The Art of Discipline: Dani’s Discovery (The Mockingbird Chronicles) (16 page)

Emma studied her for a moment before shifting and inviting her closer. “C’mere, Dani.”

Dani couldn’t help her smile as she scooted over and curled up next to Emma. Somehow, they seemed to just fit, and Dani was once again glad that Emma had agreed to sleep next to her rather than in her spare room. With a sigh, Dani allowed herself to relax and drift off, letting the steady rhythm of Emma’s heart be her lullaby.

* * *

“Emma, can I get out of bed yet?” Dani called for the fourth time in as many minutes.

Poking her head into the bedroom, Emma grinned at her pouting partner. “No.”

“But, Emma, I need to finish packing,” Dani whined.

“I’m sorry, but when I wake up and find you packing at four in the morning, I feel that you need to make up your sleep at some point. So, you are staying in bed for those two hours that you missed.”

“But I’m not tired!” Dani huffed, throwing a pillow off the bed and onto the floor.

Emma sighed and entered the room slowly. “Dani, what do you always have to do after I spank you?”

Dani folded her arms in a pout. “You make me take a nap.”

“So, do I need to spank you
again
to convince you that it’s nap time?”

“No,” Dani huffed.

Emma gently sat down on the edge of the bed. “Then what should I do to convince you that you didn’t get enough sleep?”

Dani blinked. “Lay down with me?” she asked hopefully.

Emma chuckled. “How about I’ll sit with you and you can use my lap as a pillow?”

Dani smiled. That would do for now.

* * *

Dani scowled, finding herself alone in bed. She had hoped Emma would have fallen asleep and stayed with her during her imposed nap. Looking at the clock, she couldn’t believe it read 10:00 a.m. She never slept this long. Hearing a noise from her closet, she slowly got out of bed and headed toward it.

Poking her head into the large walk-in closet, she watched Emma rifle through her suits, pulling out a few and packing them for her. Grinning wickedly, she moved silently, positioning herself directly behind Emma.

“Find anything interesting?” she whispered, causing Emma to jump and squeal before turning and slapping Dani on the arm.

“Damn it! You scared me to death, Dani!” Emma accused.

Dani grinned, rubbing her arm, “Hey, what are you doing?”

“Packing.” Emma returned the grin. “What do you think of this skirt?” she asked, holding the item up for inspection.

Dani frown a bit. “It’s a little tight…”

“Exactly,” Emma grinned, causing Dani to roll her eyes.

“I don’t need too many fancy things in Fort Strymon. Not like the bookstore has much of a dress code.”

“That could change,” Emma joked, packing the skirt.

“Right, I can just see Will coming into the bookstore after class in a three piece suit and tie every day,” Dani giggled.

Emma put her hands on her hips and feigned strictness. “You never know. It might happen.”

Dani grinned and pulled the skirt out of the box. “Don’t pack this. I never wear it.”

Emma pulled the item from Dani’s hands and tried to place it back into the box. “You will,” she grinned.

“Will not.” Dani grabbed for the item again just as Emma pulled back, and soon both women were playing tug of war for the skirt. Deciding to end it quickly, Dani reached out to tickle Emma.

Emma dropped the skirt as she laughed. Looking up, their eyes met, and before Dani knew what was happening, she had leaned towards Emma and gently placed a light kiss on her lips. Pulling back, she looked at Emma’s dazed expression. “Okay?” she whispered.

“More than okay,” Emma replied, pulling Dani’s head towards her lips once more.

* * *

Grabbing Emma’s hand, Dani pulled her toward the large Ferris wheel on the pier. “Come on, Emma. You have to go on the Ferris wheel with me.”

Emma looked up at the ride and shook her head. “I don’t know, Dani, I’m a little afraid of heights.”

“Please,” Dani begged, her blue eyes opened wide for emphasis. “I’ll be with you the whole time. And,” she leaned down to whisper in Emma’s ear, “I’ve always wanted to kiss someone at the top of the Ferris wheel.”

“Let’s do it,” Emma decided as she squeezed Dani’s hand just a little tighter.

Emma followed Dani’s lead, still nervous, but trying to put on a brave face. She was fine until she was actually seated on the bench. When it moved she found herself gripping Dani’s knee, and the higher it got, the closer she melted into her tall protector.

