Cattail Ridge (29 page)

Logan rubbed his shoulder, where he’d been wounded. “How do you deal with not shifting? Don’t you miss it? Especially with being around a whole family of them.”

Archer hunted for the words that would explain. “Yes and no. You know I was never tied to it as much as you were. I enjoyed running through the woods, climbing trees, chasing rabbits and birds, but if I didn’t shift regularly it didn’t bother me. I think that helped. Not having to worry about it was kind of a relief, if you want the truth. Not having to hide it from people, to figure out where to shift safely… I just didn’t miss it.”

“And now?”

“Sometimes. But not in an unbearable way.”

Logan picked at his thumbnail. “You do realize that if you and Emma end up married, your children will probably be… unusual.”

“If we end up married, yes. And there’s not a better family out there to deal with whatever might arise. But you’re jumping the gun, especially after yesterday.”

“You still think she’s too afraid of being hurt to take a chance on the two of you?”

Archer stood and headed toward the bedroom for a shirt. “I guess we’ll find out.”

Chapter Thirty-Seven

T
he night after her disastrous conversation in the barn with Archer, Emma was sitting on her couch going through pictures. Amelia had come up with the idea of presenting him with a collage of pictures of his interactions with everyone through the years as a birthday present, and since Emma was the photographer in the family it was a natural fit for her to be the one to create the gift.

Now, as she was sifting through piles and piles of images, she wondered if Amelia’s intention all along had been to get her to see just how big of a role Archer had played in her and Sydney’s life over the years.

Seeing the evidence laid out in front of her in color, Emma was shaken to her core. She had yet to come across a single significant event in Sydney’s life, not including her latest birthday, that Archer had not been present for. Hell, he’d been present for most of the less-significant events, as well. And as much as she’d hid behind the argument that he wouldn’t be there for her and Sydney, looking through the years’ worth of photographs stripped away that shield.

The man had always been there for them. She simply hadn’t seen him the way she did now.

Her tears hit before she could move her chair back, and all she could do was hold on to the edge of the table and cry. She tried to muffle the sound, not wanting to wake Sydney, who was asleep upstairs.

The picture that stood out the most to her was one she’d taken at Noah’s birthday party this past spring. The weather had been warm that weekend, and Sydney had been in summer clothes for the first time in the year. Archer wore a baby blue T-shirt that stretched across his shoulders, and old jeans that fit him close without being too tight. Emma remembered how he’d whirled Sydney around and around, and she’d screamed her head off with delight. When they were both too dizzy to stand, they’d fallen down, Archer cradling her in his arms, and they’d lain on the grass for several minutes. Noah and Eli had joined them and they’d all four stayed like that, staring up at the sky watching clouds until it was almost time to eat dinner.

When they got up, Archer had lifted Sydney onto his shoulders. Emma had been standing on the steps and as they’d approached, she’d lifted her camera like she had a thousand times before. The two of them had hammed it up and she’d snapped away. She’d developed the film later that week. When she’d seen the image she now held with trembling fingers, her heart had melted. But she hadn’t seen the whole truth of it.

Before, she’d seen her daughter, full of life and laughter, happiness pouring out of every cell of her body. Archer had been just as happy, and she remembered thinking how glad she was he was in their lives.

But now? Now she could see the love in his eyes. And it wasn’t just love for Sydney. There was also love for the person taking the picture. The emotion was so obvious she thought she had to have been blind to not see it before.

“I understand why Pip was so insistent now. Is this how you’ve looked at me all along?” A quick perusal of some of the other photos revealed that, while his affection hadn’t been quite so openly on display, it was there. Her camera had seen the love the whole time, but Emma had been oblivious.

She touched the image of his face and wished she were touching him. If she thought he’d be receptive to her, she’d call in a sitter and just go to him. But she knew she had to bring more to the table than just herself. She had to come to him with no barriers, no reservations. He deserved nothing less than all her love and given how badly she’d hurt him, a simple, “I’m sorry” wouldn’t suffice.

Sarah’s words came back to her. Emma ran her hands over her face, pushing her hair back off her forehead. “How do I give him my daughter? How do I accomplish that?” she muttered. She knew that’s what she had to do but she had no idea how to go about doing it. The clock told her it was nearly ten but she figured her father would still be up, so she picked up the phone. With all the decades of research Owen Campbell had done with genealogy, she knew he was the best resource she had. When he answered on the third ring she heaved a sigh of relief.

“Daddy? I need your help.”

Chapter Thirty-Eight

A
ll Emma’s plans were in place by the following Sunday, Archer’s birthday, and she was literally sick with nerves—she’d thrown up twice. Zanny had even asked her if she might be pregnant as she gargled with mouthwash.

“No. Not unless you can get knocked up from kissing. God, Zanny, what if he says no?”

“He won’t.”

Emma sat on the barstool beside her friend and laid her head down on the counter. “You don’t know that.”

Rachel chimed in from across the island. “I’m with Zanny. The man won’t know what hit him, but he won’t say no. Buck up. You’re doing the right thing.”

