Chance Encounters (11 page)

“Not at all, Emma, keep going.”

“Once we were a couple, things took off. I mean, we were
invited to country clubs and fundraisers. We made the “A” list. Of course Renee
was there pushing us at every turn.”

“Renee sounds like she is better suited for Matthew than
you. I cannot see you with someone like him.”

“It’s funny you say that … I thought that for a long time,
too. They would be like Ken and Barbie. But, for some reason he chose me. She
flaunted everything she has in front of him, but he chose me.”

“Well at least he has that going for him. He knows class
over trash.”

“Renee is far from trash. She’s very high end, top of the
line.”

“Yeah, but you are real, Emma. She’s synthetic, made up.” He
kissed the side of her head. “Continue, please.”

“Well, Matthew and I enjoy the beach. I mean, we bought a
house on the ocean, and when we went away for the weekends it was always some
little coastal town. I think we were so wrapped up in making a name for
ourselves that we never noticed how different we truly are. Or maybe it was the
differences that kept us together.”

“So you never suspected him of cheating on you?”

“No! Not that it’s appropriate to discuss this with you, but
no. There was no reason to suspect. He never pulled his affections away from
me. He told me he still loves me. He claims it was just a stupid mistake, cold
feet—”

Jacob cut her off, “Oh, blimey. Cold feet! It was eight
years for Christ’s sake. It should never have taken him eight years to realize
he wanted to marry you. He’s a damn fool is what he is.”

Emma petted him on his leg. “Okay, I’m done talking about
it. I’ve been trying to forget about it all really.”

“Are you though, Emma? It’s only just happened. Can you
honestly say you’re over it?”

“Well … I …”

“Do you still love him?”

“I …”

Jacob didn’t give her a chance to finish her sentence. He
pulled her on top of him and brought her face down to meet his. That was the
end of the discussion. Jacob didn’t want to hear any more about the man that
broke her heart. Even though if Matt hadn’t broke her heart, she wouldn’t be
with Jacob right now.

EMMA OPENED HER eyes and stared up
at the cloudless sky. It took her a moment to remember exactly where she was.
The night before came flooding back to her and she smiled as she pulled the
blanket around her. She looked over and to see that Jacob was no longer beside
her. For a moment she panicked, worried that she had chased him away, until she
heard voices coming from the kitchen. She quickly gathered her clothes and got
dressed. As she walked closer to the door she could hear laughter. She shyly
walked into the kitchen to see Lena and Todd standing over by the stove. When
they noticed her, Lena perked up and smiled.

“Well good morning, sleepy head. Did you sleep well?” Lena
asked her.

Emma nodded her head, embarrassed.

“Aw shucks, Emma, there is no need to be shy around us,
really. We already like you and you are more than welcome here,” Todd answered
with the spatula in his hand

Lena walked over to her and put her arm around her
shoulders, leading her to the kitchen stool.

“We make a killer breakfast here. We have eggs, grits, and
fresh baked corn bread. We’ll put some meat on you,” Todd teased.

“I put out some clean clothes for you on my bed. You can use
my bathroom if you’d like to take a shower,” Lena told her with a gentle tone
to her voice.

“Oh! Thanks, Lena. I guess I am a little short on clothing.”

“No worries! You can make it up to me somewhere along the
line. Now, go on and get cleaned up. You have about twenty minutes until chow
time.” Lena pointed in the direction of her bedroom, and Emma quickly made her
escape.

She passed Jacob as he was shaking the water from his hair.

“Good morning, beautiful.” He leaned down and kissed her.

“Hi!”

“The shower is all warmed up for you. Unless, of course
you’d like me to hop in with you, I’m game!”

She playfully pushed him away from the doorway. “Your
friends are just out there. Go. Let me take a shower.”

Jacob smiled at her. She was such a refreshing change from
what he was used to.

“They are in the music business. I don’t think they mind
public sex sessions.”

“Go! Out … now!” Smiling, she shut the door and leaned
against the other side.

Jacob went out to the kitchen and had a big grin on his
face. Lena and Todd stopped mid-conversation and looked at their friend.

“Well now, I guess you had a good night with the lady?” Lena
commented.

“I guess you could say that.”

“So, fill us in!” Todd interjected.

“I am not one to kiss and tell,” Jacob joked.

“Since when, man?” Todd cracked. “You have never had a
problem talking about your sexual prowess before.”

Lena stated, “That’s because he didn’t care about the
others. This one is different; he’s falling in love with her.”

