Afterward, she lay spent across his chest, feeling their hearts hammer in tempo. She drifted away as she felt his lips brush her forehead. The first real sleep she had had in days claimed her.
When Emma woke in the morning, Brant’s side of the bed was already cold and she knew without looking around the room that his suitcase was gone. On his pillow, written on a scrap piece of paper that he had obviously found in the room, was a note: “Flying back with Mark and the others this morning. Don’t want to leave, but giving you the time you need. I’ll be waiting, baby. Love, B.” For the first time since the nightmare had begun, she cried herself dry, to a point where there were no tears left. She didn’t try to make herself stop or put a time limit on her grief; she cried until it wasn’t possible to cry anymore.
Chapter Twenty-five
Brant was hardly surprised to see the crew from Danvers along with Mark and Ava at the airport. Of course Mark would have offered them a ride back to Myrtle Beach on his plane. He was hardly in the mood to socialize after leaving Emma behind, but maybe it was for the best. Less time to brood could only be a good thing.
Everyone kept the conversation light as they were cleared for takeoff. When the plane reached its cruising altitude, the flight attendant Mark had hired for the return trip took drink orders. Mark ordered a scotch and soda and Brant requested the same. It was still early, but damn, he needed a drink. Suzy looked at him sympathetically before dropping her hand briefly over his. “She’ll be home soon.” He stared at her for a moment, seeing not the beautiful and intimidating woman before him but, surprisingly, an ally.
He looked around, thankful that no one seemed to be paying any attention to their conversation. “Do you think so?” he asked, needing some reassurance.
Suzy studied him for a moment. “Yeah, I do. Whatever else is happening or has happened between you two, you were meant to be together from the moment you met.” In typical Suzy fashion, she added, “You two generated enough sparks together to singe my damn eyebrows off.”
He chuckled, surprising both himself and Suzy. “Thank you.” He smiled. “You have no idea how much I needed that.”
“Oh, I think I do,” she replied, “and you’re welcome.” Brant looked away as Gray claimed his wife’s attention. Jason and Claire sat beside them. Jason idly twirled a lock of his wife’s hair as if he needed to stay connected while he discussed business with Declan. Ella was curled against her husband, who kept a protective arm around her while she slept against his shoulder.
Brant was glad to see his brother so at peace after years of searching for something that never seemed to be there. Looking at Ella, Brant thought he finally understood what Declan had been so desperate to find . . . it was her. When at last Brant’s gaze landed on Mark and Ava, he was more puzzled than angry. Hell no, he didn’t want Mark involved with his sister, but that wasn’t the vibe he was getting from them. In a weird way, it looked more like some kind of friendship than anything romantic or, God forbid, sexual. It was a strange concept to think of Mark having a straight friendship with someone as attractive as Ava.
Brant was relieved when Jason drew him into a discussion of a new customer and forced his mind away from Emma and onto business. Maybe it was obvious to the other man that he needed a break from all the thoughts racing through his head.
Emma fixed herself a cup of coffee, taking a much-needed sip before walking through the open double doors and onto the deck. The day so far was unusually mild for Florida. Her mother was already sitting on a patio chair and Emma took the one next to her. They sat in companionable silence for a few moments, sipping their coffee and watching the waves break in the ocean. Emma suspected that they were both imagining Robyn riding the waves and throwing up a hand in greeting when she spotted them watching her. Sadly, the memory of it was all they had now. Her mother was the first to break the silence. “I heard Brant leave this morning. Did he have to get back home?”
“Yeah. He was catching a flight with the others from Danvers.”
“I see.” Her mother took another drink of coffee. “Why didn’t you go back with him?”
Surprised, Emma said, “Why would I do that? I couldn’t just leave you guys to handle everything. Jason told me to take all the time I needed.” Emma almost cringed, knowing she sounded defensive.
