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34
Luke
Luke paced in his office after sending what felt like his hundredth text to Emma. A week had passed since the incident at the school, and she still hadn’t replied to any of his messages. He had even stopped by the rescue, hoping to catch her, but she wasn’t there. The Barking Orders treats also hadn’t been restocked, which only added to his concern.
If she wasn’t leaving the house and she wasn’t answering her phone, what was she doing? Was she okay?
The silence from her end was unnerving.
Looking down at his phone, Luke realized he couldn’t wait around any longer. Enough was enough. The gnawing uncertainty became too much; he needed to know she was alright, so he grabbed his keys and headed to the Range Rover.
During his ten-minute drive across town to Emma’s cottage, he passed Phil’s Diner. Luke thought about how they’d first met there and how they’d found love again. Everything had seemed surreal, but now he couldn’t shake the unsettling feeling that something was terribly wrong. It wasn’t like her to ignore his messages.
When he turned onto Emma’s street and drove up to her cottage, a weight lifted from his chest.
She was outside playing catch with Riley.
Everything’s okay.
Releasing a sigh of relief, he parked and practically jumped out.
“Emma!” he called out, waving and jogging over, as Riley sprinted toward him. As he drew closer, he noticed her stiff shoulders and her distant gaze.
“What are you doing here?” Her voice wavered, eyes darting to Riley. “Down Riley, stop that.”
Luke squatted to give Riley a head scratch while keeping his eyes on Emma. “I was worried. I called and texted and stopped by after everything happened. I haven’t heard from you in a week.”
She hesitated, biting her lower lip, then threw a tennis ball down the yard. “I know you did. You don’t have to worry about me, though. I’ve just been thinking, that’s all—about us.”
Luke slowly rose, a knot of dread forming in his stomach. “I’ve been thinking about us too. Maybe we can talk about this inside?”
“No, I’d rather stay out here.”
He took a step closer. “Okay, let’s stay out here then. What have you been thinking about?”
With a deep breath, her gaze found his, eyes swimming with unsaid words. “You and me, it’s not going to work.”
Luke’s pulse quickened. “End it? What are you talking about? Emma, I’m crazy about you—”
She held up a hand, silencing him. “We should’ve been upfront with Jeremiah from the beginning. Relationships can’t be built on lies. You and I can’t work, Luke. I won’t be the reason you can’t fix things between you and your son.”
Luke hung his head. “Maybe we should’ve told him sooner. But Jeremiah misread things, and I’m so sorry he said those terrible things to you. I know they’re not true, and so does everyone else. We just need to give it time—”
“Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.” She called Riley over and walked toward the porch.
“Emma, we can work this out—”
She turned back to him and folded her arms. “Good seeing you. But you need to go and please, don’t come back.”
“Emma, please don’t do this.”
“I’m sorry. I just can’t do this. Goodbye, Luke.”
35
Emma
Ending her relationship with Luke had been as heartbreaking as she had imagined. Although her words had been cold and blunt, she sobbed for weeks behind closed doors. She missed him with every ounce of her soul but took comfort in knowing she was doing the best thing for Luke and Jeremiah. Or at least, that’s what she kept telling herself.
