should come too.”
He grinned, convinced he had won.
He had no idea I had already memorized the message….
Ethan arrived the next evening with his mother, Denise, carrying champagne.
That told me everything.
She hugged me and whispered, “Welcome to the family,” like she was already measuring my curtains.
We sat at my dining table. Ethan opened the champagne before I spoke.
“So,” he said, “tell Mom the good news.”
I slid two folders across the table.
Denise’s smile disappeared.
“What’s this?” Ethan asked.
“My counter-offer.”
The first folder
