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“You sure are.”
Ethan opened the refrigerator. “Sage brought a salad.”
“She did,” Ricky announced proudly. “And it wasn’t part of a kit, either.”
Rafaelle motioned with her head toward Ethan. “There should be space on the top shelf. You didn’t need to bring anything,” she told Sage.
“I wanted to contribute. Ricky and I appreciate the invitation.”
“Auntie Sage cut her finger making the salad,” Ricky announced. “She made sure none of the blood got on the broccoli.”
Sage wanted to roll her eyes. “Ricky’s right, I didn’t bleed on the broccoli,” she assured Ethan and his mother.
“I kissed her finger and made it better.”
“Ricky,” Sage said, wanting to steer her nephew out of the kitchen, “I believe Michael is here.”
“He is,” Ethan added. “All the kids are downstairs. You can join them.”
“Is it okay?” Ricky asked Sage.
“More than okay,” she said, shooing him away.
As soon as Ricky was out of the room, Sage rolled up her sleeves. “What can I do to help?” she asked.
Rafaelle shook her head. “Everything is under control here. I’ll let this dough rise and join the rest of the family in a few minutes.”
Ethan took Sage’s hand and led her out of the room. “I think my reputation precedes me,” she confessed. Knowing her history in the kitchen, it was little wonder Ethan’s mother refused her help.
Instead of joining his father and siblings in the living room, Ethan escorted her into the den. He motioned for her to sit in one of the two chairs positioned by the fireplace.
She expected him to take the other seat. He didn’t. Instead, he paced the room once, paused, and then turned to face her.
“I’ve been waiting to talk to you ever since Tuesday,” he said, letting his frustration show. He paced the area and rubbed his palms together as if to generate heat.
“Whatever it is, just tell me,” she said, frowning. From his expression, she could see that whatever this was must be serious.
His gaze held hers for a prolonged moment. “I wanted you to know I’ve asked Mowrey to withdraw my name as a candidate.”
Sage was speechless. Her emotions bounced from one side of the room to the other. Part of her was relieved, as Ethan was her major competition, and another completely different part was deeply disappointed. The bottom line, however, was that she didn’t understand what had prompted Ethan to this decision.
“Why?” she asked, too stunned to think clearly. Then, without giving him time to respond, she asked another question. “Is it because you were afraid if you got the promotion over me, it would threaten our relationship?”
Sage valued how close they’d gotten since Ricky’s arrival. No matter what, she’d never ask Ethan to step away from this opportunity for fear of what it would mean to their future. If he was chosen, she vowed not to let it stand between them.
“Not completely.”
“You’re not making sense.” Sage had trouble wrapping her head around what he was telling her.
He continued pacing in front of the fireplace. “To be completely transparent, it did enter my mind that his decision either way might put our relationship in an awkward position. When Mowrey first approached me, I was honored that he viewed me as management material. I’ll admit my ego liked being considered for manager. The thing is, I’d had a few plans of my own I’d been considering before Mowrey put my name in the pot.”
“Such as?”
He straightened, as if he expected a negative response from her. “I was thinking of starting my own accounting firm. I’d lined up a few promising accounts and was ready to give my notice. Because I was flattered, I decided maybe I should take the chance and see what happened.
“Then we started seeing each other and everything changed. This promotion is your dream, and I have my own. I’ve put it off far too long. I’ve decided to give Mowrey my notice after the first of the year and go for it. I told him as much.”
“What made you change your mind?”
