A smile tugged at the corner of Emma’s mouth. “What about you, Dylan? What would you like?”
He reached for Jack’s hand. “I’ll have the same ice cream as Jack.”
Jack gently squeezed Dylan’s hand. It was hard not to feel a small sense of satisfaction when Mark was standing beside him. “Choose a flavor you like.”
“I like them all,” he whispered.
“You should ask for a little bit of everything,” Molly said. “It would be like a rainbow ice cream.”
Mark picked up the ball. “I know which flavor your mom will choose.”
“Orange chocolate chip,” Molly said.
Mark shook his head.
“Strawberry,” Dylan guessed.
Another shake of Mark’s head had everyone looking at Emma.
“Your mom’s favorite ice cream is lemon and lime,” Mark said. “Am I right?”
Emma smiled. “You remembered.”
“I hope so. I don’t think we bought any chocolate ice cream for the entire time we were married.”
Emma made a scoffing sound. “You’re exaggerating.”
Molly looked up at her mom. “What does that mean?”
“It means your dad is pretending we didn’t buy chocolate ice cream. He ate plenty of his favorite flavor.”
Dylan’s hand swung in Jack’s as they walked across the grass. “What’s your favorite ice cream, Jack?”
“I like all flavors of ice cream.”
“Like me,” Molly said with a grin.
“Just like you.” And just like Dylan, he planned on getting every ice cream flavor the store sold.
He had a feeling he’d need all the comfort food he could lay his hands on tonight.
“You’re being oversensitive,” Noah said. “Emma and Mark were married for a long time.”
Jack ran his hands through his hair and stared at the night sky. After he’d left the ice cream shop, Jack had come to see his brother. “I’m worried it’s more than that. Emma is comfortable around him. She laughs at Mark’s corny jokes and doesn’t seem worried that he’s here.”
“What did you expect? She wants to give Molly and Dylan a stable home. If she ignores Mark or doesn’t include him in what they’re doing, the twins will be the ones who will suffer.”
His brother was making perfect sense, but that didn’t stop a gnawing fear from growing inside Jack. He could feel his relationship with Emma slipping away and he didn’t know what to do. “I knew any relationship with Emma would have to include the twins. But now that Mark is back, I feel like I’m stuck in a three-way tug of war.”
“He’s only just come back into their lives. In a few months, everything could be different.”
“I saw the way Mark was looking at Emma. It didn’t look as though he wanted to be friends.”
Noah’s eyebrows rose. “Are you sure you’re not seeing things that aren’t there?”
“I wish I were.”
“Have you talked to Emma about how you feel?”
Jack shook his head. “Between the new case I’m working on and Mark’s arrival, we haven’t had a lot of time on our own.”
“Talk to her. She’s probably feeling just as unsure about everything as you are. It can’t be easy welcoming her ex-husband back into her children’s lives, especially when she knows how important he is to them.”
Jack’s hand trembled as he picked up his cup of coffee. “I think I’m losing her.”
Noah sighed. “From what I’ve seen, Emma adores you. If her feelings for you have changed, she would have told you.”
“Maybe.” Jack leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. Even at ten o’clock at night, it was warm enough to be sitting outside in shorts and a T-shirt. Usually, the quiet evenings were like a cooling balm on his emotions. It didn’t matter what happened during the day, everything seemed less stressful. But not this time.
Mark wouldn’t be going away in a hurry. The twins had the rest of their lives to get to know their father, to grow a relationship that had all but disappeared. All Jack could do was support the twins and make sure Emma knew how much he cared about her.
“I know you’re not going to like what I say next, but I have to say it. If your relationship with Emma continues, Mark will always be part of your life. You need to work through your differences with Mark. Otherwise, no one will be happy.”
“What if he doesn’t want to meet me halfway?”
“Then you’ve got a decision to make. And believe me, I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes.”
Jack dropped his chin to his chest. He loved Emma more than anyone he’d ever met. He just hoped she felt the same way about him.
Chapter 17
Emma was working on a client’s website when her back door burst open.
“Drop what you’re doing and come with me.” Kylie’s cheeks were flushed and she was almost breathless.
If Emma didn’t know better, she’d swear her friend had run from Main Street to her cottage. “Why aren’t you at work?”
“Mabel came in to buy some flowers. When she saw what had happened, she offered to look after the store for a couple of hours.”
Closing the lid of her laptop, Emma studied the excitement on her friend’s face. After a sleepless night, it was good to spend time with someone who was happy. “It must be important for you to leave the flower shop.”
“It is. Do you remember the Christmas wish someone made for a new bicycle?”
Emma vaguely remembered talking about it with Kylie and Bailey. “Was it the bicycle that would replace the one that had been stolen?”
“That’s it. The little boy included photos of what his dream bicycle would look like.”
An image of a black frame with red stars shooting along the side made Emma smile. “I remember the wish. Did the police find his bicycle?”
“Not quite. Come outside. I’ve got something to show you.” Kylie grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the back door. “It’s not just our community that wants to make people’s Christmas wishes come true. A police officer in Great Falls saw the post about the bicycle. When he was young, the same thing happened to him. He knows how the little boy is feeling. And this is what he did about it.” Kylie opened the tailgate of her truck.
