Love Like You've Never Been Hurt (31 page)

She took a deep breath and told him about coming back to surprise
Jack and everything she’d seen on the beach. “So it was
me that got the surprise,” she finished.

Ben sipped his whiskey frowning. “It doesn’t sound
right, Em.”

“It damn well didn’t look right either, Ben!”

“No, I mean he’s genuinely crazy about you.”

“Yeah. I’ve heard that a lot lately. Perhaps he’s
just crazy about her too, whoever she is.”

Ben ignored that. “I can’t believe he’d do that.
I really can’t.”

“Well, I don’t want to, but I SAW them.”

“But did you see them, like, kiss or anything. What did they
actually do?”

Emma groaned, not wanting to have to relive the memory. “I
saw them walking on the beach together, laughing and joking. She
punched his arm, she hugged him and he hugged her back, very
enthusiastically. And he looked really, really happy.” Her
voice cracked as she remembered just how happy he had looked with
that woman is his arms. She took another slug of her whiskey.

“Slow down with that stuff and eat some of your sandwich.
Did you see them do anything that say, you and I wouldn’t do?”

Emma thought about that. “I suppose not.”

“Well then!” shrugged Ben, as if that were some kind
of explanation.

“Well then what?”

“I don’t know, but I think that there has to be some
innocent explanation, I really do.”

“Oh, Ben. You’re as bad as I used to be. You want to
believe the best of people. But I’ve already learned the hard
way that you can’t do that, because if you do you end up
getting your heart broken.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault. I should have known better. I
just wanted to believe. I’d even started to think that maybe…
but no. This is life kicking my ass, reminding me that I wasn’t
meant to have that kind of happiness.” She downed some more
whiskey.

“Em that’s not true. You so deserve happiness and you
will find it. And think about it. If anyone saw the way we are
together, or you and Pete or me and Missy, they might get the wrong
idea if they didn’t know the whole story.”

“But what could his story be, Ben? That he has a dear
lifelong friend, who he never mentioned and who just happened to drop
by the minute I was out of town?”

“I know it doesn’t look good, but I simply cannot buy
that he would do that, Em I can’t. Why don’t you call
him?”

“Are you crazy? I don’t want to talk to him!”

“But maybe...”

“Please, leave it. I don’t want to talk to him and I
don’t want to talk about him. I’m here and I’ve got
you and Missy and Pete and Gramps. I don’t need anyone else.”

“Have you told Pete?”

She looked at him, “What do you think? He’ll be here
in the morning, that’s soon enough. And don’t you dare
call him.”

“I didn’t say anything about calling him.”

“You didn’t need to. I’ve known you since we
were eight years old and I can read you like a book!”

He gave her a sheepish grin. “Really not allowed to call
him?”

“Nope.”

“Missy?”

“Nope.”

She smiled, “And no texting either. You’re stuck with
this one and all you have to do is change the subject and keep the
whiskey coming.” She held out her now empty glass.

“No deal.” He pointed at her mostly untouched plate,
“You get through at least half the sandwich and some more
fries.” He moved the bottle to the floor by his feet. “Until
then don’t talk to me about whiskey.”

She smiled, grateful to have him to turn to. She munched on the
sandwich. At first she’d thought she wouldn’t be able to
eat a thing, but once she started she realized how hungry she was.
She also needed something to soak up the whiskey that was already
going straight to her head. Ben’s cell rang.

“What’s up?

Can’t Kallen do it?

Tell him... No forget it. I’ll be down in a minute.”

He came back to the table. “Sorry Mouse, but I’m going
to have to go and help out. The new credit card software has a glitch
and I keep having to reset it.”

“No problem,” she reached for the bottle again, “I’m
fine.”

“Tell you what, why don’t you come down with me? It’ll
take a little while and I really don’t want to leave you up
here by yourself.”

“What’s up, don’t trust me with your whiskey?”

“No, I don’t” he grinned. “Come on. I’d
rather get you a small one at the bar than leave you up here with a
whole bottle. Come listen to the band.”

“Give me a minute?” She went into the bathroom and
rinsed her tear-stained face. “Make that two minutes,”
she shouted as she applied fresh lipstick and mascara.

“Uh-oh, war paint,” said Ben when she came out.