“Come on, Emma, just look.”

Emma shook her head vigorously, refusing to lift it from Dani’s shirt.

Dani hugged Emma closer to her, and when they got back to the bottom, she signaled the operator to let them off. “Hey, you weren’t kidding when you said you were scared of heights, were you?” Dani joked as she helped Emma step off the ride.

Emma looked up into the woman’s blue gaze. “Not one bit.”

“I never thought I’d get your face out of my shirt,” Dani smirked. “Not that I minded, but you missed a great view up there.” Bending down, she lightly kissed Emma on the lips. Seeing Emma smirk, she returned the look. “Well, I didn’t get my kiss at the top of the Ferris wheel, did I?” she teased.

“No, you didn’t.” Emma grinned. “How about the carousel next?”

“Sure, but I get that golden-colored horse,” Dani agreed.

“Let’s play some games,” Dani suddenly declared, grabbing Emma’s hand as they stepped off the carousel. “Hey look, I always wanted to try that one.”

Almost twenty minutes later, Emma giggled as Dani presented her with her prize, a small stuffed cow with a purple t-shirt embossed with ‘Navy Pier’ on it. “I can’t believe you wasted thirty dollars to win me a two dollar stuffed animal.” Holding her hand out to Dani, she continued. “It’s getting late; I think we should be heading back to your condo.”

“Well, you said he was cute, and I wanted you to have him,” Dani grinned.

“And you know, it does match that other little souvenir I picked up,” Emma teased, lightly tapping Dani’s bottom.

“Yeah, well we could leave both of them here in Chicago.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t want this little guy to get lonely,” Emma teased again, wagging the stuffed cow at Dani.

“He can keep Morgan company,” Dani retorted, making a face. “After all, I’m letting her rent the place from me while I’m in Indiana.”

“So the two of you made up?”

“Yeah, I apologized for being such an ass, and she told me she’d kick my ass if I ever did it again. All in all, big win for her.”

Chuckling, Emma squeezed Dani’s hand. “Well, she did walk in at a very inconvenient time.”

“Yes, she did. She’s lucky I didn’t throw my shoe at her.”

“Oh, you have experience throwing your shoes at people who enter your bedroom unannounced?”

“Only Uncle Sean,” Dani grimaced as she remembered his reaction and unconsciously rubbed her backside.

Laughing heartily, Emma rose up on her tiptoes and kissed Dani’s cheek. “Come on, honey. Let’s get back to the apartment. I was thinking you could help me make dinner tonight.”

Dani raised an eyebrow. “You sure you’re up to that after what you witnessed in Fort Strymon?”

Emma laughed. “Yep, you’re only going to be cutting up the potatoes. I think you can handle that.”

Dani wrinkled her nose. “Potatoes… are we having French fries?”

Emma shook her head, pulling Dani toward the door. “No, Danielle, we are not having French fries, but they will have cheese on them.”

* * *

A short time later, Dani found herself frowning at her plate. The baked chicken, parmesan potatoes, and fresh green beans looked pretty but were uncharted territory for someone more used to chicken strips, French fries, and untouched parsley garnish. Eyeing the glass of water in front of her, her frown became a scowl. This was totally unfair.

Looking up, she noticed Emma watching her, so after swallowing hard, she managed another baby carrot with ranch dip. At least those were good, but she was hungry and knew she had to at least try what was on her plate. Feeling all of four years old, Dani picked up her fork and slowly stabbed a green bean.

“Dani, the beans aren’t going to bite back. You can eat more than one at a time,” Emma teased.

“I have to see if I like it first,” Dani muttered, tasting the item. Looking at Emma in surprise, she shrugged. “I guess it won’t kill me.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” Emma replied digging into her own plate. “So, when did you start spending summers with Uncle Sean?” Emma asked as she watched Dani eat another green bean.

“The summer I turned six.” Dani took a small bite of chicken before continuing, “My parents were killed in a small plane crash earlier that year. Uncle Sean wanted me to live with him, but my grandparents—my mother’s parents—refused. They compromised, I guess. I spent summers and holidays with Uncle Sean and lived with them during the school year.”

Emma waited a moment before saying, “What was living with your grandparents like?”

