From a Wrong Turn to Mr. Right novel Chapter 44

Ethan Carter never thought he’d be the reason someone cried.

When he saw Olivia Bennett’s tears start to fall, his heart clenched hard in his chest. He grabbed a napkin from the table and awkwardly dabbed at her cheeks—gentle, but a bit stiff, since comforting people wasn’t exactly his area of expertise. “Hey, don’t cry,” he muttered, voice a little rough.

His fingers brushed over her skin, and as the napkin soaked up her tears, Olivia blinked up at him—her vision suddenly clearing.

She caught the anxious look on Ethan’s face, and something in her chest gave a strange little flutter.

She ducked her head, her voice barely a whisper. “I didn’t mean to cry.”

Crying wasn’t really her thing.

But the flowers Ethan had brought, and the note attached—well, her tears had just decided to ignore her.

Ethan just nodded, taking the bouquet from her and setting it to the side. “Let’s eat first,” he said.

Olivia nodded, pulling herself together and sitting down. Her gaze landed on the card next to the flowers. The handwriting was bold and distinct, each letter flowing with a kind of practiced grace—like someone who really knew what they were doing.

“Did you write this yourself?” she asked.

Ethan didn’t deny it.

Olivia smiled, not in a fawning way, just genuine. “Mr. Carter, if you ever get tired of your day job, you’d make a hell of a calligrapher.”

Ethan looked at her shining eyes, feeling his heart tug in a way he wasn’t used to. He actually smiled—a rare sight. “You think so?”

“Absolutely,” Olivia nodded seriously. “Your handwriting’s the best I’ve seen.”

Ethan grinned. “Thanks.”

He ladled her some chicken noodle soup. “Eat up. Cake after.”

Olivia glanced at the cake nearby—a pretty little pistachio thing, just big enough for two people to share.

The friend poked his head around, but the hallway was empty—not even a stray fly.

Jasper snapped back to himself, not even glancing back. “You guys go on. I’ve got something to take care of tonight. Catch you later.”

With that, he spun around and bolted, ignoring the confused looks from his group.

Jasper hurried toward the elevators. He caught sight of one already heading down to the parking garage, but thankfully, the other was just arriving on their floor.

Excitement and nerves tangled in his gut. He jabbed at the elevator button, watching the numbers crawl down at a glacial pace. He bounced on his toes, wishing the thing would just rocket down like a SpaceX launch.

Finally, the elevator doors slid open. Jasper dashed in.

When he reached the garage, he burst out, scanning the space—no sign of who he was looking for. He didn’t slow down, turning right and picking up the pace.

Behind him, someone who’d shared the elevator saw nothing but the blur of a tall, lanky guy sprinting off so fast he practically left an afterimage.