After I Stopped Loving Him (Isabella and Ethan) novel Chapter 1047

Why was he pretending?

She honestly didn’t know.

“Did he say anything about it?” she asked.

Stephanie’s voice came through the phone, gentle but tired. “Ethan’s still too weak to talk much. He just asked me to pass on the message. He hasn’t said why. Maybe when he’s feeling better, and you have some time, you can come by and ask him yourself.”

Stephanie had always sensed there was something secretive between Ethan and Isabella, things nobody else could really understand. Only those two knew what was really going on. If Ethan didn’t want to talk about it, Stephanie wouldn’t push. She trusted that when he was ready, he’d tell her.

“Okay. I’ll come see him with Harold and the others once things settle down at work,” Isabella replied.

Jesse had mentioned wanting to visit too.

Ethan and Harold weren’t friends anymore, but that didn’t mean things were nasty between them. Their connection with Jesse hadn’t changed either. Both men loved the same woman, and at the end of the day, they each just hoped she’d be happy. Sometimes Ethan wanted to punch Harold right in the face, but for Isabella’s sake, he always let it go.

“Alright. You must be busy. I’ll let you get back to it. Ethan’s asleep, and I’m absolutely wiped out. I need to rest,” Stephanie said.

Age was catching up to her. The past few days had been hell, staying up late, worrying nonstop about Ethan. Now that he was safe, all that tension dissolved, leaving her too tired to even think.

“You should really rest, Stephanie. Ethan’s going to be fine, you can let someone else watch over him. You can’t wear yourself out, not at your age. If you fell sick, Ethan would feel even worse.”

Linda changed the subject. “Hey, there’s an auction in a couple of days. You want to go?”

“Even if you come, it would be with Harold. I’ll just go by myself,” Linda said, pretending to pout. “You and Laura, both off the market now. Barbara and I are the only ones left single. Whenever we go out, you’re always in your happy couples, and honestly, sometimes I get a little jealous.”

Isabella grinned at her. “I don’t buy it. If you really wanted a boyfriend, you’d have found one by now.”

Linda laughed. “Fine, you got me. Being single is actually pretty great. I can do whatever I want, whenever I want, and I don’t have to worry about anyone else. Just me, myself, and I… By the way, do you think Dylan might have a crush on me?”

Linda was no fool. Every time she bumped into Dylan, the way he treated her, the look in his eyes—it definitely felt different.