Ethan watched Grace walk away, he thought she looked lost, and confused, and what really got him was the tear coming from her eye, but why? He walked past her to pay his bill, and looked at the guy who was sitting across from her. He felt they looked like they were cozy together, and saw that his hand was laying on top of hers, making Ethan feel uneasy.

He paid his bill, and walked back over to his table to leave a tip, he took one more look at Grace, and left. He felt satisfied that he was finally able to see her, and to talk her into talking with him. He got to work, and hurried to get his work done, hoping to get to the store, and grab something to make her dinner.

The day felt long to him, he kept checking the time, sighing each time when he saw that it was only thirty minutes from the last time he checked. He finally got his work done, and saw that it was six in the evening. He hurried out of the office, stopped at the store and quickly grabbed something to make for dinner.

While making dinner, his phone rang, his eyes closed when he saw that it was Ilona, and hesitantly answered the phone. Antonio, and Sadie gave her the night off, and wondered if he would like to go out. SHIT he swore under his breath. He made up an excuse, and asked if he could call her back, saying that he was deeply into work, and couldn't be interrupted.

He groaned thinking he was making a bigger mess out of something that didn't need to be, and hearing displeasure in her voice, got him hoping after talking with Grace, it would make things clearer for him.

Dinner was done, and all he needed was for Grace to finally show up. He sat, and ate alone, pissed at himself once again that she didn't show up. He put everything away, and had just sat down on the couch, when he heard a knock.

He felt his heart race, and answered the door, smiling when he saw it was Grace "I wasn't sure if you were coming. I made dinner, and just got done putting it away. But if you're hungry, I can reheat it for you."

"No thanks, I already ate, one of the reasons why I'm late."

He opened the door wider, and let her in. He was about to help take off her jacket, but she brushed past him, and continued walking inside.

"I hope this is quick, I have some things to do."

Ethan looked at the time, and ran his fingers through his hair "It's nearly ten at night, what could you possibly be doing this late at night?"

"You wanted to talk, so let's talk." She walked into the living room, and sat on the chair, she didn't want to be sitting on the couch where it was easy for him to sit next to her, and didn't want to give him any signs that she wanted anything else from him.

He sat on the edge of the couch, looked at her, and everything that he wanted to talk to her about, his mind suddenly went blank.

He breathed in heavily, and exhaled slowly, and looked at her "There is one thing I would like to know is, was the last thing that Tickle Me Elmo got before leaving the factory, was two test tickles?" he asked, trying to ease the tension in the room, and wanting to make her laugh. It somewhat worked, she partially smiled, which made him smile.

"Do you seriously need to be funny right now?" she asked, trying to hold back her smile.

"No, but I got you to smile, didn't I?" Ethan grinned. She then smiled, and let out a small giggle. She suddenly stopped, and looked away "What did you want to talk about anyway? Because if you just got me here thinking you could get me into your bed again, I might as well just leave." she says, turning to look at him.

"You came to my work the other day, why?"

"I told you why."

"I'm not buying any word of what you said, I could see the look in your eyes, there was something else."

She sat quietly in the chair, and wasn't sure what to say to him, there were a few reasons why she stopped by. She wanted to see him, but also wanted to see if she could stay away from him. When she saw him, she wanted to grab him, and pull him in for a kiss, she also wanted him to place her on top of his desk, and make love to her, but knew it would only complicate things even more. She loved every moment with him, and loved how he made her feel, and wouldn't mind being with him again. She then shook her head, trying to get rid of her thoughts.

"Ethan... for years you always had me laughing, making me feel good about myself. I also thought it was wonderful for what you did for my daughter, and Antonio. It had to be hard for you, being that it was asked by Harlow for you to get them two together."

"No, it wasn't hard, it was soft, and relaxed." he chuckled, he smiled even bigger when she had to turn her head, and cover her mouth "Actually, I quite enjoyed working on getting them two together. I almost got my ass kicked a couple times by Antonio, for doing what I was asked to do, but it was worth it."

