Emmerson's Heart (26 page)

“I’m nothing like that, Paul.” The lump filled my throat as my heart melted back together instantly. Paul thought that I was that beautiful? Him of all people? No, it couldn’t be like that. Jackson had told me that I was beautiful all the time. Paul would be the same. He was my best friend. He was just saying that not to hurt my feelings. “Thanks for saying that
, though. I appreciate it.”

“I’m not just saying that, Emmy. I mean it.” His large bear claw left my arm only to curl around my waist
, drawing me back to him. “Being soaked and looking like this, Emmy, it’s just a sight that he won’t be able to get out of his mind.” His head tipped as he released me. “Get in the truck. I can’t have you get sick. Dad would find out in a heartbeat.”

Nodding, I forced the lump down and crawled into his truck. Reaching in the back, I grabbed the jacket that I had made for him that had the ranch’s name on the back and his name on the front. Covering up with it, I tugged it up to my nose
while taking in the scent of him and only him. So many nights that he had gone out, I wondered if he ever let Becky wear his jacket, but her linger wasn’t on it at all. No other linger was there. Just his and only his. 

Chapter
26

****Present****

Rolling me onto my back, Marc’s hands found my sides as he tickled me. The game was spread all over the living room floor and he found the hidden money that I was stealing from the bank. After having him working all day and half way through the night, I felt alone since that night he first kissed me. It was constant work with him and the issues kept coming and coming every chance he managed to break free. When he crawled in bed at night, I could tell it was affecting him
, too. But as he told me, he wanted to be ready if I was ready to move back to the ranch. Hell, I had even noticed he started making up some plans just being the planner that he was.

“I wasn’t hiding money!” I tried to wiggle away from him, but he held me in place, his fingers getting every sensitive spot on my sides.

“I caught you red handed!” Laughing, Marc’s chest brushed mine as he was careful not to put his weight on me yet. God, he was so gentle with me and I loved it even more. Everything about Marc was about me. All down to doing everything for me, too.

I managed to get out of the house when he was at the office Monday morning and made it down to the salon two blocks away. When I had asked them to cut my hair, a part of me felt like I was actually being able to breathe again without the pain invading my life. Of course,
afterward, I was in too much pain to walk all the way back, but the lady that did my hair was kind enough to call me a cab. When Marc found out, I could tell that he was upset, but it was only because he would have taken me himself.

Tuesday afternoon when Marc stopped in for lunch, I was in the bathroom crying because my shoulder hurt too damn bad to allow me to fix my hair. Instead of leaving, he called the office
and told his boss he would be late. He sat behind me and did it all for me. Of course, each time that he had run his fingers through my hair, it was the best feeling I had ever had.

“You didn’t! You just think that you did!” His hands stilled on my side as my heart started to beat out of control. His eyes danced on mine as the soft and loving smile spilled over the handsomeness he had.

“I think that you were and I found the money under your thigh.” Resting his arms on the sides of my head, he leaned over me a little, letting his lips brush mine. “This was an absolutely perfect tonight. I needed this with you, Emmy.”

Cupping his cheek, I had noticed that the stress had washed away from those eyes and his jaw was prickly from the fresh growth that was coming. When we had gone shopping, I had picked up a game to play when Rob and Will had come
, hoping that they would want to. Marc came home from the office with the stress just dragging him down to the floor. As he was in the room changing into his black and red pajama pants and a tee shirt, I set up the game. Laughing when he had come out, he nodded as he turned his phone off and plopped down on the other side of the coffee table.

“You have been working so hard. I was really missing you.” And I was. I was missing him being home because he was there. Having him at the office all the time, I felt that loneliness sinking in. And when that loneliness sank in, I thought about Paul wondering what he was doing. A few times I called only to get his voicemail message.

“God, Emmy, I am so sorry, Baby. From now on, when it gets too much, just remind me.”

“I don’t want you to get in trouble at work.”

“No, you are more important to me than that place. So much more important. I love you, Emmy. I love you so much.”

My breath caught as I looked at him. Did he really just tell me that he loved me? I knew that he had said it before, but nothing like the way that he had said it now. Not having the heat blast through my body like it had and the butterflies fluttering in my belly.