Though the words were matter of fact, hearing them from Rachel meant a lot to Emma. She reached her hand out to her sister. “Thank you.”

Sydney’s excited, “They’re here!” echoed down the hall, and Emma thought she was going to have to rush back to the bathroom again. John, who was feeding the baby, whistled low.

“Think she’ll give it away?”

Emma shrugged. “I don’t know. In a way that makes sense? Probably not.”

She’d searched her soul the past week as the preparations were being made for her gift to Archer. Today was his birthday and somewhat appropriate, she thought, for the resolution of their mess of a relationship. At least she hoped this would be the resolution.

Owen poked his head into the kitchen. “Emma, it’s show time.”

With hands that shook she pushed herself away from the island. “Wish me luck?”

Her father smiled reassuringly. “Of course. You’ll do fine.”

She laughed. “I sure hope you’re right.”

As everyone filed out of the kitchen, Emma tried to calm herself by taking slow, deep breaths. If this worked everything would soon be right with the world. If it didn’t? She didn’t want to even entertain the idea.

When Archer and Logan got to the farm, Amelia met them at the door. She was almost as excited as Sydney, who was dancing in place as Amelia set Archer’s hat on his head. Her grin was so wide, it set off alarm bells.

“Why are you so danged happy, Pip?”

“Because I know what you’re getting for your birthday,” she teased. “And no, I’m not going to tell you.”

From beside him, Logan grunted. “What in the hel–heck is on your hat?” he asked as Archer picked Sydney up.

“Nice catch. And it’s all the things that represent who he is,” Amelia answered. She reached up to adjust the ball cap. “A shotgun, some mechanic’s tools, a fishing pole and lure. Books, obviously.”

Logan’s skeptical look didn’t fade as he examined all the miniatures that decorated the cap. “Okay.”

Archer grinned at his brother’s consternation. “You just wait. You’ll get one, too. His birthday’s February fourteenth,” he told Amelia.

Her eyes lit up with unholy amusement. “You were born on Valentine’s Day? Oh, that’s too good.”

“Do you ever take anything seriously?” Logan growled. His tone didn’t seem to faze her.

“Not unless I have to. Do you always act like you have a stick up your–,”

“Amelia Rose!” The shock on Owen’s face was comical, and Archer snorted as the older man shook his head, appalled. “What in the world… I don’t even want to know. Archer, happy birthday. Come on in. We have the whipping board set up.”

Archer played along. “Not again. I couldn’t sit down for a week afterward last year.”

Logan shook his head, but his lips were turned up at the corners. “You people are twisted.”

“Oh, you have no idea,” Ben said as they went into the living room. “Happy birthday, man.”

As everyone else came into the room, Archer looked around. Half the family seemed amused, and half the family seemed nervous. That put him on guard.

“What’s going on?”

“We’re gonna give you your birthday present early,” Sydney told him from where she was perched on his hip. “And then you get to eat your dinner and your cake. It’s chocolate,” she whispered.

He kissed her cheek. “I like chocolate. And I like your bow.”

She giggled and patted the bright blue bow on top of her head. “Me, too. Mommy, are we ready?”

Emma came to the edge of the coffee table as everyone else sat down. She was carrying a gaily-wrapped gift, about the size of a shirt box. “I think so. Archer, will you have a seat?”

He couldn’t get a good read on her expression. “We’re going to do this here? Now?”

She hefted the gift. “I think it’s important that I give you this in front of everyone. It will make sense once you open it.”

Logan sat on the couch, leaving him and Emma the only two still standing. Steeling his emotions, Archer moved Sydney from his hip and sat down, then let her arrange herself in his lap. To his surprise Emma moved in and perched on the edge of coffee table. Their knees brushed and she caressed the gift unconsciously, her movements meant to soothe her, he guessed.

“This is so hard. Not the giving of the gift, but what it represents. It’s very scary to me. Like the first time you ride a bike by yourself.” She laughed and looked to Sarah, who was wiping her eyes. “Or the first time you go down a waterslide.”

Archer’s heart was racing and he couldn’t take his eyes off her face. It took him a minute when she held the gift out to take it.

“Please, open it.”

The package wasn’t as heavy as he would have thought, given the size of the box. With his arms around Sydney, he undid the paper on the end and drew the box out. After another glance at Emma, he raised the lid. Instead of getting an answer, the mystery deepened. Under the tissue paper there was a folder.

He frowned. “Okay.”

“You gotta look inside,” Sydney prompted.

He lifted the folder out and his breath caught at the sight of the photo underneath. In an elegantly simple frame was a collage. Included were some of his favorite pictures of Sydney, along with a good number of pictures of them together. There were several of her opening presents at Christmas and birthdays, of the two of them sitting together on the couch reading and the like. The one in the middle of the collage, however, was what drew his eye. It had been taken earlier in the year, and he had Sydney perched on his shoulders, his hands over her legs protectively to keep her from falling. She had her arms stretched upward and they both wore silly, happy grins.

“This is nice. Thank you,” he murmured. He kissed her temple as she traced the image with a tiny finger.