Showing some of her former spark, her mother turned to her with a knowing expression on her face. “Honey, I’m not blind. You looked like someone had kicked your cat when Brant showed up here. Now, I’m thinking that someone in a relationship wouldn’t be surprised if the other person came in those circumstances. Are you and Brant having problems?”
Emma sighed. She was just too damn tired to continue the charade. If nothing else, she was sure that she could distract her mother for a while with her straight-out-of-a-book tale of blackmail, lust, mixed signals and finally love, so she confessed everything . . . well, some things in less detail than others, but she gave her the gist of what had been going on.
Sometime later, her mother flopped back against her chair, saying, “Wow, you could have just answered with ‘It’s complicated.’”
Emma started laughing. “Are you kidding, it was worth the embarrassment just to see your mouth hanging open. Admit it, Mom, you didn’t think I had it in me.”
“Honey, I knew you had it in you; after all, you have my blood in your veins. I just wondered when you would realize it. One thing you didn’t say, though, during your story. Do you love Brant?”
Without hesitation, Emma said, “Yes. No matter how much he drives me crazy at times, I absolutely love him. I think I have from the moment he gave me his first disapproving frown. He had no idea that those frowns turned into the highlight of my day.”
“Well then, I repeat, why are you still here?”
Emma took her mother’s hand. “He hurt me and I need some time to come to terms with that. And more important, I would never leave you here to go through Robyn’s apartment and her things alone. I love Brant, but my family comes first right now. He’ll wait for me, Mom. If I know nothing else, I know that.”
Chapter Twenty-six
In the end, it was eighteen days later when Emma returned home to Myrtle Beach. Suzy had agreed to pick her up at the airport. She hadn’t told Brant that she was coming home; she wanted to surprise him. True to his word, he had stepped back and given her the time she needed. If it hadn’t been for her friends letting her know that, other than working twelve-hour days, he was fine, she probably would have broken down and called him much sooner. She knew it was silly, but she just couldn’t risk having long telephone conversations with him again and then coming home to find a completely different Brant. She was still traumatized from the pain of receiving the cold shoulder from him before Robyn’s accident.
She spotted Suzy immediately in the airport arrivals area. There was no way to miss the striking redhead with the impossibly high heels. Emma was thrilled to see her friend looking so happy and healthy. Suzy had told her on the phone that they were planning to adopt and that they had taken their first step in the process this week: a home study. Emma was confident that the agency would see that Suzy and Gray would be wonderful parents. She had little doubt that her tough-talking friend would melt when she held her child in her arms for the first time. They threw their arms around each other, hugging like it had been months instead of a couple of weeks. Suzy pulled back, looking at her. “Babe, it’s so good to have you back. We’ve all missed you.”
Emma felt her eyes tearing. She was so appreciative to have such a close group of friends. She hadn’t really had that since college. “I missed you guys, too. How is everyone doing?” As they made their way to baggage claim and then out to the parking area, Suzy gave her a rundown.
“Well, Ells, bless her heart, looks bigger every time I see her. Don’t you dare tell her I said that, though, because I don’t want her to start crying. She’s got the most adorable waddle now.” Emma thought it spoke volumes about Suzy that she could mention Ella’s
pregnancy so easily.
“Beth and Nick are fighting with Hermie over his pacifier. Between you and me, I’d say the kid will still be using it when he’s eighteen. There is no way they are going to lose sleep every night; they’ll keep giving in. Jason and Claire are actually going on a solo vacation next week, if you can believe it. This will be the first since Chrissy was born. I took Claire to Victoria’s Secret yesterday and let me just say . . . Jason is gonna be a happy man when he gets back.”
When Emma struggled to contain her laughter, Suzy said, “I also talked to Ava about what we discussed and she is on board so we’re all set.”
“Oh Suzy, thank you! I can’t believe how the timing worked out.”
When Suzy stopped at a red light, she turned to study Emma. “Are you really sure you want to do this? It’s going to be an adjustment for you.”
