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This time her head flew back in a big laugh that made me chuckle.
After she was done laughing at me, she turned thoughtful. “I think Andy would have liked you, too,” she murmured.
“Yeah?” I asked, feeling honored she thought so.
“Yeah. You two are very different, but he would have liked you. Because he liked Holden, who you are very much like.”
I shook my head with a smile. I was not like that asshole, but I wasn’t going to say that. I knew Emily cared for him, so I could play it cool.
“You go every week?” she asked.
“Yep. I take her a Dr Pepper, her favorite drink. Never a Mr. Pibb because, in her words, that shit is not the same. And we talk and I tell her about my week,” I said. “Oh, and I always give her a word of the week.”
Her forehead creased in confusion. “A word of the week?”
“Yep. Annie’s first language wasn’t English. She was Mexican, first generation here. I met her when I was stationed in Texas. She loved words. She taught herself English before we ever met, and she’d done a damn good job. She was always trying to improve. She even taught me a little Spanish even though I was shit at it. She loved word books and thesauruses. So when I go to see her, I always go with a word I found in one of our books.”
“Well, damn,” she breathed, her face dreamy, still running her hand through my hair. “That has to be the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard. So sweet.”
She pulled her hand away from me and tucked it under the covers, and lost the dreamy look on her face. “After me and Parker buried Andrew, I never went back.”
“Why?” I asked, beyond sad for her.
“It hurt too much. Seeing my whole life there in the damn ground. I don’t know. I was mad. So angry at first.”
I nodded, completely getting that. I’d been mad as hell, too. “What about your family? They didn’t try to help you and Parker through that? They weren’t there for y’all at all?” I asked because I didn’t know what I would have done without my mom and dad to grieve with. They were the only ones who understood. They’d lost Annie, too.
She shook her head slowly. “No. I haven’t seen my parents since I was little when my brother died. They didn’t handle it well. They sent me to live with my aunt and uncle, but they weren’t really interested in me either. So it’s just me and Parker,” she finished.
I couldn’t fucking believe that. No wonder Emily had the trauma she did. No wonder she was so fucking scared of being left. Everyone she’d ever loved had either abandoned her or died. It fucking gutted me.
I pulled her to me, wrapping myself around her. “You have me now, Slugger, and I ain’t going nowhere.”
I wanted to know more. I wanted to know everything about her. But I could feel her still holding back. And like I’d said, I was a patient man. I was good at waiting. I’d wait until she was ready.
“I sure hope not,” she said softly, snuggling into me.
My guilt about not being completely honest with her about my job hit me hard. “I’m sorry. I should have told you about my job. I should have been more open.”
I felt her head nod against me. “Yeah. And I should have asked. You were right. I had one foot out the door. I’m sorry, too.”
We were both sorry. We were both going to make this work. And she wouldn’t ever have to be alone again.
She didn’t have to worry. I’d make fucking sure of it.
Iparked Emily’s truck in front of Miranda and Holden’s home only a few miles from her and Parker’s place and turned to look at my girl.
She looked excited to be here, but I was anything but. The last time I’d seen Holden, shit hadn’t ended well.
But when Emily had asked me to attend a dinner party at the Steels’ home for a special announcement they had for everyone, how I could possibly turn her down?
It was what boyfriends did for their girlfriends. They went with them to friends’ dinner parties and shit. And that was what I was now, Emily’s boyfriend.
That had a nice ring to it, didn’t it?
Only Holden didn’t want me to be Emily’s boyfriend, so he and I were at an impasse. Hopefully, he kept his big fucking mouth shut tonight so that there were no problems and we didn’t ruin everyone’s evening.
I got out of the truck and went around, opening the door for my lady thinking that I should probably get a family vehicle. Something that I could drive both her and Parker around in. My bike wasn’t going to work for that.
