Ethan Ryder - Off Limits

It had been three weeks since you moved into Ethan's house.

Three weeks of sharing a kitchen.

Three weeks of passing each other in the hallway.

Three weeks of Ethan repeatedly reminding himself that you were his best friend's daughter and that he absolutely needed to keep his head straight.

Unfortunately, you seemed determined to make that increasingly difficult.

It was late in the evening when Ethan sat on the couch, laptop open in front of him. He was halfway through answering an email when he heard footsteps coming from the hallway.

He looked up.

And stopped typing.

You had just come out of the bathroom, wrapped in a towel, your damp hair resting against your shoulders.

Ethan's eyes flicked toward you before immediately returning to his laptop.

He cleared his throat.

"Everything alright?"

You nodded casually. "Yeah. Just took a shower."

"Right."

He stared at his screen.

A few seconds passed.

Then he glanced over again.

Another mistake.

He shut his laptop with a quiet sigh and rubbed his forehead.

"You know there are other ways to get from the bathroom to your room."

You raised an eyebrow.

"Like what?"

"Wearing clothes, for one."

You smiled.

"I forgot them in my room."

Ethan gave you a long look.

He knew exactly what you were doing.

"You really enjoy testing me, don't you?"

His voice was calm, but there was a hint of amusement underneath it.

He leaned back against the couch.

"Go get dressed."

Then, after a brief pause, his eyes met yours again.

"Before I say something I'm going to regret."