His Revenge

Chapter 4

The inside of the limo was silent except for the sound of the traffic filtering through the windows.

Ethan studied the woman sitting across from him staring through the tinted window. He noted the tense shoulders and the worry in those green eyes, the same ones that had once enchanted him beyond reasonable thought.

That is, until she had shown herself for the shallow woman she really was, by breaking their relationship simply on a whim.

Nicky's sleek bob framed a face that hadn't changed much in the past five years, except for a certain self assured maturity in her features. Ethan allowed his gaze to travel down the flattering green blouse that brought out the color of her eyes, the short, black skirt that showed off her legs to advantage.

His eyes came to rest on her hands, clasped primly on her laps, showing off a nice looking, diamond engagement ring - simple yet undoubtedly worth a small fortune. The engagement to Ryan Silverton, of the New York Silvertons, and heir to a large fortune, had made the news two years ago.

The press had dubbed it, "A match made in billionaire heaven'

She turned, flushing when she noticed his scrutiny and nervously lifted a hand to tuck a stray strand of blonde hair back into its sleek bob.

"Thank you for agreeing to speak with me, Ethan," she said, her voice subdued yet still tinged with that upper class Boston accent he remembered. "I know how busy you must be, so I appreciate it."

Ethan's lips curled in a derisive smile but he made no reply. He could feel nervousness and uncertainty emanating from her in waves, and he experienced a brief flash of satisfaction at seeing the cool princess so uncomfortable .

She shifted in her seat and crossed her bare legs, giving him a good view of smooth healthy skin. Curiously, that should have sparked his interest - he was a red blooded male after all - but he felt nothing.

Curiouser and curiouser.

She cleared her throat delicately and continued. "I want to apologize Ethan, for what happened -"

"You said you wanted to discuss the hotel." Ethan cut in, in no mood to listen to her excuses for the past.

He had the satisfaction of seeing a brief flash of irritation cross her face, before it was quickly replaced by a fake smile.

"Yes," Nicky replied, running her tongue over her lower lip to moisten it. "But I feel I should at least try to apologize for calling off our relationship in the way I did."

Ethan glanced at his watch and gave her a pointed look.

"I'm not interested in the past," His voice was hard. "If that's what you want to talk about, I'm afraid you're wasting your time. And mine."

Her cheeks flamed in embarrassment. "Fine. Look, I just want to ask you to stop what you are doing to my family and Erin. They have nothing to do with what happened between us. If you have any issues about the past, take it up with me, and leave them out of it."

The atmosphere in the limo was thick with tension. Ethan kept his gaze fixed on Nicky, disdain showing in the curl of his upper lip and narrowed eyes.

"Issues?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "What issues, pray tell, Nicky?"

"You're obviously still hung up about us, and you're using it as an excuse to punish my family. Why else would you buy out my uncle's company from under his nose? Plus, Erin told me the awful things you said to her the other day at your office, you threatened and insulted her!"

He chuckled, the sound devoid of humor. "So, Miss Snob came running to you? How ironic. I thought she wore the pants in this relationship both of you have going on. Or was I wrong?"

"I don't know what you mean."

"She says jump, and like an obedient little ferret, you jump as high as you can."

He leaned back against the seat and folded his arms across his chest, his expression as mocking as his tone.

"Frankly Nicky, I'm surprised Erin gave you permission to speak to me. Now I'm curious to know, did she ask you to plead on her behalf?"

Nicky glared at him, and he could clearly see how she struggled to keep her temper from flaring up.

"Erin doesn't make me do anything," she said through clenched teeth. "I am more than capable of making my own decisions."

The brows went up even higher. "Indeed?"

She opened her mouth to reply but was cut off by the shrill ringing of her phone. Thrown out of focus, Nicky frowned at her white purse for a moment, then opened it and pulled out her still ringing phone.

She glanced at the screen, pursed her lips and pressed the red button before shoving the phone back in her purse and looking up at him.

Something in his expression didn't sit well with her and her own expression turned sour.