Jacob sat at the kitchen island. “I am. I don’t know how it
happened, but I have been bitten.”

“So what are you going to do about it, bro?” Todd asked.

“You cannot just let her leave today. Are you going to go
with her?”

“I don’t know! She hasn’t said anything about today. I don’t
want to force myself into her life. She was in a crappy relationship for a very
long time. They only just broke it off. She doesn’t feel the same way that I
do.”

“You don’t know that, Jacob. Have you asked her?” Lena
asked.

“She’s still in love with him. She couldn’t answer me. That
was the problem.” Lena made her way around the island and took a seat next to
Jacob.

“Don’t let her leave without her knowing how you feel. You
owe it to you and to her. It will haunt you for the rest of your life. When you
find that special someone, you grab hold of it, and don’t let it go,” Lena told
him.

Jacob shook his body. “Enough! I don’t like chick talk.”

“Don’t do that, Jacob. Don’t put on that asshole British guy
front. You don’t fool anyone. We’ve known you forever, and we’ve never seen you
like this with anyone. You’d be stupid to walk away, is all I am saying.” Lena
got up and grabbed some napkins and forks.

When her back was turned Todd spoke up, “I feel for you,
dude, but I am siding with Lena here. Emma’s the one, don’t screw it up.”

Lena could hear Todd, and she couldn’t love him any more
than she did right then.

EMMA TUCKED THE towel around her and
walked out into Lena’s bedroom. The room was decorated like an African princess
fairytale. Everything was leopard and zebra print. Emma smiled to herself.
Matthew never would have let her decorate their room like that. There she was
again, thinking about Matt when he should be the furthest thing from her mind.
She walked to the bed and noticed a black tank top and black short shorts
waiting for her. She quickly got dressed. After running her fingers through her
long, brown hair, she opened the door to go out into the kitchen.

She didn’t know what to expect when she got out there, but
she felt as though she had always known them. They were all so warm and
welcoming. Emma sat on a kitchen stool and couldn’t keep from laughing as she
listened to the banter going back and forth between the three of them. She
never had this sort of casual exchange with any of her friends in Malibu. She
realized her circle of friends were all the kind to talk about their shopping
sprees, the mini-mutts that they carried with them in designer bags, and who
wore the largest diamonds. She wondered how she had gone on living like that
for so long.

They finished breakfast, and Lena suggested that the
foursome go sightseeing before Emma had to go and pick up her car later that
afternoon. Lena told her that once you get out of the city, there is nothing
but a beautiful country backdrop.

They decided to pack a picnic lunch and hop into the car.
Emma huddled into the backseat with Jacob. “Do you have any idea where they are
taking us?” Emma asked.

“Nope, but if I know them, and I think I do … then we are in
for a great day!”

“I don’t know why that scares me a little.”

He turned sideways and looked at her crooked. “Do you really
never do anything spontaneous? Does everything have to be plotted and planned?”

“Well, not always. I have OCD so I like to plan things ahead
of time. I’m not used to this.”

He swung his arm around her shoulder and gently shook her.
“Oh, my beautiful Emma Reed, I will teach you how to live even if it kills me.”
She looked at him and faked a smile.

They had driven for close to an hour when they entered a
town named Pigeon Forge. Emma squeaked at the name. “It sounds like something
from a soap opera.”

Lena, Todd, and Jacob all laughed at her comment.

Emma couldn’t help but notice the mountains surrounding
them. “Wow! What amazing scenery.”

“Those, Emma … are the Smoky Mountains,” Lena called back to
her.

Emma could see a large sign in the distance. As it came into
view, Emma cracked up laughing. “Oh my God, we are going to Dollywood?”

“We said we wanted fun, and to take in the sights, right? So
what better way than a little amusement park with pastoral scenery,” Lena
answered.

They pulled into a parking spot and climbed out of the car.
Jacob stretched his long, lean legs. “Ahhh, feels good.”

He reached for Emma’s hand and led her through the main
gates. Emma took a look at the map that was given to them and commented, “Wow,
I never imagined this was quite that big. I’ve always heard about this place,
but never would have thought to come. So where should we start?”

“That’s a girl! Glad to see you are excited now. What are
you in the mood for?” Jacob asked. He glanced at the map and pointed out
different ideas.

“Well, we have thrill rides, or family rides, or water
rides, or train rides. It’s a world of endless possibilities.”

Lena pulled Todd on ahead. “I’ll settle this … I’m heading
to Thunderhead. You can follow if you so dare.”

Emma looked at Jacob. “What’s Thunderhead?”

