He Promised Me A Sunset, He Kissed Her Under It Chapter 01

He Promised Me A Sunset, He Kissed Her Under It Chapter 01

On my eighteenth birthday, Ethan Carter and I made a promise: after college, we’d go to Lake Tahoe together and watch the sunset.

He said that when the evening sky turned the lake to gold, our future would shine just as brightly.

Four years later, we finally made it there.

But the day we were supposed to go, I came down with a high fever and had to stay at the hotel.

By evening, I’d taken a fever reducer, but I still couldn’t stand the thought of missing the sunset I’d waited four years to see. So I went to the lake alone.

The moment I reached the scenic overlook, I saw Ethan kissing my best friend, Chloe Parker, in the sunset glow.

Our childhood friend, Ryan Brooks, stood nearby with a camera, grinning as he took pictures of them.

Chloe leaned against Ethan’s chest. “What if Claire finds out?”

Ryan snorted. “You’ve kept it from her for six months. Now you’re worried?”

Chloe looked up at Ethan. “So when are you going to tell her?”

Ethan stared at the sunset, his voice calm.

“When we get back. I promised I’d take her to Lake Tahoe, and I did.”

He tightened his arm around Chloe and said softly, “From now on, you’re the only one I want to watch sunset like this with.”

Their laughter blended into the cheers of the crowd.

None of them noticed me standing only a few steps away.

I took off the necklace Ethan had given me, set it on a bench by the lake, and walked away.

At eighteen, I’d thought sharing a sunset with the person I loved was the perfect ending to a love story.

At twenty-two, I finally understood.

The sun would still set right on time.

But the person who’d promised to watch it with me had already chosen someone else.

…

By the time I got back to the hotel, the wind off the lake had cut straight through my clothes.

The front desk clerk took one look at my face and hurried over with a forehead thermometer.

103 degrees.

Her eyes widened. “Where are your friends? Why did they let you come back alone?”

I braced a hand on the counter. My voice came out hoarse.

“They’re busy enjoying the view.”

Not long after I took a fever reducer, Ryan’s laughter echoed outside my room.

“That shot was insane. The sunset hit just right. It looked straight out of a movie,”

The door opened, and Ethan stopped when he saw me sitting on the edge of the bed.

“You went to the lake?”

I didn’t answer.

His gaze dropped to the dirt and grit on my shoes, and his tone hardened.

“Didn’t I tell you to stay here and rest? You had a fever and still went wandering around. Were you trying to land yourself in the hospital?”

Chloe followed him in, wearing Ethan’s jacket over her shoulders.

She carried a container of soup that had already gone cold, her expression perfectly innocent.

“Claire, I brought you something to eat.”

“We wanted to come back earlier, but the sunset was so beautiful, and Ryan kept taking pictures…”

Ryan set his camera on the table with a scoff.

“I get it. You waited four years for that sunset and missed it. Of course you’re upset.”

“But taking it out on us is a little much. It’s not our fault you got sick.”

I looked up at him.

The guy who’d just photographed Ethan kissing Chloe was now lecturing me about my attitude.

Ethan walked over and reached out to touch my forehead.

I turned my face away.

His hand froze in midair. A flicker of surprise crossed his face.

In four years, I’d never pulled away from him.

Even after a fight, I’d wait there with red-rimmed eyes for him to come hold me.

But this time, the thought of his touch made me sick.

“What is it now?” Ethan asked.

His patience was already wearing thin.

“It’s just one sunset. I’ll go with you tomorrow.”

I looked at him.

“Just me?”

Chloe’s expression shifted.

Ryan cleared his throat and turned to fiddle with his camera.

Ethan was quiet for a moment, as if he genuinely couldn’t understand why I was making such a big deal out of it.

“We all came here together. Why does it have to be just you and me?”

He said it as if it were the most reasonable thing in the world.

And suddenly, I understood.

Even if I hadn’t seen that kiss, he still wouldn’t have let me go easily.

He liked having Chloe depend on him, and he liked having me plan my future around him.

Two women getting jealous over him wasn’t a burden in his eyes.

It was proof that he was desirable.

Chloe suddenly pressed a hand to her chest and took a shallow breath.

“Ethan… I can’t catch my breath.”

He immediately turned to steady her.

“Were you out in the wind too long?”

She leaned against his shoulder, looking weak in exactly the right way.

Ethan glanced back at me.

“Hand me the medicine on the nightstand.”

I didn’t move.

His voice sharpened.

“Claire, don’t start. Chloe’s not feeling well.”

“I have a fever too.”

He paused, then frowned.

“You’ve always been healthy. You took medicine. You’ll be fine.”

“She has asthma. Why are you turning this into a competition?”

So this was what it felt like to be the one he chose.

If Chloe coughed, it was worth panicking over.

If my fever hit 103, I was just being difficult.

I tossed the medicine onto the table.

“Then take her to the hospital. Hurry, before she recovers on her own and you miss your chance to fuss over her”

Ethan’s face darkened instantly.

“Claire Bennett, since when do you talk like that?”

Chloe’s eyes reddened as she tugged at his sleeve.

“Don’t blame Claire. She’s just upset because she missed the sunset.”

Ethan put an arm around her and started toward the door.

At the door, he threw one last cold remark over his shoulder.

“Take some time to think about how you’ve been acting. Come find me when you’ve figured it out.”

The door shut behind them.

I opened my laptop.

The fellowship invitation I’d turned down was still sitting in my inbox.

The Western Heritage Digital Imaging Project. One year. The team was meeting in Reno in three days.

Back when I first received the offer, Ethan had wrapped his arms around me and said, “I’m starting a company, Claire. This is when I need you most. If you disappear for a year, what’s supposed to happen to our future?”

For that future, I’d given up an opportunity I’d spent two years preparing for.

Now I finally saw the truth.

His future needed my skills, my connections, and my willingness to compromise.

It just didn’t need my feelings.

I called my advisor.

“Professor Reed, is there still a spot in the fellowship?”

There was a brief pause on the other end.

“Someone dropped out at the last minute, but you’d have to leave the day after tomorrow.”

“Claire, are you sure about this?”

Outside my door, Ethan was soothing Chloe in a low voice.

“Don’t cry. I’ve spoiled her rotten.”

I lowered my eyes and answered quietly.

“I’m sure.”

“I’m going.”