Emma's Secret

by A. P. Jensen

  Emma’s rosebud mouth tightened. “I want more and Peter can’t offer that. We’ve been together a year and not once has either of us tried to push for more. He’s in the city most of the time and when he remembers me,” she said with a bitter smile, “he stays for the weekend and it’s great, but…” Emma shook her head. “I want a guy like Tommy that adores me.”

  “Peter cares for you, Emma.”

  Anna felt compelled to defend Peter because she’d seen the way he watched Emma. Even Tommy, who tried to dissuade Peter at Anna’s behest, admitted he’d never seen Peter focus on any woman the way he had with Emma. The few times Peter and Emma attended a party, the chemistry between them was undeniable. Unlike her and Tommy who were opposites, Emma and Peter were so alike, they just melded together. The only thing they truly differed in was style. Peter was modern and high end while Emma preferred homemade simplicity. Anna didn’t understand their relationship, but Emma hadn’t made a single complaint until now.

  “Peter cares, but I need more than that. We’re just bed buddies. I love him.” Emma’s eyes were so sad, Anna looked away. “But, that isn’t enough, is it?”

  Anna winced. “You love him?”

  Emma smiled wanly. “I’m an idiot. He has heartbreaker written all over him.”

  “You’re not an idiot. He is. Are you sure you want to end it? This is a hard time of year for you.”

  Emma ignored Anna’s reference to the other anniversary she was trying desperately not to remember. “Anna, I felt like a fool. I dressed up in sexy lingerie for a man who never showed. How pathetic is that? I’m an afterthought to him. I know he’s busy, but damn, I’m a person! I can’t keep doing this. I want someone who has me somewhere in the top three on their priority list. I don’t think I’m even in his top ten.”

  Anna nodded thoughtfully, but didn’t comment.

  Emma ran her hands through her hair. “Sometimes I think he loves me- as if he’s on the brink of asking for more, but then he shuts down and goes back to the city and shows up again a month later. What am I supposed to think?”

  “Wait until I talk to Tommy,” Anna muttered.

  “This has nothing to do with Tommy,” Emma argued. “This is between Peter and I. I have emotions, needs…” Her voice wavered and she had to stop to compose herself. “I’m human and I want a man who will hold me even when I don’t ask. I need a man who will stand by me. Ben walked away when I needed him most. It gutted me.” Emma tilted her chin up. “I can’t stay with a guy who doesn’t need anyone. I want a real relationship.”

  “I hear you, sister,” Anna said, shaking her head.

  “I called Peter a couple times and it went straight to voicemail. I doubt if he has any inkling about our anniversary. I want someone that cares about that, you know?”

  “What was his excuse?” Anna demanded angrily.

  “I didn’t leave a message. I doubt he even remembers we had a date last night.” Emma waved a shaking hand. “It doesn’t matter. I want space right now anyway.”

  “You deserve a great guy,” Anna said. “But I don’t think Peter’s going to take this as easy as you think.”

  “He only remembers me when he wants sex. He’ll move onto someone else, if he hasn’t already.”

  Anna watched as Emma shut down emotionally and turned back to her computer. Emma’s long black hair was mussed and her normally sparkling blue eyes were dull. Anna had been counting on Peter to pull Emma through this time of year, the bastard. Anna cocked her head to the side, considering. Emma was a private person and Peter probably had no idea about the details of Emma’s parent’s death, but that didn’t excuse him for breaking his promise. Anna didn’t know what to say to comfort her friend and silently damned Peter Logan for hurting her.

  The office building was filled to capacity with chattering employees and the smell of strong coffee. Peter still wore the same suit from the party the night before. He was exhausted, but grimly satisfied with the progress he made on the portfolio he was building for the new client.

  “There’s a man named Tommy on the phone for you, sir,” Pat said over the intercom.

  Peter frowned. “Put it through.” When he heard his friend on the phone he said, “Why aren’t you calling me on my cell?”

  “Your cell is off, jackass,” Tommy replied.

  Peter looked around the office, wondering where he left it. “I must have put it down somewhere and the battery died.”

