Page 118 of The Emma Special

James sat up in the bed. “What?”

“Katie said so.”

“When?”

Daniel hummed. “Which time?”

James flopped back onto his pillow. “Why haven’t you been telling me this?”

“Because I’m not a part of the Kiss and Tell Book Club,” Daniel explained.

“Wait. Are you and Katie kissing?” James asked.

“You’re not part of the club either, so I’m not telling you.”

“It’s not kissing and telling if you didn’t kiss, besides we’re talking about you talking about my kisses.”

There was a beat of silence on the line before Daniel whispered, “I have no idea what you just said.”

James rubbed a hand down his face as a wave of exhaustion hit him. “Just go to sleep. Count me out for fishing.”

“Sounds like you have your own fishing to do. Try swapping the bait.”

James looked at the clock again. This night was never going to end. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Night. Talk to you later.” The line went dead and he dropped the phone to his nightstand. Well, that was a worthless conversation.

Wait a minute. Katie said Emma wanted to be kissed? What was that supposed to mean? And why did Daniel know about it?

James smooshed his pillow over his face and groaned into it as loudly as he dared. If Emma wanted him to kiss her, why wasn’t she kissing him? He was on high alert for all the signs. What had he missed?

A shuffle outside his bedroom had him pulling the pillow off his face. His door opened and Emma walked into his room wearing an oversized T-shirt. Her long legs were bare all the way to her painted toes.

James propped up on one elbow. “Hey, is everything okay?”

She walked straight to his bed and lifted the covers. “I want eggs.” She sat on his bed and pulled her legs under the sheet.

He scooted out of the way right before she flopped back on his pillow.

“You want eggs now?”

She hummed a high-pitched swoop. “And beans.”

“Are you serious?” James sat up.

“No, of course not,” she scoffed and rolled to her side, taking the blankets with her. “Don’t be ridiculous,” she mumbled.

James rested back on the mattress and waited for her to say something else. After a minute he asked, “Are you sleeping?”

“Pretty much!”

He smiled at her yell. His wife was pretty much sleeping… in his bed. Asking for beans and eggs.

Well, that explained the spatula in the fridge. His shoulders shook with silent laughter as he pulled some of the blanket back to his side. This may not be how he imagined sharing his bed with Emma, his wife. But Emma, his best friend? Yeah, it tracked.

He got comfortable on the other half of his bed and fell asleep to the steady sound of Emma’s breathing.

Chapter 34