Captured Heart (A Garrett's Point Novel) (6 page)

“I’m sure. She can help me fold napkins and silverware.”

As they reached the front door, Sydney turned to Emma. “You have our numbers. Use them if you need to. You dish out advice to others about not holding emotions in, but you aren’t a good student yourself.” she admonished.

Biting the inside of her lip to keep from breaking down, Emma nodded. “I will. I’m fine really. Just worried about Olivia.”

“Call us tomorrow after the reading. We can talk then. We’ll meet you at Mel’s.” Sydney finished.

“Give me a couple days, guys. Once we know what the will specifies, there will be a lot of decisions to make, mostly Jack’s I’m sure, but I want to help Olivia and him as much as possible.” Emma explained.

“Let’s keep our usual dinner date for Thursday night. I’ll know a lot more then.”

Good-byes were said and hugs given. Emma closed the front door and leaned back against it, her eyes closed as she took in deep breaths.

She didn’t hear Jack come up to stand in front of her so lost was she in her thoughts. Her eyes flew open when she felt his hand brush her cheek. Surprised she stared into his searching eyes.

“How are you holding up, Emma? I feel like I haven’t talked to you all day.”

Sighing yet again, she said “Actually we really haven’t. I think I’ve been on autopilot most of the day with receiving all the guests.” Her guard was back in place. “It’s still early enough for a walk. I think Olivia could use some fresh air. She loves to walk down by the water. Would you like to go?”

Jack smiled. She was always thinking of others, but this time he was certain the driving factor was non-stop activity to keep from having time to think about what really happened. He knew she was just as exhausted as he was. “I think that’s a great idea.”

“Great. I’ll run upstairs and get Olivia. Mel said she was drawing in her room.”

He watched her go up the stairs, his eyes falling to her slender waist and perfectly shaped derriere. Need gripped his groin. This woman did things to his libido that he couldn’t control. That was wrong. Yes, he could control it, but he was finding he didn’t want to. The timing and situation was all wrong. She was too sweet a person to think of as a one-night stand. Emma was a husband and kids with a white picket fence material, and he didn’t need to ruin that with a fling and risk hurting her. He’d never forgive himself.

He’d had plenty of flings over the past few years. A serious relationship wasn’t on his docket, only his court cases were. Emma Heart certainly did not fit into that mold. That is why he had marked her as untouchable over the past six years, and it needed to stay that way. Her help with Olivia was too critical to jeopardize by adding his hyped up libido into the mix.

A few minutes later Emma descended the stairs with Olivia in tow, followed closely behind by Tucker, happily wagging his long tail at the chance of going outside.

He smiled as Olivia was explaining to Emma that her friends Barbie Julie and Barbie Susan were fighting because Julie didn’t sit with her at lunch today.
If only their problems were that small.

They walked along the river with a light breeze lifting Emma’s hair as they walked. The sun was just setting over the water, its red and orange hues blended together like a masterpiece with the water standing still as if in awe of the sun’s beauty.

Olivia hopped along in front of Emma and Jack as they turtled along behind at a leisurely pace.

“The nap seems to have rejuvenated her.” Jack replied as he watched her skip along.

Emma’s smile was sardonic. “Yes, thank goodness, children are resilient that way. They bounce back much quicker than we do.” A tremendous sigh escaped her and she spoke in a hushed tone only Jack could hear. “Although I suspect the storm has yet to surface really. It will be more of a balance of good and bad days to come.”

Jack knew she was right. He just didn’t know how he was going to handle the bad days. So many things to figure out, but he didn’t have to have all the answers tonight. Right now he was enjoying a good moment.

Out of nowhere he grasped Emma’s hand, taking her by surprise. She stopped walking and turned to face Jack. Grasping her free hand so that he now held her captive in his grasp, he smiled down at her, his six foot frame towering over her. Brown eyes darkened like cocoa stared into her baby blues as she blinked several times, trying to focus in and glean anything from his expression.

“Emma, I haven’t had an opportunity to thank you for everything you have done over the past three days.” She started to interrupt him, but he placed a finger to her lips preventing her from speaking. “Let me finish please.” Nodding, she allowed him to continue.

“I don’t know what the attorney will say tomorrow, but I know there will still be a lot of details to sort through. I know it’s a lot to ask, but I was hoping you might consider staying here with Olivia and me the rest of this week for Olivia’s sake while we work things out? I know it’s supposed to be your Spring Break and all…”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Jack. Nothing is more important to me right now than Olivia’s wellbeing. Of course I’ll stay for the remainder of the week, and we’ll go from there.”

Relief flooded Jack like a levy that had let loose. He hadn’t realized how afraid he was to be left alone just yet with Olivia. A small voice in the back of his mind was shouting at him that it wasn’t just about Olivia. He pushed the mute button on the internal voice and ignored it. He needed Emma’s help. That was all.

“Time to head back, Liv.” Emma herded Olivia back to the house with Jack and Tucker in tow. Tucker had played in the edge of the water, splashing and chasing sticks that Olivia tossed. He was going to need a good wipe down.

“Do you want chicken casserole, chicken casserole or chicken casserole for dinner?” Emma jokingly asked Jack. “I think we could feed an army with leftover chicken casserole.”

Jack thought back to all the people that had been at the funeral or come by the house dropping off food. It seems Jack and Dana had made a lot of good friends here as well as Emma. She seemed to know everyone, and everyone loved her.

“The people of Garrett’s Point certainly seem to be supportive of one another. The food just kept coming.” He smiled remembering how many times Dana had shared with him how special she thought Garrett’s Point was. He was starting to get a glimpse of why she felt that way. He didn’t even know his next door neighbor’s name back in Richmond, but that was life in the city.