  “Anyway, the only reason I’m calling is because you’re in trouble,” Tommy continued.

  Peter stopped rummaging through the papers on his desk. “What?”

  “Anna yelled at me for introducing you to Emma.”

  Peter tensed. He knew Anna was overprotective of Emma. Anna stepped into the role usually reserved for a mother and pulled Peter aside to have a talk with him when he started dating her best friend. He couldn’t help feeling a chill of alarm ripple down his spine. Anna wasn’t to be trifled with.

  “Why? What happened?”

  “Apparently, it’s what didn’t happen. What I deduced from her yelling is you missed something huge.”

  The feeling that he’d forgotten something returned full blast. He leaned against the window and looked down at the busy street below. “Damn, I was supposed to meet Emma at her house last night.”

  “I’d give her a few days,” Tommy advised. “How many times have you done this?” When Peter didn’t answer, Tommy clucked his tongue. “I don’t know why Emma stays with you. Anna would divorce me.”

  “She understands how busy I am,” Peter said, but he didn’t like the way his gut clenched.

  On a night when he could have been with her, he drank champagne with faceless people and spent all night staring at a computer instead. Missing this date was bad, but not horrible. He would make it up to her.

  “Women understand up to a certain point. From what Anna says, it seems like you’re close to your quota with Emma,” Tommy said.

  Peter rubbed his eyes. “Emma isn’t Anna, thank God.”

  “They’re best friends. They have more in common than you think.”

  “Thanks for the head’s up. I’ll call her.”

  He hung up with Tommy and finally spotted his cell on the floor. It was off. He picked it up and hit Emma’s number on speed dial. Her phone went straight to voicemail.

  “Hey Emma, I’m sorry about last night. I’ll make it up to you. Call me back,” he said and hung up.

  He tried to get back to work, but he couldn’t concentrate. Emma’s cell was always on and she usually called him back within the hour. He couldn’t shake the feeling that he was missing something. Three hours went by and after five more calls, he rang the bakery and was told by a giggly clerk that Emma wasn’t there. He crammed a briefcase with papers, transferred files to his laptop and headed out of the office.

  He crossed the street, jumped into his BMW and gunned the engine as he headed out of Seattle. Emma was obviously angry. He hadn’t seen her in over a month and despite the fact that she was ignoring him, he felt his heart lift at the thought of seeing her. His phone rang twenty minutes into the drive and he glanced at it, hoping it was Emma. It wasn’t.

  “Where the hell are you?” Derek shouted.

  “I’m going to Bellingham. I need to sort out something with Emma.”

  “I need you here! We have work to do!” Derek snapped.

  Peter kept a hold on his temper, barely. “I sorted out the biggest details. I have my laptop and I’ll be working while I’m there.”

  “What’s wrong with you? You belong here in the city with me, our business and all these fine women,” Derek ranted.

  “I need to see Emma.”

  “Baker chick is messing up your game.”

  “She’s not messing up anything. You’re lucky I have her or we’d be in a boxing ring right now.”

  Derek snorted. “Fine. You like her or whatever. I have a great idea. Why don’t you bring her to the city so you don’t have to leave?�
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  “If you have to reach me, email me.”

  “I don’t know what’s with you. First Tommy gets married and moves to Bellingham and now you’re visiting once a month for the baker chick. What’s the world coming to?”

  Peter hung up and relaxed into the luxurious leather seat. He was exhausted. All he wanted to do was crawl into bed beside Emma and sleep for a week. He didn’t want to think anymore. He just wanted rest and Emma. He parked in her driveway and grabbed the spare key beneath a ceramic frog in a flowerpot. He unlocked the door and called her name. He glanced at his watch. Two thirty. He would wait for her. He glanced into the living room and frowned. Something looked different, but damned if he could put his finger on it. He walked into the kitchen to see if Emma had beer. He opened the fridge and froze with his hand outstretched when he saw the plate of cheesecake. The chocolate writing on the edge of the plate was smeared, but still legible.