"What?" She snapped.

He shrugged and reached for the leather briefcase resting on the seat beside him, snapping it open and pulling out a bulky folder. He spread it open on his lap and nonchalantly retrieved a fountain pen from his breast pocket.

"Oh, nothing you want to know," he replied, injecting boredom into his tone. In truth, he was already bored of this conversation.

"As I was saying before," Nicky leaned close, her voice earnest, as though she needed to convince him of her assertion.

"I don't need Erin's permission to make decisions and carry them out as I please. I'm a grown woman, soon to be a married woman. Perfectly capable of doing things on my own."

"And yet, you allowed yourself to be manipulated by your dear, sweet cousin." He observed drily, his attention on the documents he was signing.

She bristled, and prepared to launch into another bout of protests, but Ethan had heard enough. He held up a hand for silence, leaned back slid open the privacy partition between the front and backseat.

"Please pull over, Karen," He said to the middle aged woman driving the vehicle. "Ms. Gosling will get off here."

"Yes Sir."

Nicky glared at Ethan when he faced her again.

"I was not done with our discussion." She said frostily.

"That so?" He replied, raising an eyebrow. "Regretfully, I have a meeting in five minutes so I'm afraid this conversation is over."

The limo came to a stop, and seconds later, his driver pulled open the passenger door.

"Have a nice day, Nicky. And congratulations on your impending nuptials."

Her expression turned ugly, but she wisely didn't say a word, merely gathered her purse with an enraged huff and slid out. Karen shut the door and returned behind the wheel.

"Where to now, Sir?"

"The office."

As the car slid back into traffic, Ethan stared out the window, lost in thought.

                                                        ********

"What the hell did you think you were doing getting into that car with him?" Erin demanded, the minute Nicky finally picked up her call.

She could hear the sounds of passing traffic in the background, and wondered just where they where.

"I wanted to talk to Ethan, what do you think?" Nicky replied, her tone snappy and strained and Erin wondered what had happened to rile her normally cool cousin.

"We agreed you should stay away from him." Erin forced the irritation from her voice, keeping it mellow. Nicky was obviously in a bad mood, no need to annoy her with demands.

"You said I shouldn't talk to him," Nicky emphasized the 'you' with a tinge of resentment. "I only agreed because you were obviously upset about your dad. But I couldn't just sit back and let you fight my battles for me. I had to do something."

What was with the anger at her? Erin pinched the bridge of her nose, as concern for her cousin flooded her.

"Are you okay, Nicks? Did that bastard do something to upset you?"

See, this was why she hadn't wanted Nicky anywhere near that man. She wouldn't put it past him to hurl ridiculous insults willy nilly, and Nicky was a sensitive soul, too soft for that kind of viciousness.

Erin made a mental note to give Ethan a piece of her mind; and a vicious kick to the nuts, the next time she saw his annoying mug.

Nicky made a dismissive sound. "Look, I'll call you later and explain. Right now, I need to find a taxi and go home, okay?"

"Wait! What did Ethan say?" Erin asked again, curiosity eating at her.

"I'll talk to you later, bye." Nicky hung up.

Erin stared at the phone with a troubled frown and sighed. Only heaven knew what Ethan had said and done to Nicky.

She began to pace the deserted corridor of the hospital ward, the heels of her black shoes clicking loudly against the black and white linoleum floor, her mind dwelling on several possibilities.

Erin would not put it past that vile bastard to make a move on Nicky, or maybe he'd threatened to blackmail her, or asked her to break up with Ryan, or…

Calm down, I'm letting my imagination run away again.

She sighed again, and wrinkled her nose at the strong smell of disinfectant.

Lord! She hated hospitals. The smells, the illness, the anxiety that seemed to envelop anyone who walked through the front doors.

Her stomach rumbled, reminding her the last meal she'd had was a sandwich last night. She groaned, running a hand through her already disheveled hair, grimacing at the grease that stuck to her fingers.

Right. First things first.

