Earn My Trust

Chapter 13 - Preparing for the Inevitable

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Hannah and Bea had just left for the school run, and Ethan was leaning against the patio door frame, half inside half outside in the garden.
He frowned at the grass that was almost reaching past his knees and figured he needed to get her a lawnmower.
He looked over his shoulder at the sorry state of the living room.
He didn't want her to live in such a place. He'd love for them both to move in with him at any one of his London flats, but he knew she would refuse point blank. Firstly, it was too expensive for her taste. Secondly, it was far too early in their relationship, that they had only just been rekindled, to consider moving in and buying a house together.
Maybe he could buy them a family home in the country? She can choose whichever one she'd like if it would get her out of this place.
His frown switched to a smile as he tried to guess the type of house she would choose.
He imagined her choosing a thatched roof cottage with a rose bush climbing up the front of the house, a small lawn out the front surrounded by a white picket fence. The huge garden at the back of the house was surrounded by hedges instead of fences or walls. It would be in the middle of nowhere, and it was perfect for Bea to run around and have fun in the surrounding fields, watching cows or sheep graze lazily. It would be close to the best schools for her education, and he even thought an annexe for her parents to be close by would be good, too.
It would be ideal for them! Although, he wasn't sure if she could drive.
He looked back at the small garden when the flats intercom went off. He spun round and stared at it.
Should he answer? He wasn't in his own place, so answering the intercom felt like an invasion of her privacy. Then again, it could be reporters who had somehow managed to find them...
He stood frozen to the spot for a moment, fighting with himself, when the buzzer went off again. He forced himself to go answer it, it could be important, and nervously picked up the corded phone to find out who it was.
"Hello?"
"Ethan! Thank god! It's me!" It was Martin.
Rolling his eyes, he pressed the button to let him in and went to stand at the front door to meet him.
Martin looked flustered as he swiftly crossed the community hall towards him, and Ethan felt a sense of dread course through him.
"What's happened?!" He asked, letting him inside the flat and closing the door behind him.
"What's happened?!" Martin repeated angrily. "What's happened is I drop my boss and best friend at his girlfriends house and he disappears off the planet! No one can get through to you. No emails were being answered at five o clock in the morning. I had to call that wheelchair company you contacted last night for you to put a bit of pressure on them."
Ethan blinked. "That's it?" He responded exhaustedly. "For fuck sake, Martin! I thought there had been another article, or someone had died! You get me all worked up for nothing?!"
His friend grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and yanked him to him, his eyes wide and crazy looking. "Don't you realise how fucking worried I've been?!"
Ethan burst out laughing at that. "Cute." He jeered. "I thought you realised I was a big boy now and didn't need you all the time."
"It was more the fact that the man who usually never misses a phone call or email, makes it blatantly obvious that he's a morning person, and who is usually hounding me by six o clock suddenly disappeared. Even to me! And im your personal assistant!"
"I'm fine!" He assured him, smirking. "My phone is dead, and I didn't pick up my charger."
Martin breathed a sigh of relief and fell back against the wall. "Never do that to me ever again! I thought you'd been kidnapped, or Hannah had murdered you because you offered to buy takeaway or something."
They both laughed, and Ethan led him into the shabby living room. Martin looked around in stunned silence.
"This is... homely." He winced, trying not to judge.
"It is." Ethan nodded and then pointed at the fridge. "But it's the little things like that that make up for it."
His friend walked over to get a closer look.
"She's good for a seven year old!"
"Isn't she? We spent the time drawing together while Hannah cooked her dinner."
Martin couldn't help but smile at how humbled Ethan was, then raised his eyebrows.
"So... The next stage in the relationship went ahead, then?" He asked cheekily.
Ethan shrugged and moved to sit down on the sofa, deciding not to say anything. He wasn't like him where he had felt the need to brag about his nightly exercise with Lisa. He was used to keeping everything private to the best of his abilities.
Martin read into his silence and sniggered. "I knew it!"
He sat on the sofa beside Ethan and tapped a fast beat out on his knees.
