“Oh.”
“I’m
screwed no matter what, Amanda,” she said softly. “I’m falling for your
brother, and that’s the God’s honest truth. But he doesn’t feel the same way.
If he did, he’d consider how I felt, rather than just pushing me into something
just because he can.”
“Have
you considered the fact that he may not want to let you go?”
Emma
laughed then, actually seeing humor in the situation for the first time. “No,
Amanda, I haven’t considered that. Believe me, your brother is not interested
in a relationship with me.”
But
Amanda just looked at her questioningly. “What would Mason be able to do to
convince you that he really cared for you?”
Emma
thought about it for a moment. “I think I’d know. If he let down his guard. If
he showed me real honest emotion and real truth, I think I’d be able to believe
that. Amanda, you know what I’m talking about. You have it with Greg. I can see
it when you look at him, and when he looks at you. And you know that Mason and
I don’t have that.”
“I’ve
seen him look at you,” Amanda pointed out.
Emma
smiled sadly. “With curiosity, I think. He doesn’t know what to make of me.”
“It’s
more.”
“Not
yet. Amanda, I wish it were. But I need to be realistic.”
Amanda
reached over and gave Emma a hug. “My brother is a moron. But I don’t think
he’s cold-hearted. I just think he’s buried his heart behind a wall. And I like
to think that you’re breaking that down.”
Emma
laughed without humor. “Sure. Just call me sledgehammer.” She glanced at her
watch. “Do you have plans this afternoon, or do you want to go get margaritas
with me?”
“Seriously?”
“Yup.”
“I’m
in,” she said. “Let me just call my office and tell them that I’m not coming
back. Oh, and I probably should call Greg to come get us later so we’re not
driving. Leave your car here. We’ll take a cab to the best Mexican place I
know.”
Three
margaritas, two baskets of tortilla chips and a bowl of salsa later, Emma was
feeling slightly more tipsy than she could remember being in a while. She was
grateful that Amanda had insisted that she leave her car at work, since driving
home was so clearly not an option. At least, not for a few hours and after a
few cups of coffee. Amanda was as much of a lightweight as Emma was, so the two
were equally sloshed as they paid the bill and went out to the front of the restaurant
to wait for Greg. He had texted moments earlier to let them know that he was
close by.
“This
was exactly what I needed tonight,” Emma said to Amanda, hugging her shoulder
as the stood outside in the fresh air. “Exactly. Thank you.”
“It
was what I needed too. Oh, there’s Greg!” Amanda pointed out, taking hold of
Emma’s elbow as the two walked carefully over to the curb.
He
leaned over and opened the door for them. “Holy cow. You two weren’t kidding
about being blotto tonight. Geez, how much did you drink?”
Amanda
opened up the back door and helped Emma in before climbing in next to Greg.
“Believe it or not, only three margaritas each.”
“Three?”
“Over
about three hours. We’re cheap dates,” Emma chimed in from the back seat.
“Apparently
so. I think you two are going to need a keeper next time you decide to go out
for drinks. Emma, you’re headed home, I hope?”
“I
am,” she admitted. “There’s no way I’m working tonight, and there’s no way I’m
driving tonight, so home it is.”
Fifteen
minutes later, Greg was pulling up in front of Mason’s home, and Emma stepped
out, leaning down to talk with Greg and Amanda through the window.
“Thanks
for the ride. And Amanda, thank you for talking to me today. You’re a good
friend.”
“Right
back at you,” Amanda said, reaching out and squeezing her hand. “Call me
tomorrow and let me know you’re all right?”
“I
will. Goodnight,” she said softly, watching as they drove away. Turning, she
took a deep breath and headed toward the door. The lights were on, so Mason was
home. This ought to be interesting, she thought.
“Hi
honey, I’m home,” she called sarcastically as she walked in the door. “Not that
you give a crap, of course.”
Mason
appeared in the doorway of the living room and looked over at her. He walked
over toward her, peering at her closely. “You’re drunk,” he finally said
accusingly.
Emma
protested. “Not entirely. I think I was drunk about an hour ago. Now I’m just
pleasantly tanked up.”
Mason’s
eyes narrowed. “Who brought you home?”
“Some
guy I met at the bar.”
Emma
watched in fascination as his hands made fists. “Emma,” he grated.
“Oh
relax,” she said with a giggle. “Greg drove me home. I went out for drinks with
Amanda, and she was smart enough to arrange for transportation beforehand.”
“Amanda?”
he asked incredulously.
“Your
sister?”
“I
know who Amanda is. Why did you go out with her?”
“Because
I like her. I need more of a reason than that?”
“What
did you talk about?”
“Girl
stuff.”
“Like
what?”
“Lipstick,
dress colors, the boy sitting behind me in homeroom. You know. Girl stuff.”
“Emma,”
he said again.
She
sighed and looked up at him wearily. “You’re uptight tonight.”
“You’re
a bit less than uptight,” he returned.
“True.
But sobering up rapidly. I’m going to go walk Chaos and then go to bed. Is he
out back?”
“Yes.
But you can’t walk him in your condition.”
“I
have no condition. And I want to go for a walk. So I’m going.”
“Then
I’m going with you.”
“Suit
yourself.”
They
walked along silently, Chaos sniffing everything worth sniffing along the road.
Mason walked with his hands in his pockets, waiting for Emma to chat with him
as she normally did. But Emma, despite still being a little tipsy, wasn’t
feeling especially chatty. She was in no mood to just pretend that nothing was
wrong. So she watched Chaos, tugged him away from anything that he showed
interest in eating, and could find no reason to speak to the man next to her.
“Emma!”
“Mal,
what’s up?” Emma greeted Malcolm happily as he ran toward them.