Find something to eat, talk to dad and mum, go home, wash hair and have a nice, steaming bath, then try to talk to Nicky again.

She wandered down the long corridor in search of a vending machine and finally spotted one next to the bank of elevators.

Her purse was in her dad's room so she retraced her steps. Her father lay asleep, propped up on pillows and the sight of his pale face wrenched at her heart strings. To Erin, this man lying there was so different from the hale and hearty man she'd known all her life. Seeing him so ill and weak brought tears to her eyes and she dashed them away, cursing Ethan Lachlan for doing this to him.

Her mother sat by his bedside also fast asleep, one hand entwined with his, even in slumber.

Erin tiptoed in and retrieved her purse lying on the breakfast table and left, shutting the door carefully. Back in the corridor, she dug in the bag for some change and approached the machine.

The door of an elevator swished open just as she reached it, expelling a tall dark haired man in light blue scrubs. Erin paused in the act of inserting a note into the slot and looked at him, receiving a polite smile and a nod.

"Good evening." His voice was a rich baritone, bringing to mind a cup of hot chocolate mixed with peanuts.

He stepped out of the elevator and came towards her, his gaze assessing Erin, from the top of her disheveled head, the ridiculous bright pink two piece suit and finally, down to her three inch shoes. Erin felt her cheeks heat up in embarrassment as she wondered what he must think of her random choice of outfit.

Erin cleared her throat and finally managed a reply.

"Hello."

She turned back to the machine, though she studied him from the corner of her eye. He was good looking in rumpled 'haven't been to bed in days' kind of way, with a nice, five 'o' clock shadow darkening his upper lip and jaw, that gave him an air of intrigue.

He walked past her line of vision and she turned her attention to the vending machine, slipping the note into the slot and selecting a Bounty bar.

Nothing happened.

She frowned at the offending gadget and pressed the button again. The evil thing remained silent.

"Darn it! Come on!" Erin muttered in frustration, slapping her palm against its metallic sides. "Work, you little -"

"It needs a good kick," the baritone was back, startling Erin. He grinned and delivered a good hard kick to the base and her bar popped out.

He picked it and handed it to her."Shitty hospital equipment, nothing works the way it's supposed to."

Erin took the bar, briefly looking up to meet the stranger's warm brown gaze. "Thanks, but that's hardly reassuring, especially coming from a doctor."

He laughed, a deep, toe curling sound that sent flutters off in her belly. "Don't worry, it's just the unimportant things that don't work right. Our patients are in good hands."

"Good to know." She couldn't help the smile that crossed her lips.

"No problem." He leaned against the machine and studied her for a moment, the scrutiny setting off another wave of heat over her cheeks. "You visiting a patient?"

Erin nodded, giving her attention to unwrapping the chocolate. She wondered why he was even still hanging around talking to her, considering the way she looked today.

She peeked at him from beneath her lashes, taking in the bulge of his biceps beneath the scrubs, suggesting at a strict workout regimen, and handsome features topped by warm chocolate brown eyes.

"Yes, I am. My father's in room 104."

"Ah!" He nodded, and held out a hand. "That would make you Ms. Gosling right? Your father's mentioned you a couple of times, I'm Todd. Dr Todd Haskell."

Erin stared at his outstretched hand, then tentatively placed hers in his grip. "Erin. Nice to meet you, Dr. Haskell. Though I was under the impression Doctor Sweetwater's my father's doctor?"

"Please, call me Todd." Todd grinned again and shook her hand with enthusiasm. "And you're right, Erin. I'm not his doctor, merely a lowly surgeon. I'll be handling his surgery tomorrow."

At Erin's blank look, he clarified. "We're going try to remove the clots blocking the blood flow in his artery. Just a minor procedure."

"Oh," Erin felt apprehension chill her spine at the thought of her father going under the knife. "I wasn't aware of that."

Her parents had been asleep when she'd shown up, and seeing how tired they were, she hadn't woken them up.

His look softened and turned reassuring. "Your father will be alright. As soon as his arteries are clear, he'll be free to go home safe and sound."