“I know,” Emma admitted, “and I’m not thrilled about it, but it’s the right thing to do . . . the only thing really. Is he at the office?”
Suzy nodded. “Yep, I checked on my way out. As far as Gray knows, he doesn’t have any meetings planned off-site today so you should be good to go. I don’t suppose I could listen at the door, could I?”
“Sure,” Emma agreed, “as long as I can listen at your door the next time Gray visits you.”
“Well, hell, you could have just said no. I’m trying to be good anyway. I don’t think voyeurism would look good on our adoption application, so you’re safe.”
Emma felt her palms start to sweat as they pulled into the circular drive in front of the Danvers headquarters. Alarmed, she turned to Suzy. “What are you doing?”
“I’m being a good friend and letting you out at the door. You’ll just torture yourself all the way through the parking lot otherwise.”
“But . . . what about my luggage?”
“We’ll deal with it later.” Flashing her a grin, Suzy added, “Now get out of my car.”
Emma reluctantly opened the door and stepped out. She stood near the front door uncertainly for a few moments before blowing out a long breath. Oh good grief, what the hell is wrong with me? Get it together, Emma! Throwing her shoulders back, she charged forward, not giving herself time to think. In record time, she was standing in front of her office door. She opened it quietly and was relieved to see Brant’s office door closed. When she heard his deep voice, her resolve wavered and she wanted nothing more than to launch herself into his arms. Yeah, like that worked out so well last time.
She kept an eye on the blinking light of the phone line he was using and eased into her chair in front of the computer. She quickly found the form that she was looking for and filled it out. The printer sounded like a wrecking ball as it spit the paper out. A quick look showed her that he was still on the phone. As she stood holding the form uncertainly, she heard him moving around his office and saw that the call had ended. Shit, shit! Everyone always said if you were nervous, imagine the other person naked . . . Oh yeah, that would really help. The decision was taken out of her hands when Brant’s door suddenly flew open and he walked out with his head bent. He was an inch from plowing her down before he looked up.
The look on his handsome face was almost comical. If she had any doubts that he knew she was coming home today, they were extinguished now. His mouth opened and closed and even more surprising, Brant Stone started stuttering when he tried to speak. “Em . . . you . . . I didn’t . . . when . . . ?”
She looked into the face of the man she loved and her fingers twitched with the urge to touch him. He looked so tired, but God, he was beautiful. When he started to reach for her, she put the paper she had just printed into his outstretched hands and stepped back. Puzzled, he looked at her, then at the paper. “Are you kidding me? Em . . . I waited, I’ve been waiting . . . I thought you understood. I thought you could forgive me. Baby, I lo—”
Once again, she put her hand over his mouth to stop his declaration. “Brant, this is the last transfer request I will ever submit to you. You’ve turned me down time and again. My reason is completely valid and if you won’t sign the form this time, I’ll have to find another job.”
He ran an agitated hand through his hair. “Em, please don’t do this. We’ll go talk to Alexia together; she’ll tell you that nothing happened between us.” By this time, he was waving the form frantically, not bothering to finish reading it.
“Brant . . .” He continued to talk, forcing her to raise her voice. “BRANT!” God, she really hoped the offices had good soundproofing. When he stopped to gape at her in midsentence she said, “Read the damn form . . . please.” He gave her a perplexed look, no doubt thinking she was trying to torture him, but obligingly held the paper up and started scanning it. She saw the exact moment when he got to her reasons for transferring.
“You’re requesting a transfer because you’re ‘in love with your pigheaded boss’ and can’t imagine being able to keep your hands off him during business hours. You are requesting a move to Ava Stone’s office and also requesting ‘someone really old’ to replace you in Mr. Stone’s office.”
She couldn’t keep the grin off her face as he looked at her, his shock finally giving way to a look of utter happiness. “You’re going to drive me crazy,” he sighed happily.
“Always,” she answered.