  “Shit,” he said and thumped his head on the fridge.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Emma blinked at the computer screen, stretched and left the office. She walked to the front of the bakery where bursts of laughter distracted her from dark thoughts. She pushed through the double doors and came out behind the counter where several employees chatted with regulars while boxing up pastries and cakes. She smiled when several locals called out to her, but her eyes rounded with joy when she saw a familiar face enter the bakery.

  “Georgina!”

  Emma embraced Georgina who was dressed in a stylish white pantsuit. Georgina hugged her fiercely and reached out with a blind hand for the man standing off to the side.

  “Emma, this is my fiancé, Leo. Leo, this is one of my bridesmaids and best friends from high school, Emma.”

  Emma beamed at him. “Nice to meet you.”

  “I warned you about Emma,” Georgina said to her fiancé who nodded.

  “Warned him?” Emma repeated, bewildered.

  “I told him you used to steal all the attention from Anna and me in high school. It was bad for our self-esteem,” Georgina laughed.

  “If that’s so, explain why Anna’s married and you’re soon to be and I’m not?”

  Georgina shrugged. “You’re picky.”

  When Emma’s mouth opened and closed soundlessly, Georgina took the opportunity to launch into the story of Leo’s dramatic proposal. Georgina’s dream moment happened in a hot air balloon after three months of dating.

  “It’s fate.” Georgina gushed.

  Emma glanced at the so far silent man beside Georgina who didn’t take his eyes off his future wife. He looked so content listening to her, just being around her. Emma tried to imagine Peter looking at her that way and inwardly snorted. She couldn’t imagine Peter proposing publicly, much less so outrageously. Emma felt a pang of envy and instantly shoved it down as Georgina turned to her.

  “I remember you and Anna talking about having your own bakery one day and here it is. It’s amazing.” Georgina said.

  Emma smiled. “We took a risk and it paid off. Business is good.”

  Georgina flapped manicured nails. “That’s great. You won’t believe whom I ran into! Sam Belissimo! He’s a cop now!” She sent Emma a sly look and turned to her fiancé. “Leo, do you mind getting me something to drink?”

  He leaned down and gave her a soft kiss before wandering to the counter.

  “He didn’t ask what you wanted,” Emma observed.

  Georgina chuckled. “He knows how I like my coffee. Anyway, whatever happened to you and Sam? He’s still hot.”

  Emma laughed. She dated Sam in the seventh grade. “We’re just friends, Gina.”

  Georgina waggled her brows. “What about Travis? I thought I heard a rumor about you and him.”

  Emma shook her head, amazed. “You left the day we graduated from high school, but you seem caught up on my sex life. How can that be?”

  Georgina giggled like a schoolgirl. “My mom keeps tabs on my friends for me. So, who are you with?”

  “Who says I’m with someone?”

  Emma watched Leo shake out two sugar packets and a careful amount of cream into Georgina’s coffee. Did Peter know how she liked her coffee?

  “Oh, please, Emma. Guys throw themselves in your path.” Georgina accepted the coffee from Leo with a, “Thanks, baby.”

  Georgina took a sip of her coffee and closed her eyes in bliss before she focused on Emma again. She raised her brows expectantly.

  “Well?” A quick search of Emma’s face and then a cautious, “Ben?”

  Emma’s smile disappeared. She swallowed hard as the memories she’d been trying to suppress all day grabbed her by the throat. Georgina realized her blunder and squeezed Emma’s hand in apology.

  “I’m sorry, Em.”

  Emma mustered a smile though her stomach pitched. “No. Um, I’m with someone else.”

  Looking relieved, Georgina beamed and sipped her coffee. “Anyone I know?”

  She really didn’t want to talk about Peter, but she had to change the subject. “No. He lives in the city.”

  Georgina cocked her head to the side. “What’s his name?”

  God, why? Emma thought in a silent scream. Here she was talking to her friend about a guy she was about to break up with. “Peter Logan.”

  Georgina choked on her coffee and Leo patted her on the back, alarmed. Georgina caught her breath and gaped at Emma.

  “Excuse me?”

  Emma shifted uncomfortably. “You’ve heard of him?”

  “Uh, yeah! We live in Seattle too! In fact, my Dad does business with him. Everybody’s heard of Peter Logan! My God. You’ve got him.”