“Emmy, I am in love with you. I want you to be in my life forever.”

“I love you
, too, Marc.” Swallowing hard, I lifted my head a little while ignoring the pang of pain to kiss him.

Moving a little closer, he took over robbing every sense in my mind. His mouth devoured mine
, pulling the air from my lungs. Heat pooled in my belly as I felt something new, something strange, something wonderful. His hand brushed my side making me realize that my shirt had ridden up, baring my belly. As he spread his warm hand over my belly, my heart stopped as his fingers stopped at a scar. His mouth broke from mine, allowing me to catch my breath. Panic washed through me while feeling that finger tracing one of the scars my dad left me with. Tears filled my eyes as I wanted to get up and run away from him. He wasn’t there that night to see the damage that my father had caused and he knew about scars, but I hadn’t been as free to show the ones on my chest and back when he had been around. Mostly because it was over winter that he had come home and in the summer that he was at the ranch for a vacation, I was wearing tee shirts to hide under anyway.

“God, Emmy.” Slipping down, he looked over my belly
, seeing a few long scars and some short; some from a knife and some from whatever that man could grab hold of that would leave a mark. Leaning closer to me, he brushed his lips to the one by my belly button as his fingers traced another one, a deeper one that had trailed around to my back. “You are so beautiful, Baby.”

Resting back, my breath had hitched a few times as his kisses spread over more scars. Running my fingers in his hair, I swallowed hard as I closed my eyes. The hot tears had drizzled down the sides of my face as I tried to pull it all back. Paul had been the one that had helped Connie that night he found me. He saw everything first
hand and he was the only one that had ever seen me with my shirt off. He had seen the scars before. Now, Marc was pressing tender kisses to each one.

A little moan came from me as his thumb had made circles on my skin
, drawing out the fires in my belly.

“Emmy
.” His voice was husky before he had kissed a few more. Coming back to me, his eyes were so dark with desire, and his cheeks were deep red with the hunger filling in his kiss. “God, Emmy.”

Tugging him back to me, my heart sped
, allowing me to let myself fall into him. Marc was exactly what I needed. He was the first guy, other than Paul, to ever see my scars and he was cherishing them. Taking each one and pressing little kisses to each one so soft and tender that I knew that I was in love with him.

His warm hand slipped up my side a little more to where the scar from the accident was and so close to my breast that had never been touched by a man before. The moan
came from him again as he pulled back enough to look into my eyes. “Emmerson, I have never seen anything more beautiful than you.”

“Marc, please.” I never wanted someone to touch me so bad. The ache was something I never felt before.
Well, that kiss that I had with Paul was more than this, but I wasn’t going to think of it. I wasn’t going to go there. Paul’s kiss was instant and so much more than this, but this with Marc was different. This with Marc wasn’t full of pain or hurt. I was happy. I was completely happy with him. I had to be.

The smile tugged at his face as he slid his hand underneath my shirt and his thumb brushed over my bra
, sending the blistering heat right between my legs. The need for him hit me a lot harder as I found his mouth begging him to fulfill this starvation that he brought upon me. “You can say my name again.”

“Marc…” Gasping as his hand slid over my chest, I wrapped my hand around his bicep
, trying to hold on and trying to control the urges that were coming over me because of him. “Marc, please…”

“Oh, I haven’t even started with you, Emmy-
Baby.” His growl was deep as he moved up, pulling the shirt with him and exposing my black bra and the scars from my horrible past. Looking down, his eyes slowly took in each mark, his lips brushing each one until he found the latch to my bra. Releasing it, his hand brushed over the top of my tingling skin as his mouth had come back to mine.

My breath caught in my throat as I dug my fingers into his hair. God, this was so damn good. This was so perfect. This had to be perfect. But the guilt was pooling in fast. Too much guilt and pain. 

“Be quiet because Marc is really busy with work and Emmy’s probably sleeping already.” Connie’s voice came from the downstairs as the thumping on the steps had made Marc jump. Cursing, he tugged my shirt down just as Rob and Will stopped at the top of the steps.

