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“I do not.”
“Oh please. You’ve had a thing for him since you were sixteen. And from the way he kissed you just now, the feeling’s obviously mutual.”
Emma ignored her friend’s last remark. “He’s only interested in me because he wants to do a deal with my dad.”
“I doubt that’s the only reason.” Addison waved away the beginnings of Emma’s protests. “Yes, I know, your father is a controlling nightmare, blah, blah, blah. But you keep saying you want to fall in love and get married, yet you’re so afraid that every man’s going to be another Jackson that you don’t give anyone a chance.”
“Did you ever think that maybe I had good reason to keep my guard up?” Addison’s lecture slid like needles into her insecurities. Irritated, she decided her oh-so-smart friend needed a better grasp on the situation. “And, for your information, Dad made marrying me a condition of the deal between his company and Nathan’s.”
Addison remained unfazed by Emma’s revelation. “From everything I’ve heard about Nathan Case, he isn’t anything like Jackson,” she said, her tone calm and confident. “He’s not going to marry you to get on your dad’s good side.”
“It’s the only reason he wants to marry me,” she shot back.
“So, say no.”
“I’m trying.”
Addison’s lips twitched. “Not very hard. I obviously interrupted something pretty hot and heavy between you two.”
Emma dropped her forehead onto the breakfast bar with a groan. “It’s as if I spontaneously combust every time he touches me.” Her head came up. “But that’s not enough. I need more than sex.” Incredible. Fabulous. Mind-blowing sex.
“Are you sure? Seems like you haven’t been getting a lot of great sex lately. Or any sex, for that matter.”
Emma didn’t want to think about great sex with Nathan. Because if she thought about great sex, or any sort of sex with the man, she was going to have a hard time not having it with him again.
“Positive.”
“I saw the way you two looked at each other,” Addison said. “Maybe this thing between you two could lead to something more. It might be worth the risk. You haven’t taken many of those lately, either.”
Could it? Temptation tangled her resolve with a whole host of possibilities and left her adrift in confusion. She claimed that she wanted to fall in love and get married, but wasn’t that all about taking chances? Was Addison right? Did she use her father’s meddling in her life and her past naiveté as far as Jackson was concerned to guard her heart? Was she her own worst enemy when it came to finding someone to spend the rest of her life with?
After a moment, Emma shook her head. “Nathan approaches marriage like a business arrangement. I want to marry a man I love and who loves me in return. I want the fairy-tale ending. What’s wrong with that?”
“Women get rescued in fairy tales,” Addison pointed out. “Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty. All rescued. I thought you were trying to prove to your father that you can take care of yourself.”
“All the more reason not to get involved with Nathan. He thinks exactly the way my father does. That I need him to look after me.” She huffed. “And I don’t.”
Into the silence that fell between them, Addison added one last bit of advice. “I hope whatever decision you make, you don’t regret it.”
On that, Emma wholeheartedly agreed.
True to his word, Nathan sent a contractor to her loft the following morning. The stocky man had a brisk way of talking and a competent air as he inspected her bathroom.
“No wonder you’ve got problems.” He wore a disgruntled expression as he surveyed the plumbing job done by the previous owners. “I’ve never seen such poor workmanship.”
Emma set her hands on her hips. “But you can fix it?”
“Sure, but first we’ve got to get rid of this black mold,” the contractor explained. “It’s the most toxic variety there is. Can cause headaches, dizziness, difficulty concentrating. Not to mention runny nose and itchy eyes, and it could irritate or damage your lungs. I’d recommend that you vacate until we can get the problem taken care of.”
His pronouncement nettled her. Was he telling her that because she was truly in danger or because Nathan had prompted him to do so? “For how long?”
“Let me make a couple calls.”
While he took measurements and talked on the phone, Emma retreated to the small second bedroom where she’d set up her equipment. She could spare no time or energy debating whether or not she should stay in the loft. After Addison had left yesterday, Emma had gone through her inventory to get an idea of how far she would need to dip into her account to make enough jewelry for the show.