  Emma’s heart lurched. “No, not really.”

  “He was your first adult crush,” Leo said.

  Emma held up a hand. “Wait. You two have known each other six months and you know how she takes her coffee and who her adult crush is?”

  “Of course. We talk,” Georgina said with a chuckle. “That’s what couples do.”

  “What’s her favorite flower?” Emma asked Leo.

  “Orchid.”

  “My God,” Emma breathed. “You’re perfect!”

  Emma embraced Leo, happy that the guy Georgina was set on marrying was thoughtful, caring and authentic. How did Anna and Georgina find men like this?

  “Stop trying to distract me, Emma. Why the hell didn’t you tell me you were dating Mr. Dark and Broody?”

  Emma shrugged. “It just happened.”

  “It just happened,” Georgina mimicked, eyes sharpening. “And how long have you been dating?”

  “We just made a year.”

  Emma didn’t miss Georgina’s quick glance down at her ring less finger. Georgina gave her a hopeful expression and Emma felt her heart twist.

  “We’re taking things slow,” Emma said with a forced smile.

  Georgina grilled Emma about her longtime obsession with Peter Logan. The more questions Georgina asked, the more puzzled she seemed by Emma’s relationship with Peter. Georgina knew more about Peter from magazine articles than Emma did. Emma’s already precarious mood became gloomier by the second. Sensing all was not well, Leo steered the conversation to their upcoming wedding instead. Emma sent him a grateful smile.

  “Is he your date to my wedding?” Georgina demanded.

  A lump formed in Emma’s throat. “No, I don’t think so.”

  “Well, he has a little over a month to clear his schedule,” Georgina said. “We’re here to do some last minute organizing. We’ll probably be driving out on the weekends to finalize wedding details. Is Anna here? She told me she has a sketch of the wedding cake!”

  Emma led them into the back of the bakery. There was a lot of screeching as Anna and Georgina hugged and gushed over wedding plans. Emma stood off to the side, trying her utmost to appear normal. Anna caught sight of Emma and distracted Georgina by showing her the sketch of the wedding cake. Anna pushed Emma out the back door.

  “Go home. Get some sleep. You look like hell.” />
  Anna slammed the door in her face. Emma heard Georgina rave over the sketch of the cake and it should have lifted her mood since she designed it, but her heart wasn’t in it. Emma drove to the grocery store and bought two bouquets of the brightest flowers she could find. She parked on the side of the road and tried to get a grip on herself before she carried the bouquets through the graveyard to her parent’s tombstones.

  The air was chilly and there was no one in sight. It was a cloudy day and the trees rustled as she walked beneath them. She sank to her knees beside the graves of her parents. She laid the flowers over the cold stone with shaking hands. Today made two years since her parent’s death. The pain left her breathless. She had no blood relatives and if it hadn’t been for Anna, she wasn’t sure she would have weathered the storm. Tears streamed down her face. A scream built in her chest, but she refused to let it out. She bent her head, wrapped her arms around herself and rocked.

  On the first anniversary of her parent’s death she met Peter. She was caught in a haze of depression when he shoved his way into her life. His presence forced her out of grieving and brought her solidly into the present. She loved him even more for that. When they first met, Peter was visiting Tommy while he took a break from work. He invaded her life, house and bed and she’d been more than willing. He chased away the dark memories and he got her through September, the worst time of year for her. Since then, he went back to work in Seattle. She’d been counting on him to be here for their anniversary, so she didn’t have to think about the other one…

  Emma lay on the cold, damp grass beside the graves, body curled around them protectively.

  “I miss you,” she whispered. “Forgive me.”

  One hand plucked at blades of grass as tears continued to leak from her eyes. She tucked an arm beneath her head and closed her eyes. She listened to the distant sound of the cars passing on the highway and the breeze that swept through the graveyard. When she wasn’t at the bakery and couldn’t stand being in her empty house, she came here.

  Emma wasn’t sure how much time passed, but she roused when she heard the sound of running feet. Someone shouted her name and hands pushed her onto her back.