"So what's the plan today? The meeting is at half eleven. I know you want to go and collect your stuff if you're coming back here for the weekend."
Ethan nodded. "Yes. I'll need you to drive me back. I don't think getting the train from here would be a good idea because someone could notice and the area will be searched for where I could have been staying, which will lead them to Hannah."
"What's Hannah going to do while you're sorting stuff out?"
"She's going to her parents for the wheelchair delivery. Did you manage to get the message through to them how urgent it is?"
Martin looked offended. "Hey, I'm not the only one who can get people to bend to their every whim, bro! I got it covered. They will deliver it before two today, although..."
"What?"
"The model you chose... are you sure you want to give that one to them?"
Ethan groaned. "It was Hannah's choice. The one I wanted to get had all the right specifications that would have made it a hell of a lot easier for them, but she didn't like the fact it was twenty thousand."
His friend was stumped. "You've told her money isn't the issue, right?!"
"Of course I did! I really tried to persuade her, but like you know, she's stubborn. I should be thankful she allowed me to get them one at all."
"Yeah, I suppose." He looked at his phone and handed it to his boss. "Catch up on your emails. I'm going to make a coffee. Want one?"
Ethan shook his head, smirking knowingly but didn't say anything. He knew Martin wouldn't like the coffee, just like he didn't, but wanted to see his reaction.
He read through the emails Martin had been copied into while he listened to him clattering about in the kitchen. He heard the water being poured and the milk being retrieved from the fridge and held his breath.
"ACK! WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?"
Ethan bent forwards, laughing at his reaction. It had been as good as he'd hoped it would have been.
"What the fuck are you laughing at?! How can you let her drink this diarrhoea?!"
The men heard the front door clonk open and they looked at the living room door expectantly.
Hannah stared at the both of them. "I could hear you from down the hall!" She hissed at Martin. "What are you shouting about?"
"Please, Hannah. For the love of God, let the man buy you decent coffee!" Martin pleaded, his eyes still brimmed with tears at the taste. "You can't drink that poison!"
She snorted and shook her head, coming to the sofa to be with Ethan.
"Did she go in OK?" He asked.
She flinched a little bit, hesitating for a split second. "She did... but she was telling her friends about you... saying we were a family of spies now."
The men laughed loudly at that.
"Oh thats fucking awesome!" Martin exclaimed. "Ethan can get you all wigs! Yeah, that would be epic!"
"Don't let her hear that." She scolded him. "She was pretty much crawling through the playground like she was in Mission Impossible. Thankfully, I think her friends think it's a game." She sighed and leaned into Ethan. "Do you have to go back?"
He nodded sadly. "I do. I'll get my stuff, get that meeting out of the way quickly and make my way back to you."
"What time is the meeting?"
"Half eleven." Martin cut in. "Expected to last an hour at the most."
"So I should be back here before one."
She hummed. "I might still be at mum and dad's. Call me and if I'm still there you can meet me there. They'd love to meet you."
Ethan felt like he was a deer caught in headlights. His previous experiences of meeting extended families had never gone down well. They were happy to meet him, but were just as happy to help spend his money. They were also the main traitors when things went sour, selling anything they could to make up for the lost access to his bank account.
He supposed he should have expected this sooner or later. He would have to go through meeting them at some stage, so it was best to get it over and done with now. He just prayed they were as genuine and kind as they raised their daughter to be.
Martin hissed through his teeth comically. "Uh oh. Meeting the parents..." he drawled.
"Fuck off!" He spat back immediately before starting to get up. "I need to go now, otherwise I won't have time to pack before the meeting."
Hannah nodded in understanding. "Ok. I'll see you later. I love you."
He froze midway through standing and looked back at her. That was the first time she'd said it to him in those three simple words. He couldn't stop the warmth spreading through him as the corners of his mouth lifted into a wide grin.
"I love you too." He whispered, leaning towards her and kissing her.
She hummed into the kiss and looked disappointed when they separated.
"Don't worry. We have the whole weekend together after today." He reassured her.