“I am sure that he’s plenty busy
, Mom.” Rob smirked as he nudged Will’s arm. Will tipped his head, turning ten shades of red.

“We were just playing a game and…” Marc swallowed hard as his eyes shot to me with the crimson sinking in his cheeks. “Why don’t you hurry into the bedroom and get your pajamas on? I’ll be right in if you need some help.”

Nodding, I limped my way into the bedroom, closing the door behind me. How embarrassing. I thought that they were coming in tomorrow. But to have Marc kissing me like that, touching me like he was just to have them walk in there. Oh, Connie would hate me for sure.

“Hi, dear. Is Emmy sleeping already?” I could hear Connie setting down some bags on the floor as she greeted Marc at the top of the stairwell.

Rob snickered a laugh as his body plopped onto the couch, knocking it into the wall. “If you want to call it that,” I heard him say, but hopefully Connie hadn’t heard at all.

“She’s just in the bedroom changing into her pajamas. We were just playing a game and…”

“Oh how wonderful. I am sure that she needs that. Just don’t be keeping her up too late, Marc. She still needs plenty of rest.” As she sighed heavily, I could hear her eyes looking around. “Is she in the spare room?”

“Actually, she’s been staying in my room
,” he choked out, earning a noise from Rob again.

“That is so sweet of you to let her take your room. You certainly are so good to her through all this. How is she doing?”

“She’s doing pretty good, Mom. She’s been actually laughing and smiling a little more.” I could hear it in his smile, that love that he had for me already.

“That’s good,
Honey. I have just been so worried about her and the boys wanted to see her so we actually decided to come tonight so we could have all day tomorrow to spend with her.”

“I think that she will really like that.” His voice came to the door as his hand pressed down on the knob. “I’m going to check on her and see if she needs any help.”

“Marc, if she needs help, I don’t think that it’s appropriate….” She paused as I could hear it in her voice. “I see. You better tend to her then.” Yes, that sharper tone. She had caught on. She knew now.

When he came into the room, tears filled in my eyes. I didn’t want to go out there. I didn’t want to see her even more upset with me. I was the reason why her husband was gone. Cupping my cheek, Marc wiped a tear that had fallen from my eyes as he pressed his lips to mine.

“I don’t want to go out there. I don’t want to see them.”

“Emmy, yes. They love you. They love you so much. She will be fine with it. When she sees just how much you really mean to me and how much I love you, she will be fine. Let’s get you into your pajamas.”

Helping me with my shirt, he kept his distance knowing that his mom was right out the door from us. The smile had spread across his face as he kissed me one last time before releasing me to the living room. As I stood at the door, my heart beat hard in my chest while seeing the anger in her eyes. She had every right to hate me for what I had done, every right, and now, I was with one of her children. I still just never imagined that I would have found something strong with Marc.

Sitting with Rob and Will on the couch, we talked a while as Connie stayed pretty quiet. I noticed a change in Marc
, too, but I knew what that was about. I knew that something was going to erupt later about what happened.

At ten, Connie yawned and stood
, handing her glass of water over to Marc. “Boys, go on into the spare room and get to sleep. I would like to get up early and spend the day with Emmy.”

“Come on,
Mom.” Rolling his eyes, Will put his arm around me to tug me close to him. “Marc gets her all the time. It’s our time with her.”

“Yeah,
Mom. We never get to see her anymore.” Rob pouted as he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, showing me the picture he had taken just recently of Ben. The horse’s head was low and there wasn’t anything in his eyes. It was as if he lost everything that ever mattered to him. Taking the phone, I swallowed hard as I just looked at the broken horse that was there. Ugh, how I missed him. I missed him so much.

Last night, Marc was sleeping and I managed to crawl out of bed without waking him only to go over to the window. Ben was always outside my window at night. When I had a bad nightmare, he left only to meet me at the kitchen door knowing I was coming out to him for comfort. He knew me. He knew when those nightmares were coming. And last night, when I looked out the window, maybe I wanted to see him there. Maybe I needed to see him there again. Instead, there were two dark cars parked at the condo garage across the lot from us. One neighbor was actually up with his television flickering in his living room window. As for the others, nothing but darkness
was in their condos.