“Could I please tell you that I love you now without you putting your hand over my mouth?” Brant joked happily.
“Well, I think you just did, but go ahead.”
Brant pulled her into his arms, kissing her until she was gasping for breath before pulling back. “I love you, Emma Davis. I even love your smart little mouth.”
Giving him a wicked look, she murmured, “Oh, I think you will find all manner of things that you love about my mouth . . . starting as soon as we get out of here. How long until you can leave?”
Brant gave her another kiss, resting his hand on her ass. “Fuck it. I’ve worked damn near around the clock for weeks. I think they can manage without me for an afternoon.” Emma giggled, pulling his hand away from her butt before they walked out into the hall.
As the doors of the empty elevator closed behind them, Brant leaned against her, running his lips down her neck. “You and Ava working together? Baby, you just jumped from the frying pan into the fire.”
Much later that night she would remember those words and wonder what she had gotten herself into. But first they were lucky enough to make it to Brant’s house without being arrested, and nothing else mattered beyond the man worshipping her with his eyes and his body.
The grief of losing Robyn so suddenly was still there—the pain still felt raw and probably would for a long time to come—but with Brant in her life, she finally had someone to share both the good and the bad moments. She suspected that he was right. Every passing day would get a little easier and, with him by her side, one day she would be able to look back with him happily on the times she had shared with her sister. Robyn would have wanted it that way.
Epilogue
Emma turned into the driveway of the house that she shared with Brant. They had decided to move in together almost immediately and, since he lived on the beach, it hadn’t been a tough decision for her. She parked beside the sports car that he let her drive on rare occasions. She usually got a charge out of him sitting in it beside her, gritting his teeth and trying to act like he trusted her with his baby. Men and their toys.
The last three months with Brant had been close to paradise. The verbal sparring was still there, which made the sex afterward only that much more amazing. Her uptight man had no reservations between the sheets . . . at all. He had even managed to shock her a few times. If variety was the spice of life, then things would never be boring with Brant Stone.
Emma looked around when she opened the door, not seeing Brant in the living room. As she always did, she started talking to him because inevitably he came out and picked up the conversation. He seemed to hear her no matter where he was in the house. “Hey, baby. I’m sorry I’m so l
ate getting home, but your demon sister was out of her mind today. I bet you were laughing your ass off when you signed that transfer to her office. If Mac doesn’t break up with his girlfriend soon, I’m going to have to find another job.”
When Brant still hadn’t appeared, she walked toward the bedroom, stopping in surprise at the closed door. What was he doing in there? She flung the door open and stood in the doorway gaping. Holy shit. “What’re you . . . Oh wow, Mr. December,” she exclaimed. Lying on the bed, in re-creation of his Mr. December pose complete with Santa hat and boughs of holly, was the man she adored. When he swiveled his hips, she noticed that something sparkled on his . . . yule log, and she started laughing.
“Um . . . baby, you’re going to have to cut out the laughing or the ring is going to lose its suspension. Thanks to you being late getting home, it’s been a . . . challenge to keep it up there for so long.”
“Oh my God,” Emma gasped out as she dropped down on the bed beside him. “If this is what I think it is, then it’s the most original proposal . . . ever!” Brant looked at her, the grin slipping from his face. Suddenly, he jumped from the bed, untying the ribbon from his . . . yule log and catching the ring as it fell. Emma stared at him in shock as he jerked on some clothing and grabbed her hand. Her head was spinning as he pulled her from the house and to the beach. When he dropped to one knee in front of her, she looked at him in shock.
“Em, baby, I love you. I just . . . had a flash of what we would tell our kids one day when they wanted to know how Daddy proposed to Mommy and I couldn’t do it.” He took her hand in his, clearing his throat. “Emma, from the moment you first walked through the door at the office, my life has never been the same. You’ve shown me that not everything has to be taken so seriously. I can’t imagine a future without you in it. Will you marry me and save me from a future of . . . well, being myself?”