“Just cover-up so I don’t frighten your customers
away.”

“Em, you’re beautiful even when you’ve been
crying.”

“See, that’s why you’re my best friend. You
always know the right thing to say.”

“Come on. I need to get down there and sort this out.”

Ben got her settled at the end of the bar near the servers’
station. She had a great view of the band and was out of the way from
the crowd of locals and tourists all enjoying a Friday night out. She
sipped her whiskey and tried to enjoy the music. They were really
good. Five guys who all sang and between them played lead, bass,
keyboards, drums and saxophone, exchanging instruments according to
the song. Gramps would like some of the older songs they played. She
tried to focus on Gramps and the party, not wanting to let images of
Jack and that woman crowd into her head. That was how she’d
eventually learned to cope with her grief as a child. After months of
abject misery she’d discovered that if she focused completely
on something else she could shut out the pain for a little while. She
knew now that it wasn’t really ‘coping’ but at
least it was a way of surviving. As a child she’d started to
write, had been able to lose herself in the worlds and characters she
created. Right now she focused on listening to the band, deciding on
what songs she could ask them to play for Gramps. She hadn’t
had chance to talk to them yet, Ben had taken care of all that.

She clapped as they finished a number. Catching the lead singer’s
eye she smiled at him. He looked back at her a long time as they
started in to the next song. Uh-oh! Don’t need to be going
there. She jumped as Ben put a hand on her shoulder.

“You doing OK?”

“I am doing just fine.” She was aware that her speech
may, possibly, be a tiny bit slurred. “I’ll be better
when you bring me another.”

Ben shook his head, “I think you may have had enough
already.”

She put her arms around his neck and smiled at him sweetly. “I
promise I’ll be good and anyway, it will help me sleep. You
don’t want to have to listen to me crying all night do you?”

He pursed his lips then smiled, “One last small one and no
more.”

“Thank you, Ben. You’re such a good friend.”

He returned as the band were finishing their set and taking a
break. As he placed the whiskey in front of her, the lead singer came
over to join them.

“Hi, Ben. I haven’t been introduced to your
girlfriend.” He held out his hand to Emma. “I’m
Chase, nice to meet you.”

“This is Emma, and she’s not my girlfriend.”

“I don’t have a boyfriend!” declared Emma.

Ben looked at her and shook his head. “Don’t mind her,
she’s had a bad day.”

Chase looked from Ben to Emma, obviously trying to figure out what
was going on between the two of them. “Should I disappear?”

“No, sorry,” said Ben, “stay and have a drink
with us. Emma is one of my oldest friends.” She nodded solemnly
at Chase who smiled back at her. “And,” continued Ben,
“she may want to take note of the fact that the way you behave
with your close friends can sometimes look to other people like you
are a couple.”

“Yeah, sorry about that. I thought you were together.”

“Nope,” smiled Emma. “Ben is far too good for
me!”

Ben dug her in the ribs, “No more whiskey for you,” he
laughed.

“Hm, I may have had enough. Anyway,” she turned to
Chase, “we need to talk about what we’re going to do
tomorrow.”

He smiled and raised his eyebrows looking from her to Ben and
back, “You want to do something with me tomorrow?”

She nodded again and Ben laughed. “Emma here is responsible
for the other half of tomorrow’s party, though at the moment I
don’t think she’s responsible for anything at all!”

She smiled sweetly, “The only whiskey I drank was the
whiskey you gave me, Ben. Nothing else, nothing at all!” She
swayed slightly on her stool making the two guys laugh.

“Don’t mind her. This is not normally our Em. You
won’t believe the Emma you see tomorrow. This is a very rare
occasion. Like I say, she had a bad day.”

“The worst day,” said Emma, “but my old pal Ben
is getting me through it.” She slapped him on the back.

Chase laughed. “Well, I’d say your old pal Ben is a
true friend and a true gentleman.”

“Oh, he is. I’m so lucky to have to him.”

“I’d better get back to it. I’ll see you
tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow, Chase.”

