Chapter 22
Ethan’s protective gesture, shielding her and Lily from Olivia, sent a strange flutter through Sarah’s heart. A faint echo of a time when she had believed in his strength, his devotion.
Before the betrayal. Before the pain.
Lily, still shaken, clung to Sarah.
“Is the scary lady gone, Mommy?”
Ethan knelt beside them, his face gentle.
“Yes, sweetie,” he said, stroking Lily’s hair. “She’s gone. And she’s never, ever coming back. I promise. I’ll always protect you. Both of you.”
His eyes met Sarah’s over Lily’s head. A silent vow.
Sarah looked away, a blush creeping up her neck.
The intensity of his gaze was still unsettling.
Later, as Sarah tucked Lily into bed, Ethan lingered in the doorway of Lily’s magnificent room.
“She needs her rest,” Sarah said, a subtle dismissal. “You should go.”
Lily, however, had other ideas.
“Daddy, can you read me a story?” she asked, her eyes bright. “Please?”
She looked disappointed when Sarah started to refuse.
Ethan stepped into the room.
“I’d love to, princess.”
Lily beamed.
Sarah sighed, but a small smile played on her lips.
She couldn’t deny Lily this. She couldn’t deny herself this moment of fragile peace.
The three of them sat on Lily’s bed, Ethan’s deep voice narrating a tale of brave knights and magical dragons.
It felt… normal.
Almost… happy.
As Lily’s eyelids grew heavy, Sarah started to slip away.
Ethan’s hand reached out, his fingers gently closing around hers.
A light touch. But it sent a jolt through her.
“Stay,” he whispered.
Lily, half-asleep, murmured,
“Please stay, Mommy. Both of you.”
Sarah hesitated. Then, slowly, she returned to the bed.
She watched Ethan as he finished the story, his voice soft, soothing.
He was so different now.
The cruelty, the arrogance, the coldness… all gone.
Replaced by a tenderness, a humility, she had never thought possible.
Could this be real?
Could this man, her tormentor, truly have changed?
Or was this just another elaborate manipulation?
A cautious hope, fragile as a butterfly’s wing, began to flutter in her heart.
Lily fell asleep, nestled between them.
Sarah felt a profound sense of peace, a contentment she hadn’t experienced in years.
Ethan watched her, his eyes full of a deep, quiet affection.
He remembered their past. The forced encounters. The degradation.
The shame of it still burned him.
He would never touch her like that again.
He would earn her trust. Her love.
If it took him a lifetime.
He gently squeezed her hand.
Sarah didn’t pull away.
He fell asleep like that, holding Sarah’s hand, his daughter sleeping peacefully beside them.
A family.
Imperfect. Scarred.
But a family nonetheless.
And for the first time in a very, very long time, Ethan Hayes felt something akin to peace.