The three of them ate a light meal sitting on the floor around the coffee table of the family room. Olivia yawned creating a chain reaction from both Emma and Jack. Laughing in unison, Jack said, “Why don’t you take Olivia up and get ready for bed. I’ll clean up.”

Emma found Jack in the family room. He had started a fire and was reclined on the sofa, his head leaning back and his long jean-clad legs were outstretched across the coffee table. A wine glass was in his hand. His expression barely visible in the firelight made Emma pause. Grief completely unmasked and so painful.

“Jack.” Whispering his name she came to the couch and sat down beside him and waited.

He was staring at the mantle full of family photos. “You know my parents have been gone for over ten years. Dana was all I had left. Now she’s gone too.” His tone was so matter-of-fact.

Emma couldn’t refrain from offering him comfort. She couldn’t stand to see him hurting so. “You’re not alone, Jack. You have Olivia. She needs you.” Jack turned to look at Emma directly as he took her words in. “And you have me. I’ll be here to help you Jack. We can help each other. I feel like I’ve lost a sister too.” Her voice broke and she couldn’t continue, not without falling apart.

Jack sat up and gathered her to him, his arms wrapping tightly around her in a soothing embrace. His hands rubbed up and down her back offering comfort. Emma buried her face in the crook of his neck. “I just can’t believe they are gone.” her whisper barely audible.

Tears she had been holding back for three days streamed down her cheeks. Jack could feel her body trembling as he held her and feel the wetness of her tears on his neck and shirt.

“Shhh, Emma. What a selfish bastard I’ve been, huh? You’ve shouldered all of this responsibility primarily on your own while I’ve been a bystander. I’m so sorry. I didn’t intentionally let that happen. It just did, but I didn’t do anything to step in. It was easier to let you handle it.” He placed his hand under her chin and tilted her face upward so she had to look him in the eye.

“Will you forgive me?” he whispered. The firelight flickered across her damp cheeks, her eyes still bright with tears. She stared up at him with her own grief reflected and nodded. Then something changed.

His head slowly descended toward her. Emma felt like she was watching it in slow motion. She knew he was going to kiss her but she felt frozen. Then all thoughts fled as sensations took over. It was meant to be a tender, comforting kiss. That’s what he would tell himself later, but as soon as their lips touched, he knew he needed more than a butterfly kiss. He wanted so much more.

Her hands went around his neck as he pulled her against him. Tenderness turned to passion as he devoured her lips, his tongue seeking entrance to taste her sweetness as he suckled her lower lip, her mouth opening to him. A soft moan escaped her lips as his assault on her senses continued. One hand slid to cup her bottom as he rained kisses down her throat and back up to her lips.

A log crackled and slid in the fireplace, startling them both. Breaking the kiss and the moment, they both stared at each other in a daze. Reality swooped down on Emma first, and embarrassment banked the desire that had been burning her up just moments prior. Crimson color flooded her face and neck as she scooted out of Jack’s embrace. She saw Jack shake his head as if to clear whatever was running through it.

His hand reached out to her, but she held her arm up, her hand outstretched like a stop sign. “Emma, I’m…” She didn’t let him finish.

“Jack, don’t apologize. We both needed comforting, and the moment got away from us. Let’s leave it at that, okay?” Emma stated firmly. “Let’s just forget it ever happened.”

She stood, straightening her blouse that had become disheveled. “We have a big day tomorrow. We should get some sleep, so I’m going to head up. Will you lock up and set the alarm?”

He said he would and watched her walk away. He inhaled several deep breaths trying to calm his zinging hormones. “Forget what just happened? Was she crazy?” he asked himself.

Standing himself, he had to shift in his jeans due to the uncomfortable tightness that now existed in his lower region due to his body’s response to kissing Emma. “Really? From a kiss? Has it been that long?” Well, it had been a few months due to his case load and long hours at the office, but that’s not what bothered him. What bothered him was his actual response to Emma. She set him on fire. One touch and he was lost. He didn’t just want her. He needed her, and that was not a good thing in Jack’s book.

He needed to stay focused on the tasks at hand and keep his hands off.
Good luck with that,
his inner voice said snidely as he locked up and headed to bed. He knew he was going to need all the luck he could get.

Chapter Six

The morning greeted Emma with feelings of indignation. She was embarrassed by her response to Jack. Her inner self had given her quite the lecture this morning and set her straight. Just let it go. She was only human, right? Grief made people do crazy things, and that had definitely been out of character for her.

Lord if that log hadn’t fallen, she wasn’t sure if they would have stopped at a few kisses.
Don’t go there, Emma.
They had both needed comforting and had leaned on each other in a moment of weakness. Don’t make such a big deal out of it.

The problem Emma had with that was how Jack had made her feel last night. In all of her almost thirty years, no man had generated the response that one kiss from Jack had. It had left her extremely unsettled. One kiss and she had been undone. If she was going to be truthful with herself, she hadn’t wanted it to end. That was bad for many many reasons.

Jack Denton was not looking for a long-term relationship, and she was not in the market for a one-night stand. The bigger point of reference should be that relationships born out of two people being thrown together due to these types of incidents – grief in this case – usually didn’t last. Jack was big city career guy, and she was small town kindergarten teacher girl. Not a good match. She just needed to remember that. Olivia was her primary concern, not Jack.

Neither one mentioned the “incident” last night. Both were focused on the day ahead and what it would entail. They were to meet with Allen Spencer, Jeff and Dana’s attorney and Jeff’s partner at the law firm, at ten o’clock.

“Are we ready?” Jack asked as he stood at the upstairs hallway bathroom door. Emma was just finishing braiding Olivia’s long blonde hair. As Emma wound a pink ponytail holder around the bottom of the braid to secure it, Olivia pouted.