As he got back on stage ready to start the next set, Chase watched
Ben persuade the curvy little blonde that it was time to leave. Ben
truly was a gentleman and she was lucky to have him around. She was
beautiful, and with that figure she turned quite a few heads as they
left. He’d bet Ben was one of a very small handful of guys
who’d make sure she got home safe and wouldn’t take
advantage. Would he be one himself if he got the chance? Watching her
cross the parking lot with Ben’s arm around her as she swayed,
he had to admit he’d be tempted – she was hot. As they
launched into the first song he realized he was looking forward to
tomorrow a whole lot more now. And hoping she’d still be as
much fun when she was sober.

Ben put an arm around Emma’s shoulders as he led her out of
the bar. She leaned against him as they crossed the parking lot back
to his apartment. Two of the guys from the marina were standing out
there smoking. As they passed them Emma smiled up at Ben blearily.

“Thank you, Ben. Thank you for letting me stay with you
tonight.”

One of the guys smiled at Ben, “You have yourself a good
night there, boss!” They both laughed.

“Oh, we are,” said Emma, “My Ben is so good to
me.”

“Come on,” said Ben, not wanting this to look any
worse than it already did. He led her up the stairs to his apartment.
Inside he deposited her on the bed in the guest room. “You need
anything, Mouse?”

“I’m fine,”

“You sleep it off, or your head won’t be fine in the
morning.”

“She was a stick insect. Ben. That’s what he likes!”

Ben shook his head. “We’ll talk about it tomorrow,
Mouse. Get some sleep.”

He didn’t need to tell her twice, she had already drifted
off.

Jack woke early as usual. He stretched across the bed, wishing
Emma was there to hold. He pulled her pillow towards him, breathing
in the faint scent of summer breeze that lingered from the night
she’d spent here with him. His longing for her grew under the
sheet as he remembered that night, and the chocolate and... Time for
a shower, a cold one at that! She’d be back soon, or at least
he hoped so. She hadn’t answered last night when he’d
called. He figured her meeting had run on as she’d feared. He’d
call her after his shower. She’d definitely be on the road by
then, if she wasn’t already. He couldn’t wait to see her;
today was a big day. A jolt of apprehension ran through him. What if
it was too soon? Would it be better to wait a while longer? No, he
didn’t want to wait. Couldn’t wait. The sooner he did
this the better. It was, after all, only the first step on a long
road still to travel.

He showered and made coffee then went outside to call her. Still
no reply. Surely she should be on the road by now. He went back into
the RV where Laura was up and fixing herself a coffee.

“Morning, Sweetie. Did you sleep OK?”

“Like a log, thanks. You?”

“Not too well. I guess I’m kind of nervous.”

“I can’t wait to meet her,” Laura smiled.
“Finally, the woman who can make you nervous, she must really
be something special.”

“Oh, she is. You’ll adore her.”

“It’s obvious you do. What time is she getting back?”

“I don’t know. She’s not picking up yet. Listen,
when you’re ready would you mind if I drop you off with Dan and
Missy? I’d kind of like to have her to myself for a little
while and I know today is going to get crazy with the party.”

“I was going to suggest it.”

While Laura got ready, Jack tried Emma’s cell again. This
time it didn’t even ring, just went straight to voice mail. He
decided to call Pete and see what time he was arriving. He didn’t
need to ask outright, but he was pretty sure Emma would come up in
the conversation. He smiled as he dialed. If he had to he’d
ask, but he’d rather avoid the ribbing if he could.

The drive was going much better than Holly had expected. She stole
a sideways glance at Pete. Emma hadn’t been kidding, he was
gorgeous. Tall and tan with dark blond hair, just a tiny touch of
gray at the temples. He had intense blue eyes and chiseled features,
a strong jaw and a tiny dimple on his chin that softened the overall
impression of a strong and powerful personality. His easy smile that
she’d already seen so often transformed what could be a
formidable persona into something much more friendly and reassuring.

He’d picked her up this morning and been the perfect
gentleman, carrying her bag, making sure she was all set before they
started out. He was one of those rare men who put you right at ease,
striking up easy conversation, making it comfortable to be around
him. She’d soon felt like they were old friends. If she weren’t
so worried about Emma, she’d be really enjoying this. She’d
been tempted a few times now to tell him about Emma’s
distraught call last night. She knew how much he cared about their
shared friend. But she’d promised Em she wouldn’t say
anything, so she kept quiet, but she wasn’t liking it one bit.