“Oh, it’s just the most thrilling wooden rollercoaster in
your entire country,” Jacob answered.

“Oh!” Emma responded.

Jacob dragged Emma into the growing line to get onto
Thunderhead. Lena grabbed onto Emma’s arm and started jumping up and down like
a little girl.

“I just love thrill rides. I love to scream my head off like
a maniac. I love the way it gives you butterflies in your stomach. It reminds
me of that feeling you get in your tummy when you fall in love,” she said as
she looked to see Emma’s reaction.

Emma smiled at her. “Not me so much. I’ve never even been to
Disney World.”

“Oh, girlfriend, I wish we had more time with you. There is
so much fun to be had out there. It’s a big world, and it’s time that you
realize that.” She winked at Emma, and she took it to mean that she was
referring to Jacob.

The ride was amazing. The one hundred foot drop nearly
killed Emma. She screamed even before they went down, because she knew it was
coming. As the ride plummeted straight down, Emma understood completely what
Lena was talking about with the butterflies. The funny thing was she didn’t
need the ride for that experience. Jacob already made her stomach do flips. By
the time she got off the ride, she was hyped up. “Oh my God that was
incredible. I have never felt such a rush before. I thought I was going to pee
my pants.” She blushed as she said it

Todd burst out laughing. “TMI, Emma, but glad you enjoyed
it.”

“Well, Miss Emma, since you liked that one, how about we go
to Daredevil Falls. It’s an extreme log ride through an old logging mill,” Lena
told her.

They all excitedly hurried off to get into line. Once again,
Emma screamed at the top of her lungs as the log plummeted sixty feet down at
sixty miles per hour. They got off the ride and she grabbed onto Jacob. “I feel
so alive. I feel like a kid,” she told him.

He wrapped his arm around her and hugged her. “I’m glad,
Emma. You deserve all the thrills and adventures that life has to offer. Don’t
you ever forget that.”

THEY WENT ON a few more rides before
they decided to set up and have their picnic. Lena set a cloth over the wooden
picnic table and set up their lunch feast.

Lena had packed ham salad and fried chicken, potato salad,
chips, olives, cookies, soda, and water. Emma helped her set everything up.
“Lena, you are an amazing woman. You always have yourself so put together and
you are always smiling. What is your secret?” Emma asked.

Lena looked over to the guys who were throwing a Frisbee
back and forth to one another. “Truthfully, Emma, I’m just incredibly happy. I
love my husband and I love my life. I was a mess before I met him. I was
insecure and all about business. I met Todd when he was out on the road with
Jacob. He swept me off my feet. It took me one hour to know I wanted to spend
the rest of my life with him. He completed me. I know how stupid it sounds, but
it’s the absolute truth.”

“I don’t think it is stupid, Lena. I think it’s incredibly
romantic. Keep going, please!” Emma responded.

“Well … I just loved how Todd was such a free spirit. I’d
had a husband before I met him; he used to like to push me around. So, when I
met Todd, naturally I was skeptical. He was the real thing, though. He would
never lay a finger on me … well, not in that way anyway.”

“I’m so sorry to hear about your ex-husband.”

“Oh don’t sweat it. To me, it’s another lifetime. Just
stepping stones until Todd came along. We married after only two weeks of
knowing each other, and I’m happy to say it’s been five wonderful years so far.
He treats me like a princess. He serenades me when he’s on stage. He doesn’t
ask a damn thing of me. He just wants me to be me.”

“You’ve got yourself a great guy, Lena. You’re very lucky.”

Lena reached in her bag for some napkins.

“So, Emma, without seeming like I am prying … tell me a
little about your situation.”

Emma grabbed the napkins from her and spread them out on the
table.

“There is not much to tell. My fiancé had sex with another
woman in my bed, end of story.”

“You still sound angry about it.”

“Yeah, I am. It only happened recently, so I guess when you
think you are going to spend your life with someone, and they betray you like
that, it hurts.”

“Are you trying to work things out with him?”

Emma knew that Lena was fishing around now.

“I thought about it. This long ride cross-country was
supposed to be my thinking time. I was going through everything over and over …
and over again.”

“Have you sat down and talked to Matthew about the whole
situation?”

“No. He’s called and begged me to, but I haven’t been face
to face with him since I caught him.”

“Hmm,” Lena commented.

“Why do you ask?”

“Well, sometimes it is hard to move forward until you
completely settle the past. Even though I knew Todd was my future, I still had
to put the past to rest before I could forge forward. Perhaps you need to
also.”