"Thank you Dr...Todd." Erin smiled, hardly reassured but unwilling to look like a wimp in front of him. "That's very reassuring indeed. It'll be nice to have him home again. Not to be rude, but the food here's terrible."

Todd laughed, a deep sound that warmed her aching toes. "The food's part of our grand plan to get patients to spend less time in here. So far, it's worked perfectly. But don't tell anyone I told you, it's a state secret."

He's got great teeth. Erin observed, warming up to the guy.

"I won't tell a soul."

His pager beeped and Todd glanced at it and grimaced.

"Duty calls," he said, his tone apologetic. "But it was a pleasure talking to you Erin. If you don't mind, I'd like to do it again, preferably over a glass of wine and real food. What do you say?"

Erin failed to breathe. Was he really asking her out after a five minute conversation? And despite how horrid she looked?

She peered up at him, searching for signs of sarcasm, but found only genuine interest.

Ah well, what would it hurt?

"That sounds good. I enjoyed our conversation too, Todd."

"Tonight?"

"Tonight? Really?"

Todd grinned and searched his pockets, pulling out a white prescription pad and a pencil.

"I'm an impatient man, Erin. Even more so in the presence of a beautiful woman. Eight pm?"

Erin blushed and took the pad and pencil.

"Tonight it is." She scribbled her address and phone number on the pad and handed it back. "Eight pm."

                  ****

The blonde sidled up next to Ethan, one hand coming to rest on his upper arm. She gazed up at him, green eyes glinting with intent, mouth set in a full pout. Up close, he could smell her perfume, an almost cloying fragrance of roses.

"So, how about dinner to celebrate our agreement?" The blonde said, red lips stretching in a sultry smile. "I know of a good place uptown. They serve decent wine at least."

Ethan turned from the blonde and looked at his lawyer. Marcus Reedman grinned and shrugged, refusing to step in and rescue his best friend this time.

"Yeah Ethan, why not have a drink?" Marcus' eyes glinted with mischief. "I'm sure this place Imogen's suggested should be good."

Ethan's glare silently promised retribution and he returned his attention to Imogen. "Sure. But not immediately, I have another meeting in an hour. How about this evening?"

Imogen's fingers stroked his arm, an effect that was lost on Ethan. "This evening sounds good. Eight o'clock at The Frieling?"

Ethan nodded and excused himself, picking up his briefcase and headed out the door.

He cursed silently as he walked down the corridor, paying no attention to the tasteful artwork that hung from the cream colored wall, or the plush carpet his soles tread on.

The last thing he wanted was an evening spent wining and dining, when he'd rather be at his club, working off some steam on the tennis court. He needed an outlet for the frustration coiled tight inside him as a result of dealing with two of his least favorite women.

"Hey ET, wait up." Marcus called out just as Ethan reached the elevator. He turned to see the lawyer jog towards him, the ex-hockey player looking almost out of place in the plush office. He looked like he would be more comfortable in skates, knocking the breath out of opponents at a game.

"I should wring your neck." Ethan said when Marcus caught up to him. "You're supposed to help me, not encourage the women."

Marcus grinned, not in the least bit fazed at his friend's gruff tone. He panted slightly from the recent exertion.

"What? I figured you needed to unwind man. Tell me, when was the last time you got laid? Back in the dark ages?"

Ethan growled low in his throat. "My s*x life is none of your business Marc. And for your information, I get laid. Regularly."

"Really? And by regularly, are we talking a daily and weekly basis or once a month, on a full moon?"

They stepped into the lift and the doors swished closed. Marcus turned to his friend, noting the tense jaw and the anger smoldering in Ethan's eyes. He recognized the look.

"Wait. Lemme guess. You had a run in with the delightful Erin Gosling? 

"Ethan shrugged, unwilling to admit anything.

"Look, if she gets under your skin so much, why don't you just do her and get it over with? Like I said before ET, the best way outta this is a good long night of nothing but dirty s*x with the woman. Then get her out of your mind."