"What I mean by all of this is, I saw a really good person, which is you, you were there for Sadie when she had nobody, you walked her down the aisle, you found her father, and talked some sense into him, you have done a lot for a lot of people. You have a big heart, and a heart of gold. What you did for me a few weeks back, was incredible, I never thought I could lay naked with another man after years of what I had gone through. What you did, and how caring you were about it, made my heart melt. You truly are a godsend. But I've had plenty of time to think, and I went there with the intentions on telling you that I do have feelings for you, and that I have for years. But I wasn't sure what kinds of feelings they really were. You made me feel like a human being again, and to be someone that I never thought could ever be possible."

Ethan sat and listened to Grace, trying to make sense out of everything she was trying to say. He knows he has always been there for whoever, and whenever they needed him, and was there for Harlow. He did what she asked him to do, and was there for Antonio, when he needed him. He was also there for Sadie, the twins, as well as Grace.

"I hear what you are saying, and that's me, I have always been there for anyone who ever asked me to be, with no questions asked. But what does that have to do with us?"

Grace sat forward rubbing her forehead with a couple fingers, she didn't want to hurt him anymore than she already has, and was feeling hurt herself. She was torn with her feelings towards him, and didn't quite understand them herself. "Ethan, what I'm trying to say is, I don't want to hurt you, I don't want you to hurt me, you're a good person, and deserve someone great in your life. You're young, and I'm sure you would like to have kids yourself, and that's something I cannot give you."

"That's not true." Ethan cut her off and stood up, he didn't want to look at her, he knew in his heart she could have kids, and felt she was using an excuse. He walked over to her, and kneeled to the ground, taking her hand "You say you cannot have kids, but is that really true? And you do know that there are other options, if you are willing."

Grace held his hand, and smiled "The thing is, I can't, not to mention I can't have any kids at fifty-five years old, that's why I have grandchildren. They're like my kids. I just cannot give you what you want."

"And you know for a fact that you can't have kids, or is that another excuse you're giving me, just to push me away?

"I don't know for a fact, but I just know that I cannot have kids."

"Well... what if I were to say, I don't need kids?"

"Then I would call you a liar." she said quietly "Go find yourself a girl that can give you what you want, it's not like you'll never see me again. Will it be hard for me? Maybe, but I think it'll be best for the both of us. I will admit, I like all the compliments you give me, and that it does feel good when you say those to me... and I'll admit I like that you can make me laugh. You just be you, and when we see each other, don't worry I'll still laugh."

Ethan breathed in heavily and looked down, he got some answers he needed, but still didn't believe she doesn't want to be with him. He could see it, feel it, and felt she was saying it to push him away again. He knew he couldn't force her into anything she didn't want, and stood up, holding his hand out to help her up.

He pulled her in for a hug, held her tight, and ran his hands up and down her back, kissing the top of her head "Thanks for finally talking to me. I felt like I did something wrong."

She shook her head and squeezed him tighter "No, you didn't do anything wrong. If I were to be honest, I would say you saved me." She looked up at him, and smiled. There was one more thing she wanted to do, and hoped he wouldn't take it the wrong way.

He stared deeply into her eyes, then closed his eyes, and rested his forehead against hers "So this is how you really want it to be?"

"I'm not saying I don't have feelings for you, because then that would be a lie, but I think this is the way it should be." She looked up, and slid her hand up the back of his head, and pulled him in for a kiss, it surprised him, and it surprised him even more when her lips parted, allowing him to thrust his tongue into her mouth. Their kiss was deep, long, and passionate, and when she felt the temperature rising within her, she pulled away and slowly wiped the spit away from his lips, with her thumb.

He pulled her in for one more kiss, the kiss had her feeling she was going to do something she told herself she wouldn't do, and pulled away "I have to go. I hope you understand where I'm coming from, and I wish you the best. I do want you to know, I'll be fine." she says with a smile, and walked away.

After she left, he stood at the window, watching her drive away, and sighed. He felt the talk went OK, it wasn't the way he wanted it go, but he got some of the answers he was looking for. He smiled thinking of the kiss they shared once again, and could tell in the kiss, she cared for him. He knew he couldn't pressure her into anything she didn't want, and started thinking about what he really wanted. He knew what he wanted, but it wasn't going the way he was hoping it would, and thought of the conversations he had with Antonio, his conversations with Grace, and how he possibly hurt the other girl he knew was interested in him.

