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“A horse ride to some secluded spot. By a river or a creek or somewhere.” Her eyes lit up as she babbled. “A picnic blanket! Like one of those red and white checkered ones with proper picnic food!” She giggled. “Then dessert is red-velvet cupcakes. And there’s a ring on top of one of them.” Emma dreamily sighed.
“That’s beautiful, sweetheart.”
I side-eyed Elias but he gave me blank eyes back, those nearly black irises gave me no sign of his true thoughts. Hm. I’d have to poke him later because it sure seemed like he had something up his sleeve. My cell phone rang, interrupting us. Normally, I’d ignore the call but it was important.
“It’s the police department. I’ll be right back.” I excused myself to the living room.
Emma
Attempting to quiet my brain took a lot of work. My thoughts barreled through at dizzying spins, each one worse than the last. Elias seemed to be drowning his brain in coffee. He typically drank two cups, but he was now on his fourth. The reality of our situation had interrupted our sweet moment discussing the proposal of my dreams. Luke had punched out Shawn. I prayed he wouldn’t get brought up on assault charges.
“Are they going to arrest Luke?”
“No. If there was an issue, Jesse would have given him a heads up.”
“What if the police force me to return with Shawn?”
“No one is forcing you to do anything, Emma.”
“But he’s so convincing!”
Elias pushed his chair out and patted his lap. “Come here.”
Muttering, I stomped to him and held out my arms. He pulled me into his lap. “After I messed up so many times, Daddy, maybe this is my justice.”
“No, sweetheart. We are not going down that train of thought today.”
“I can’t calm down right now. Maybe you should send me away.”
“I want you to stay here, but if you really want to leave, I’ll help you with the resources you need. Otherwise, we will drop this topic. It is not helping your head.”
“I don’t actually want to leave, but I thought it was better for you and Luke.”
“It’s not.” Elias wrapped his arms around me, and I settled against his chest. His gentle reassurances helped me quiet the chaos spinning through my brain. “Breathe, sweetheart. We’ll work it out.”
Luke returned to the kitchen table and sat down next to us. He placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed lightly. “Shawn is being detained. They tested him for drugs, and he was on multiple illegal substances. He’s also got outstanding warrants in several states. We all need to give a statement about what happened yesterday.”
“So, the police aren’t going to make me go with Shawn?”
“No, babygirl. That’s not happening.” Luke tapped my shoulder. “Spin around so I know you’re listening.”
Elias helped me turn on his lap, keeping his hold but giving me enough room to speak with Lucas. My lower lip wobbled as I stared into his gorgeous cobalt eyes. “I’m listening, Sir.”
“You don’t have to stay here if you don’t want to.”
“Idowant to stay, Sir. I said as much to Elias while you were on the phone. I thought running away would make things easier.”
“No more running, darling. If you get overwhelmed to the point where you falsely believe fighting the wilderness is a good idea, you come and get one of us immediately.” He placed his forehead against mine. “I’m not saying you have to stay here against your will. I’m asking you to allow us to assist you with resources, a hotel, whatever you need but please don’t scare us like that again.”
“My words might not mean much right now.” I let out a shuddering breath. Tears threatened to spill but I blinked them away. “I promise to make up for my mistakes. I’ll make it up to both of you. I’m so sorry, Daddies.”
“We are going to need more than a few pretty words to prove your dedication to us and the rules, darling.”
“How can I make things right again?”
“We will take things slow. Build up trust. We’ll do it together, Emma. All three of us.”
I took Luke’s hand and relaxed against Elias. “Will you punish me for leaving?”