“I
saw you and Chaos, and... oh, hello Mr. Parker.”
“Hi
Malcolm,” Mason returned with a smile.
“Do
you want to join us?” Emma asked. “You can even hold Chaos.”
“Has
he pooped yet?” the boy asked suspiciously.
Emma
looked innocently down at the young boy. “I’m sure he must have before we
started walking.”
Malcolm
shook his head vehemently. “Nice try, Emma. But heck no. I know your rules. You
keep the dog.”
“What
rules?” Mason interjected, a puzzled look on his face.
“Whoever
has the leash when the dog poops has to clean up,” Malcolm explained.
Emma
grinned. “You’re too smart for me, Mal. But you need to get used to all of
these smells and things if you’re gonna be a vet someday.”
“Yeah.
Again, nice try. I’ll take him after he does his business. Where are you
going?”
“Just
walking around. What are you doing up so late?”
“My
parents are having a party. It’s kind of noisy, so I sneaked out the back when
I saw you.”
Emma
stopped and looked down at the boy, appalled. “Mal, you can’t do that. Your
parents might look for you, and they’ll be freaked out if you’re not in your
room.”
The
boy looked up at her with knowing eyes. “They won’t look for me, Em.”
“Oh
for heaven’s....” Emma stopped at the look on the boy’s face. Sighing, she
reached out and hugged his shoulders. “OK. Come on along. We’re not going to be
out for long, though. Promise you’ll sneak right back in and up to your room?”
“Emma...”
Mason started to say, but Emma shot him a warning glance.
“I
promise,” Malcolm said.
“OK.
But I still think you should learn to tolerate stinky stuff.”
Malcolm
rolled his eyes. “You need a new strategy, Em. That’s not gonna work. Ever.”
She
laughed. “Hey, Mason’s sister is dating a vet. You wanna come over some time
and meet him and talk to him?”
Malcolm
looked up at her, and then over at Mason, a look of excitement in his eyes.
“Seriously?”
“Yup.”
“When?”
“I’ll
ask. You need to come over anyhow. Max misses you.”
“My
parents are headed to Europe on Friday night. Can I come over this weekend?”
“You
bet. I’ve got a few errands to run on Saturday morning, but come over in the
afternoon. And I’ll see if Amanda and Greg can come over too. Sound good?”
“Ahem,”
Mason cleared his throat, wondering if Emma would remember that a) he was
standing there, and b) it was his house.
“Oops,”
Emma said, winking down at Malcolm. “Mason, do you have plans this weekend?
Would you like to join us?”
Malcolm
looked a bit worried by Mason's reaction. “Are you sure it’s OK, Em?”
“Of
course it’s OK. Unless Mason already made plans that he didn’t tell me about.
Did you?” she asked him.
He
sighed. Outnumbered and outmaneuvered. “No.”
“Then
let me check with Amanda and Greg. But you come over anyway. And bring Michelle
if she wants to come.”
“She
won’t. I think she likes having a break from me.” At a glance from Emma,
Malcolm sighed. “But I’ll ask her anyway.”
“Good
man.”
As
they circled back toward Malcolm’s home, Mason wondered why he felt like the
odd man out. He listened to the easy rapport that Emma and Malcolm shared, and
felt... like a third wheel. They loved each other, that was clear. They made
plans easily, they teased each other, they laughed without restraint. And when
they got back to Malcolm’s driveway, Emma gave him a quick hug, then watched as
the boy ran up the road and headed for the back door of the brightly lit house.
Emma waited until she saw a small figure wave from a window on the second
floor, and then turned toward Mason's home. Her conversation had ceased. Her
laughter had faded. And that’s when it hit Mason. He was jealous. Jealous of a
small boy. What in the world? But Emma was different with him, and it bothered
him. As they walked quietly up the driveway leading to his house, he realized
that he needed to talk to Emma. He needed to see her smile at him again.
Emma
circled around back and let Chaos off his leash to explore the backyard for a
bit longer in his never-ending search for squirrels. After closing the gate
behind him, she turned to head back to the house, and was surprised to find
Mason still standing beside her. She had expected that he would go inside as
soon as they approached his house.
“Emma,”
he said softly, stepping toward her and reaching out gently to touch her
shoulder.
But
Emma pulled away, deftly circling around him to head back toward the house. She
stopped when she felt his strong fingers encircle her arm, preventing her from
going any further. Turning, she looked up at him, her eyes narrowed slightly in
suspicion and confusion.
“It’s
getting late, Mason,” she said quietly, her gaze pointedly falling on where his
fingers gripped her arm.
“Why
are you avoiding me, Emma?”
“I’m
not avoiding you.”
“Emma.”
“OK,
I am. But you know why.” She looked up at him then and sighed. “I’m tired,
Mason. I’d like to go inside.”
With
his free hand, Mason reached up and gently brushed the hair back from her face.
She
reached up and swatted him away.
“Stop
it,” she snapped. “Just stop it.”
He
looked surprised. “Emma, what’s the matter? Why are you being so...”
“So
what?” she challenged.
“Short-tempered.”
She
let out a snort of laughter, moving away from him, though her arm was still
caught in his grip.
“Emma.”
“
What
?”
“What’s
wrong?”
“Why
do you even need to ask that?” she countered.
“I
can’t read minds,” he pointed out.
She
shook her head, taking a deep breath as she did. “You don’t need to read my
mind. I told you the other night why I’m upset. It doesn’t take a mind reader
to know that I’m still dealing with all of that.”
His
hand fell to his side.
“You’re
upset because I want to stay married to you?” he asked.
“Oh
for heaven’s sake,” Emma sputtered, turning toward the house.