He knew what he had to do to make it right with Ilona, and was going to try, and fix whatever he needed to fix. He hoped this was what Grace truly wanted, and didn't want to see her hurt. At this point, there was nothing more he could do. He saw Sadie in his mind, and knew he was going to get smacked by her, once she found out. It'll be worth it he mumbled, smiling and chuckling.

******

A couple days later, Ethan left work around noon, Ilona wasn't taking his calls either, and stopped at the store to grab a bouquet of flowers. He called Antonio asking to let Ilona have the night off, so he could spend some time with her, then filled him in on what happened with her, and what happened with Grace. Antonio wasn't too happy with what he did to Ilona. He accepted his request, and was going to let Sadie know once she got off from work, that she was to let Ethan take Ilona out for the day.

Ethan knew the door would be locked, so he knocked on the door. When no one answered he looked at the time, and figured she went to pick the kids from school. He knew how to get in, but figured he would sit on the front step, and wait for her to arrive.

Ilona turned the corner, and couldn't figure out why the kids were getting excited, and when she pulled into the driveway, she saw Ethan sitting on the step with his head hung low.

Ethan's head lifted, and stood up to walk towards her car. Meeting her just she opened the door. "What are you doing here?" she snapped at him.

"I'm here to see you, I need talk to you." His hand came around from behind his back, and handed her the flowers. She had no reaction seeing the flowers, and shut the door hard. She then walked to the rear door to get the kids out of their car seats.

He walked to the other side, and got Matteo out of the seat, figuring he would help her out. He felt bad, and knew this was going to be some work trying to get her to talk to him. "Please say something."

She stopped, and turned to look at him. Then told the kids to cover their ears. Once they did, she looked at him with furrowed eyebrows pointing a finger at him "You're a fucking asshole."

"I've been told that a few times before-."

"Welp, they weren't lying" she retorted.

"Ilona, the truth is I'm not that asshole you think I am." She opened the door, and tried closing it on him after the kids went inside, but stuck his foot in the doorway, and walked in.

"You won't quit, will you?"

"I'm no quitter...." he sighed. He stood in the doorway looking at the flowers he got her, then walked over to the breakfast bar, and leaned against the counter "I wish you would accept these." he said, as he watched Ilona turn cartoons on for the kids.

She knew he wasn't going to quit trying to talk, and figured she better get the kids busy so they wouldn't get interrupted.

She walked into the kitchen, and looked in the cupboards for a vase. "Can I help you find something at least?" he asked, when she kept opening cupboards, and was getting frustrated.

"Vase?"

He pushed himself away from the counter, and showed her where they were, pulling one out for her. "Thanks."

He grabbed the flowers, and handed them to her. "Can we start over?"

She shrugged her shoulders, and took the flowers from his hand "They are pretty."

"I wasn't sure what kinds of flowers you liked, so I got the mixed ones with the roses, carnations, lilies and others, I hope they're OK." he said, taking a deep breath "Between the red, pink, and white they looked pretty, and looked special for someone special."

"You're not out of this one yet, cowboy." she smirked.

"I know... I cannot find my lasso, or horse anywhere... if I could find them, I'd swing that lasso around, latch it on to you, and pull you close to me. Then I'd get you onto that horse, and take off with you under the sunset for a ride you'll never forget." he smiled.

"You think so huh?"

"I'd be fun, wouldn't it?" he asked grinning "But then if you wanted, I could be like this Mexican magician that I once heard about, he was doing a magic trick, and he started to say: Uno, dos, and then he disappeared without a trace."

"Fine let's talk."

Well... is Grace being fair to Ethan? Is she pushing him away? Or is she wanting a relationship with Ethan and still doesn't want to admit it for other reasons?🤔🤔🤔🤔 Does she truly want him to meet someone else? Or is she just saying that?

If he tries to give Ilona a chance will he still be thinking of Grace? Or will he move on?🤔🤔🤔

😫😫😫😒😒😫😫😫☹☹☹ I'm confused myself😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Hope you enjoyed this chapter anyways. You're either mad or happy right now, but he has to figure out what he wants, so lets see what happens.

Comment your thoughts & votes are nice 😁😁😁😁😉😉😉😉😉😉😍😍😍😍😍