Page 51

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In Gemma’s apartment, Emmie and Ted sat on the couch facing each other.

“How are you?” asked Emmie. “And how’s your dealership where the man was killed? It looked like a lot of damage was done.”

“It’s been a mess, but we’ve been able to junk some of the cars and repair others,” said Ted. “Surprisingly, all the news about it has brought in new customers. Our group lunch today was to celebrate finally getting things back to normal.”

“And your family?” she asked. “How are they?”

“Chase, Diana, and Harper are fine. Their baby boy is due to be born in a few weeks. I have a feeling that Harper, at three, is going to find her world upside down after he’s born.”

Emmie chuckled. “She sure is a princess. Adorable and well-behaved.”

Ted grinned. “I’m quite taken with her. Cinda, Ryan, and the boys are doing fine. The boys are into sports. I attend their games whenever I can, which isn’t too often. I’ve already reserved one of the houses at The Beach House Hotel for next Christmas. It was a great vacation for all of us.”

“I’ve booked a couple of rooms for that same period of time,” said Emmie. “It was such a beautiful place, and they were very solicitous of me.”

They looked at one another and laughed softly.

“Great minds think alike,” said Ted. He moved closer. “I want to get to know you better. I’ll do whatever it takes to make it happen. My feelings for you are undeniable.”

“I’d like that,” she said. “I thought there was no chance for us living apart as we are. I, too, want to see where our feelings take us.”

Ted cupped her face in his hands.

She swam in his blue gaze.

“May I?” Ted asked her, even as his lips reached hers.

Swirling colors filled her mind as her heart raced. She inhaled the same lemony aftershave he’d worn in Florida and allowed herself to feel all of her emotions and the desire that followed.

When they finally pulled apart, they smiled at one another.

“Yep, it’s as awesome as our kiss in Florida.” Ted caressed her cheek with one finger.

“It was even sweeter than all the times I tried to re-imagine it.” Emmie paused and then said, “My house is a little over an hour away. Would you like to go there for the rest of the weekend to really talk? Or do you have to get back home?”

A slow grin spread across Ted’s face. “I’d like to drive to your house and do a lot more than talk. But I’ll have to drive back home tomorrow afternoon.”

“Okay. Let me leave a note for Gemma,” Emmie said. “She’ll understand. We’ve done all the things we needed to do for our decorating plan.”

Emmie took a piece of paper from the memo pad in the kitchen and wrote Gemma a note saying she was leaving and would talk to her tomorrow.

She packed her things, and then she and Ted left.

Emmie gave him her address for his GPS, and they got into their cars and drove to the interstate. If they had little traffic, they’d be at her house in just over an hour.

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Emmie took a shortcut to her house, wanting to be there before Ted arrived.

She pulled into her garage and then hurried through the house to turn on the porch lights and others throughout the downstairs.

Her pulse sprinted when his truck pulled into the driveway. He was here to be with her. Maybe they really were the best Santa and Mrs. Claus, as Ann and Rhonda had told them.

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Emmie welcomed him into her home and said, “I just realized I haven’t eaten dinner. Have you?”