The one man I can't have

Our first kiss

Daddy,you're back?

Lily said with a surprised tone,

“Yes, honey I had to pick up an important file and this must be your friend you spoke about right?

Ethan asked while returning his gaze back to me,I liked how he looked at me and I didn't want him to stop.

“I hope you didn't scare my friend, dad

Lily asked coming down the stairs and went to carry one of my bags.

I picked up my second bag and Lily lead the way back upstairs, as we climbed I looked back for a minute and Ethan still stood there staring at me and our eyes met before I quickly looked away,it sent a shiver down my spine again.

Out of curiosity I looked back again ,this time he was headed for the front door.

Lily helped me settle into my room and arrange my stuffs, she was so happy doing it and promised to show me around town when we were done, which we did in the evening.

By Sunday, i was finally starting to feel less like a guest and more like a resident.

But I wasn't all that comfortable,especially around Ethan .

For the rest of the week,I went to the cafe to work but I didn't tell mia or my manager that I had moved or that Derek had broken up with me, I kept everything to myself and acted normal throughout the week.

Dinner on Friday had been torture,

Lily had spent most of the meal telling embarrassing childhood stories while Ethan appeared focused on his food,but every time I looked up,his gaze was somehow on me.

It was not an obvious look or an inappropriate one but it was long enough to make me wonder, what was going through his mind anytime he stared at me .

The week went by so fast, and Sunday afternoon arrived quietly.

Lily disappeared after lunch and I went in for a quiet nap.

When I woke up, the house felt unusually silent, Lily promised to be back before I was up from my nap but she was no where in sight

"Lily? I called heading downstairs and there was no answer.

I checked the kitchen, the living room., and there was no one there .

I strolled in the hallway wondering where Lily might be, because it was such a big house and I haven't really gotten used to it,then I noticed light beneath a partially open office door.

I was so relieved and pushed it open,

“Oh no,

I muttered under my breath, it was a wrong move, I was about to step out immediately and a voice stopped me it was Ethan's

"...you don't get to rewrite history now."

I froze.

His back was turned and he had his phone pressed to his ear. He sounded tired then the floorboard beneath my foot creaked.

Ethan turned and looked up instantly, our eyes met and for a second none of us moved.

Then he sighed.

"I'll talk to you later, I can't keep doing this

and the call ended.

“Can't keep doing what?I wondered to myself, what was stressing the Almighty business man out.

“I'm so sorry, mr Ethan I spoke to end the awkward silence

“I thought Lily was in here so I stepped in

Ethan chucked,

it's fine Ava, come in and please call me ethan,

I felt like this man, knew the effect he had on me whenever he called my name.

You look stressed, I said as I entered his office properly closing the door behind me.

“Iam actually and I need a good company, one that'll distract me from work and other noises, can you do that Ava ?

Is this man, teasing me?, I said in my head again.

“Yeah sure, we can talk since Lily has abandoned me, I answered him and fir some reason I wanted to stay longer in here with only him.

"You heard?, Ethan asked adjusting his tie,

Heard what Mr Ethan, sorry Ethan ? I answered

“My call ,

"A little, I chuckled before he let out a funny laugh

"Then you heard enough, he said pouring out a glass of whiskey,

“Do you care for some? he asked and I declined

What he did next really surprised me,

He spoke about how the divorce had messed with him and how betrayed he felt and how he felt disappointed in his wife and how he buried himself with work , to distract himself from everything he was going through emotionally.

He also talked about how he feared he might be failing Lily as a father and he wanted to try his best and maybe start therapy.

For a moment I felt his pain and was surprised how comfortable he felt with me to open this much. I began to feel empathy for him and why he buried himself with work before he threw his question at me which i didn't see coming.

“So tell me Ava, he asked

What happened to you that you had move in and I'm so sorry about your mom again.

I didn't picture Ethan Bennett to be like this , I pictured him as a workaholic and unavailable father, during Mom's funeral he didn't show up but he sent some flowers through Lily .

“Well i guess we can't predict how fast our lives can change I said,

One minute your working the next minute your boyfriend of two years breaks up with you because he's cheating and I wonder how he did that because s*x with him was horrible.

I paused and looked at Ethan he chuckled and slowly sipped his whiskey.

“I think I said way too much, I said feeling nervous

“No continue, Ethan said I bet your story is more interesting than mine.

Okay, my boyfriend cheated on me I continued,

My landlord evicted me under short notice because he sold the building and my contract with a free lance agency got terminated same day I finally said and let out a heavy sigh.

“Okay, Ethan spoke

Your story is sadder than mine

and we both burst into laughter.

There was a little bit of silence and Ethan moved closer to me ,

“Tell me Ava,he said and pulled me closer to him our faces were close to each other like we were about to kiss,

“ I know you've noticed the way I look at you and you always try to pretend like you don't know.

I interrupted him

“This is wrong Ethan, I said as I tried to pull away from his hold and he held me tighter.

“Ava, I know this is wrong, he said moving his hand from my waist down to my ass,

I was putting on a short dress which made it an easier access for him, before I could say anything he grabbed my ass as tight as he could and I let out a light moan

“But , I can't help it Ethan said before he pressed his lips against mine like he was teasing me, at first I hesitated and he grabbed my ass again.

I tried to kiss him too but he moved his head backwards before he pushed it forward and he kissed me like he was hungry, he had the taste of whiskey on his tongue by the time he stopped my lips were swollen and I was gasping for air.

“f**k, your lips are softer than I imagined, he said and I was surprised because he was my best friends dad and was supposed to be like a father to me but he was here imagining how soft my lips could be and we

just shared a kiss.

He was about to kiss me again before Lily's voice interrupted us..

Ava?