Emma peered inside. Pushed to the back was a shiny, black bicycle. “He donated a bicycle?”
“It’s not just any old one, either. It matches the bicycle Toby wanted. I called his parents and they called his elementary school. If we’re quick, we can visit Toby’s classroom and give it to him before the last bell rings.”
“How did you find him?”
Kylie shrugged. “I hunted through all the Facebook messages. Toby used his mom’s account to tell us his Christmas wish. It only took a few minutes to send her a message. As soon as she saw it, she called me.”
“What would have happened to the bicycle if you hadn’t found Toby?”
“The police officer was happy for us to donate it to someone else. So, what do you think?”
Emma checked her watch. “I think we should make Toby happy. But I need to be outside Molly and Dylan’s classroom by three o’clock.”
“Consider it done. Let’s go and make another early Christmas wish come true.”
With less of a heavy heart than before Kylie arrived, Emma rushed back to the house to lock the front door.
Even though she was going through a rocky patch, Emma would gladly make someone else’s life a whole lot better. And a brand-new bicycle was guaranteed to make everyone smile.
After they’d visited Toby and given him his new bicycle, Emma collected Molly and Dylan from their classroom.
Kylie had offered to drive them home, but it was such a lovely day that Emma didn’t want to waste another minute inside.
“Has Dad gone back to Colorado?” Molly asked.
Emma nodded. “He left Sapphire Bay a few hours ago. Did you enjoy seeing him?”
“It was fun. Can we have a picnic tonight? We could
ask Jack if he wants to come.”
She wasn’t sure that was a good idea. Emma thought Jack and Mark would learn to like each other. But it didn’t look as though that was happening.
Last night, while they were at the ice cream shop, Jack had been very quiet. When they left, he decided to go home instead of coming back to Emma’s cottage for coffee. At this stage, she didn’t know whether he would ever return.
“Jack’s really busy with work at the moment. He might want to have dinner with us another night.”
“What about tomorrow?” Dylan asked.
Emma sighed. “I’ll give him a call and see if he can come.”
“Okay. Do you want to know what happened at school today?”
Molly stuck her hands over her ears. “Don’t say it. It was scary.”
“Spiders aren’t scary.”
Emma looked at the twins. “What happened to the spider?”
“It got out of its cage,” Dylan said. “It didn’t bite anyone, but all the girls were screaming.”
“That’s because it’s big and hairy,” Molly said with a shudder. “I was worried it would land in my hair.”
Dylan frowned. “Spiders don’t like people’s hair. They can’t eat it and they don’t sleep in it.”
“I don’t ever want a spider in my hair, ’cos they have big legs.” Molly held her red curly hair in one hand and kept her gaze fixed on the shrubs they were passing.
Dylan glanced at his sister. “Spiders are clever. They make sticky webs to catch their food. I could show you one by the woodshed if you want to see it.”
Molly shuddered. “I want to go to The Welcome Center. Mr. Jessop is reading some stories about Peter Rabbit. Can we go there, Mommy?”
Emma thought about the work waiting for her at home. “I don’t know if we can go to story time this week. I have a lot of work to do.”
“You could talk to Pastor John while we listen to Mr. Jessop. Please. It’s only for a little while.”
Emma looked into Molly’s big blue eyes. She wanted to speak to John, anyway, so maybe it could work. “What about you, Dylan. Would you like to listen to Mr. Jessop read stories?”
“Yes, please. Mr. Jessop said he’s bringing some carrots and beans with him. We’re going to eat all the things Peter Rabbit likes to eat.”
Molly grinned. “It’s going to be awesome.”
There was no way Emma could say no to something that was awesome. “In that case, let’s go to The Welcome Center.”
“Yeah! We can tell all our friends where we went,” Molly said to her brother. “They might want to come next week.”
Dylan looked at Emma. “Will Jack be there?”
Her heart sank. “I don’t think so. He’s probably at Acorn Cottage, doing some work.”
“Oh.”
Dylan’s disappointment made her feel even worse. She’d been so worried about how the twins would react to Mark going home, that she’d forgotten how important Jack had become in their lives.
And if she didn’t talk to Jack soon, the twins might see even less of him.
While the twins were listening to Mr. Jessop, Emma knocked on John’s office door. “Can I interrupt you for a few minutes?”
“Of course you can. I was just going through the project plan for our Christmas program. You’re doing a great job of keeping everything on track.”
“Kylie and Bailey have been fantastic, too. I’ve still got a few doubts about the train ride, but we’re working on it.”
“If you need another pair of hands, I can help.”
Emma knew John had very little spare time. Between The Welcome Center, the tiny home village, and the fundraising activities he was organizing, he had even less spare time than she did. “We should be okay. Can I talk to you about Mabel’s book?”
“Sure.”
“I’ve organized a surprise book launch for her. I reserved the church’s middle meeting room, but a lot more people than I expected want to come. Could we use part of the old steamboat museum for the launch?”
