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“Can I help you?”
He cleared his throat, and read the nametag of the woman standing behind the counter—Louise.
“Um, I think so. Betty sent me in here.” He stepped up to the display, and returned Louise’s smile.
“My mother,” Louise chuckled. “She sends all new faces to my door...what can I get you?”
There was too much to choose from. “It’s been a while, so I’m not sure what I want.”
“Is it just for you?”
He paused, wanting to say no. But until he’d met with Emma, his answer would have to be, “Yes.”
“Okay, then. How about I give you a selection of the smaller ones?”
Logan smiled. “I’d like that.”
Within minutes, he was back on the sidewalk with his sugary treats, boxed and tied with a ribbon, in his hand. He stood in front of the town square that Emma had described as a winter wonderland and grinned as the Christmas spirit started to fill him. Her description had been so accurate. The huge Christmas tree in the center with the nativity scene to one side was spectacular, and he was sure any child who saw it would be giddy with excitement. Just seeing the square and the town itself assured him that he’d made the right decision to visit, even if nothing followed with Emma.
He was in town, so he had to decide how to approach Emma. Should he pretend to be someone else and bump into her in Elizabeth’s Emporium? He knew she worked there part-time, but he had no idea what her shift was. Or should he just follow the return address on her letters, and show up unexpectedly? His gut told him that she wasn’t married, but he had to be certain before he screwed up.
He’d never had mixed feelings about something before, and he wasn’t sure that he liked it. He was used to being a man of action, which told him to just go for it—to stop pissing around and go get his girl.
He rubbed his brow where a headache was taking root thanks to his jumbled emotions, and probably the cold weather. Tomorrow would be a new day, he could decide what to do then. But he knew himself, and he would probably have another restless night thinking about his Emma, and wondering whether she thought about him.
Chapter 4
Until her soldier stopped writing to her, Emma had never felt so lonely. She could talk to Logan about anything and, instead of laughing off her ideas, or telling her to do something ‘proper’ like her parents had done, he’d encouraged her to follow her dreams.
He’d made her feel like anything was possible and, with his encouragement, she’d taken his words to heart and followed her dreams. Logan was the only person to know that she’d made the New York Times bestseller list in fiction. He was also the first person she wanted to tell when she discovered that she’d made the Wall Street Journal list as well. Her books had taken off beyond her wildest dreams, and Logan was the only person to know about her true passion for writing.
Before she’d started writing to Logan, she’d talked with her family about her writing and mentioned that she thought she’d try self-publishing. They’d more or less laughed in her face and told her not to embarrass herself. Well, not in those exact words, but certainly along those lines.
She’d confided in Logan about her dream and told him how her family had reacted. He’d seemed annoyed that they would treat her the way they had, and he’d encouraged her and never once seemed to doubt her.
Emma’s family still had no clue as to what she did in her spare time. At first, she’d kept it to herself because of the lack of support she’d received from them, but once her books had taken off, she had no idea how to tell them, so she’d kept it quiet.
Her pen name was R. Logan, and it made her feel close to the man who’d offered her encouragement, not ridicule. Support, never putting her down or making her feel inadequate. Logan was touched when she’d asked him permission to use the name, R. Logan for her books, and he was the only person to have a full set of signed copies from her.
She sighed, and stretched on the sofa where she’d been lost in thought instead of concentrating on the Christmas movie that was on the TV.
Outside the snow was falling, so when she’d gotten up, she’d showered and pulled her pajamas back on to spend a cozy day holed up indoors. She loved the snow but had no enthusiasm for it at the moment.
“You need to get dressed instead of lounging around the house.”
Emma groaned. “Mom, the weather is really bad outside. No one is going to visit today, so why does it matter if I stay in my pajamas? I’ve showered at least.”
Her mom took the seat opposite, and looked worried. Her brows were drawn together into a frown and her hands twitched in her lap. It was as though she had something to say but didn’t know how to say it.
“What’s wrong now?” Emma sat up and waited. She was getting tired of the constant interference, which was why she was desperate to move. Her parents hadn’t always been so annoying, but lately, they had been at her constantly. It had been so bad that it even crossed her mind that she had the problem and not them.
“Honey,” her mom hesitated, “I know you’re upset the soldier hasn’t written to you, but you need to get out of this sadness. It isn’t like you to be so down. You’re usually the one maki
ng sure everyone else is happy.” Her mom sighed, and wouldn’t meet her gaze. “It’s as though you’ve had your heart broken, and I don’t, for one minute, believe it was Seth who did the heartbreaking.”
Emma felt raw emotion run through her because her heart had been broken, and all she wanted was to cry on her mother’s shoulder. Instead, she inhaled and admitted, “I don’t want to talk about Logan.” That was a lie because she was totally consumed with him, and felt as though her insides had been ripped out.
“Why don’t you go and get dressed? I’ll make you a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows and we can sit and watch the snow together. They’re your favorite, right?” Her mom smiled and, before Emma could answer, dashed into the kitchen.