“That’s not all,” she said. “You gotta read the rest.”

Logan took the box and handed it to Amelia, who sat on the edge of the couch beside him. Archer handed him the picture, as well.

“Okay, let’s see what we have.” When he opened the folder, for a few seconds he felt like he’d gone back in time and was once again illiterate. The words on the paper didn’t make any sense to him. Surely he misunderstood them. He shook his head. “I don’t… Emma?”

She was biting her thumb so hard he was afraid she was going to draw blood. He watched as she swallowed before speaking. “I need to let you know that I trust you. And that I mean it.”

The paper on top was an affidavit of paternity. There were two sections to the form, one for the father, one for the mother. Someone, Emma presumably, had filled in the names on both forms, and the mother’s portion was signed and notarized.

Afraid what he was seeing was some awful kind of joke, Archer couldn’t look up. Instead, he handed the form to Logan with a shaking hand and went to the next group of papers. They were no less astonishing. It was a legal document, assignment of guardianship in the event of Emma’s death. Archer’s name was on it as primary guardian, with John and Zanny as secondary. That document was also notarized.

“I don’t understand,” he managed to say.

Sydney sighed. “It means I’m your birthday present, silly. Mommy’s giving me to you. Don’t you want me?”

Archer was astonished. He looked at Sydney, then Emma, still unable to process the gift.

“It isn’t an empty gesture,” Emma told him. “I mean it. Consider it a counterproposal to yours. Or an addendum.”

John cleared his throat from across the room and held up a small pouch. “I have my notary seal here. If you decide to take the gift, we can make it official today.”

Archer was very much afraid he was going to break down and cry in front of all of them. He closed his eyes and rested his head against Sydney’s.

“That’s why you’re wearing a bow,” he said after he’d regained his composure. “Because you are my present.”

She nodded happily. “Yep. But you gotta take Mommy, too. ‘Cause then we can all sleep in the big bed.”

That sent a ripple of laughter through the room, and Archer wrapped her in a bear hug. “Oh, Sydney. I love you. You’re the best present I’ve ever gotten, do you know that?”

“Of course I am. Not everybody gets a little girl for their birthday. But Mommy did, and now you did. Can we have cake now?”

“Not yet. I need to talk to your mommy for a bit.” He passed her to Logan with care. “Sarah, may we use your study?”

“Absolutely.”

Standing, he held his hand out to Emma. “Come on.”

She was trembling when she stood and clasped his hand with both of hers. He heard several sniffles as they left the room and went down the hall to the small library Sarah used as her sitting room. After he closed the door he stood next to it for a moment, watching Emma. When she turned to face him, her arms crossed over her chest, he saw the anxiety on her face. In two strides he was standing next to her, his fingers threaded into her hair. He tipped her face up.

“What does this mean for us?” he rasped. He used his thumbs to wipe away the tears that overflowed from her eyes.

“I hope it means you’ll marry me.”

Archer couldn’t stand the distance another second. Sweeping down, he took her mouth with his. The connection was like a homecoming. The saltiness of her tears mingled with the sweetness that was Emma, making a potent drug for his system.

She was kissing him back just as desperately. Her arms had wound around him and were pressing him closer to her.

“I love you,” she whispered when he let her come up for air. “I have for some time now, but I was so afraid. I love you.”

Archer traced the shape of her mouth with his thumb. “I didn’t think I’d ever hear you say that. And I would have given my last breath to hear it. I love you, too, Emma. I feel like I always have.”

Another kiss ensued, and this one left them both breathless. Archer turned so that he could sit on the back of the couch that faced the large windows. He pulled her between his legs and buried his face in her neck.

“I can hardly believe you’re real. What changed your mind?”

She ran her hands over his shoulders. “Something Mom said.”

He smiled. “The thing about waterslides and bicycles?”

“Yes. Though I would have gotten there eventually, her words helped catapult me into a decision. As soon as I made it I knew I’d chosen correctly. I worried that I’d be too late.”

“Never.” He rubbed his cheek against hers, eyes closed, and basked in the knowledge that she was his. “You really want to marry me?”

“Oh, yes. Once I set the fear aside, I admitted to myself that I wasn’t willing to settle for anything less than all of you. And that I wouldn’t be willing to give you anything less. Minus what Sydney needs, of course, or any other children we make.”

Archer’s smile felt as bright as the sun. “Other children. Wow. I like the sound of that.”

“Good.” She laid her head against his shoulder and Archer felt the last of her tension fade. “I do love you. When can we get married?”

He ran his hands over her back in long strokes. “Well, about that. Call me old-fashioned, but I kind of prefer to do the asking. And I do have a few conditions.”

Emma leaned back, her mouth slightly agape. “What?”

Wedging his hand in between them, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet box. He clenched his fingers around it for a moment, then offered it to her.

Her indrawn breath told him how surprised she was. “Archer… you devil.” Tears sparkled on her lashes again as she opened it, revealing the antique engagement ring inside. “Oh, it’s perfect. It’s exactly what I would have picked.”