Regret Came Too Late (Grace and Ethan) novel Chapter 108

Grace ended the call abruptly. Only a fool like Alice would look at a guy like Yancey and think he was worth anything.

She turned to head back to Ethan's bedroom, but the lights were off. For a moment, she considered leaving and finding some other place to crash for the night, but then the breeze from the balcony swept in.

That was when she realized Ethan wasn't in bed. He was out there, standing in the dark. She didn't have to get close to smell the cigarette smoke.

"Mr. Henderson, isn't smoking bad for your recovery?"

Wasn't his injury still healing?

The faint glow from the yard made it hard to read his expression, but Grace could still see the intensity in his eyes—something raw and expectant, something that got to her. Maybe visiting Eleanor's grave had put him in a somber mood.

She stayed beside him, unsure of what to say.

Ethan carried himself like a breeze—there one moment, gone the next, but leaving an impression that stuck.

Grace caught the glow of the cigarette just before it reached his fingers.

"You're going to burn yourself," she said quickly.

Ethan slowly flicked the cigarette into the ashtray, his eyes still fixed on the horizon. But the damage was done. A red welt marked his skin.

Without thinking, Grace grabbed his wrist and blew gently on the burn. "Is there a first aid kit around? Do you have burn ointment? I'll go get it."