thought. Our son. The truth about what really happened.
"That's my concern, not yours," she said instead.
Ethan was close enough now that she could feel heat radiating from his body.
"You disappeared without a word," he said, and real emotion cracked through his facade. Anger. Pain. "You let me marry her."
"You made that choice yourself."
"Because you were gone!"
"Because she was pregnant!" Ava's control snapped. "Or so you thought."
The words hung between them.
Ethan went very still. "What does that mean?"
Ava realized her mistake. She'd revealed too much.
"Nothing. It means nothing."
"Ava—"
"Mr. Blackwood," she corrected coldly. "We should maintain professional boundaries."
She moved to step around him, but his hand caught her wrist. Not hard. Just contact.
The touch burned.
"Don't," he said roughly. "Don't become a stranger."
"I've been a stranger for five years." She pulled free. "This changes nothing."
"It changes everything. You're here. You're real."
"The ghost was easier. She didn't have secrets. She didn't have—" She stopped herself.
A son. She didn't have our son, dying because you don't even know he exists.
The balcony door burst open. Chloe stood framed in light, expression murderous.
"There you are, darling. The auction's starting." She turned to Ava. "You have a call. Some woman named Nina. She says it's urgent. Something about Noah's fever spiking."
Ava's stomach dropped.
"I answered when your phone kept ringing," Chloe continued, smiling like a shark. "She mentioned kiss him for me. Is Noah your boyfriend? How sweet."
Ethan's expression went cold as ice.
Chloe had just painted a picture of Ava with another man. Deliberately.
"Excuse me," Ava said steadily. "I need to return that call."
She walked past them both and didn't look back.
But she felt Ethan's eyes burning into her back all the way across the ballroom.
- Writer