John turned to his computer. “Let me check the meeting rooms at the church, first. I might be able to move a few events around. When is the book launch?”
“Next week on the eighteenth.” Emma bit her bottom lip. She’d almost left it too late to make any changes. Hopefully, John could pull a rabbit out of his magician’s hat and find a solution to her problem.
After studying the screen for a few minutes, he smiled. “If you’re happy to have the book launch at five o’clock, we could squeeze it in between two other events in the big meeting room. The room would have to be empty by seven o’clock, though.”
“That’s perfect. Are you sure it won’t cause a problem for anyone else?”
“Leave it with me. The group that had booked the room will be happy to move to a smaller area. How is everything else?”
Emma gripped her bag. Somehow, John knew when she was upset. But if she told him about Mark and Jack she might burst into tears. And that’s the last thing she wanted to do. “Everything’s going well. I’ve updated the Christmas program budget, Dylan and Molly have settled into school, and I have a lot of new clients.”
“You’ve worked hard to create a successful business. On top of that, I don’t know what the church would do without you. But that wasn’t what I meant.”
Emma sat on the edge of a chair. “You’re talking about Jack.”
John nodded. “I saw him at the steamboat museum this morning. He was a lot quieter than usual.”
“My ex-husband arrived unexpectedly the other day.” Emma took a deep breath. She didn’t want to go into any details with John. That wouldn’t be fair on Jack or her. “Starting a new relationship is a lot more complicated than Jack or I thought it would be.”
“You’ve had a lot of change in your life over the last few months. Don’t be too hard on yourself.”
That in itself was almost enough to make Emma cry. “I’ll remember that at three o’clock in the morning when nothing is making sense. I’d better go. Dylan and Molly are listening to this week’s story time.”
John smiled. “I saw the basket of vegetables Gordon took into the room. It looked as though it would be an exciting story.”
“Peter Rabbit is a good choice. I’ll see you in a few days.”
“I’ll look forward to it.”
Emma waited until she was in the corridor before taking a deep, shaky breath. If she couldn’t tell John how she was feeling without crying, how would she talk to Jack? And if Jack was as upset as John thought, any discussion between them would be even more difficult.
After her marriage fell apart, she’d promised herself she would be extra careful if she ever fell in love again.
But she hadn’t counted on meeting Jack.
After Emma left John’s office, she saw Kylie in The Welcome Center’s kitchen. “Hi. Something smells good.”
Her friend turned and smiled. “I’m baking some cookies for the guests.” Kylie’s eyes narrowed. “You look worried. What’s wrong?”
“Telling you won’t help.”
“It might. A problem shared is a problem halved, or something like that. Is there an issue with one of the Christmas events?”
Emma shook her head.
“Molly and Dylan are with Mr. Jessop, so they must be all right. If something had happened to your business, you would tell me. That only leaves two possibilities and they both love you.”
“Mark doesn’t love me. He loves the person I used to be.”
“That’s not what I saw. From the very first time he came to Sapphire Bay, he had a crush on you.”
“I told him I don’t want any type of relationship with him apart from friendship.”
“And you think he’ll listen?”
“Why wouldn’t he?”
“He’s a man.” Kylie took a batch of cookies out of the oven.
Emma didn’t know what that had to do with anything. Besides, Mark was the least of her worries. “I need to speak
to Jack. I think something’s wrong.”
“And that takes us straight back to problem number one.”
“Mark?” Emma rushed across the kitchen and moved a bowl away from where Kylie wanted to place the hot cookie sheet.
“Thanks. Jack must be feeling a little insecure. He’d only just realized he’d fallen in love with you when your ex-husband arrived and wanted to play happy families. And to make matters worse, Jack’s the person who found him.”
“I can’t ignore Mark. He’s the father of my children.”
“But you can make sure he sticks to the rules of your agreement.”
“It wouldn’t have helped that he stayed with us.”
“Probably not.”
Emma sighed. She’d really made a mess of everything. “I need to talk to Jack.”
“You do. And fortunately for you, I have the rest of the day available to babysit.”
“Are you sure?”
Kylie hugged Emma. “My only condition is that you don’t ask me to be your bridesmaid. I refuse to walk down an aisle wearing another frilly, pink dress.”
“What if I choose a sleek, sexy, midnight blue sheath that shows off your curves to perfection?”
“Then I might consider it. Good luck.”
“Why do I think I’m going to need it?”
“Because you’re as human as the rest of us. Loving someone means being vulnerable and that’s something no one wants to feel.”
Before Emma cried, she picked up her bag and gave her friend another hug. “I’ll call you when I’m on my way home.”
“Don’t rush. I’ll take Molly and Dylan home with me and give them dinner.”
“Thank you.” And before she ran out of courage, Emma walked out of The Welcome Center and into the rest of her life.
Chapter 18
Emma opened her truck door and looked at the pretty cottage overlooking Flathead Lake. Named after the large oak tree growing beside the veranda, Acorn Cottage was one of the loveliest bed and breakfast accommodation options in Sapphire Bay.
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