Dani shrugged. “Okay, I guess. I mean I had everything I ever asked for or wanted, but they didn’t really spend a lot of time with me. I guess they loved me, in their own way, but they were too busy with their parties and fundraisers,” Dani explained quietly. “I’m not even sure why they wanted me. I think it was just because they’d never liked my father, and Uncle Sean reminded them of him.”

“Oh, Dani,” Emma started.

Dani sat up and looked at Emma. “It’s okay. I had Uncle Sean in the summer and on holidays, and I think for the most part I turned out okay.”

Emma reached out across the table and squeezed one of Dani’s hands. “I think so too,” she commented before leaning across the table to give Dani a gentle kiss.

* * *

Groaning, Dani reached over Emma’s sleeping body to answer Emma’s cell. “Hello,” she mumbled sleepily.

“Emma Gray?” a male voice at the other end of the line asked.

“No, who is this?” Looking at the clock and the glowing red 4:13 a.m., Dani realized just how early it was.

“This is Fire Marshal Drew Chambers. I really need to speak with Emma Gray.”

Immediately awake, Dani began to shake Emma. “Just a moment, I’ll wake her for you. This is her business partner, Danielle Ryan. What happened?”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Ryan, but you aren’t on our documents. I need to speak to Ms. Gray.”

“Fine,” Danielle huffed. “Just a moment.” Shaking Emma’s shoulder harder, she managed to rouse the redhead. “Emma, wake up, the fire marshal is on the phone for you.”

Taking the phone, Emma sat up groggily, replying, “This is Emma Gray.”

“Ms. Gray, I’m sorry to tell you this, but there’s been a fire above Ryan’s Books.”

“What?” Emma was immediately awake. “What happened?”

“It seems the fire originated in one of the apartments upstairs.”

“Which apartment?”

“I’m afraid it was yours, Ms. Gray,” the fire chief paused for a moment.
“There is a lot of smoke and water damage to the apartment, but luckily we were able to get it out before it spread.”

“Do you know what caused it?” Emma demanded.

“That’s being investigated, Ms. Gray.”

“What about the bookstore?”

“There doesn’t seem to be any water or smoke damage to the bookstore that we can see right now.”

“Okay, that’s good. We’re out of town in Chicago right now, but we’ll be leaving as soon as we can. When can we meet with you?”

“Give me a call when you get back into town, and we can set that up then.”

“Fine, until we get there you have my authorization to speak to our employees about the fire. Their names are Stevie Taylor, Anna Benson, and Will Green. I also give you permission to talk to my business partner, Danielle Ryan.” Pausing for a moment, Emma nodded before saying, “Thank you,” and hanging up the phone. A moment later, she found herself falling into Dani’s open arms.

Chapter Nine

Dani and Emma were on the road by 5:15 a.m. They had called Stevie and Anna and filed them in, and the women had promised to go over and see what the damage was and keep an eye on things after the fire department left.

Hanging up her cell, Emma threw it down on her lap. “Stevie says it looks like a lot of water and smoke damage, just like the fire marshal said. The bookstore and your place appear untouched.”

“Any news on the cause of it yet?” Dani asked, reaching over to grab Emma’s hand.

“No, just that the fire originated in my apartment.” Emma placed her head back on the head rest. “I’ll just be happier when I can see things for myself. Thank goodness Atticus was staying with Will.”

“We’ll figure it all out, Emma, I promise.”

Emma gave Dani a soft smile, before bringing Dani’s hand to her lips and giving it a gentle kiss. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Just being here.”

* * *

Emma and Dani made good time from Chicago. Even with the hour time difference, Dani’s dashboard clock read 9:45 a.m. when she pulled into her parking spot in the alley behind the bookstore. Giving Emma’s hand a kiss, they slowly exited the car. Entering the building, Dani led Emma up the stairs to the soaked landing. The only evidence of the fire, besides the wet floor, was yellow tape across Emma’s door and a dark black soot mark on the ceiling in the hallway.

Taking a deep breath, Emma broke the tape and opened her door. Entering, she reached back and grasped Dani’s hand. Dani followed, pausing to pull Emma into her arms before they separated to survey the damage.

Going to her bookshelf, Emma pulled a favorite book from it and checked for Uncle Sean’s letter. Sighing in relief she handed it to Dani. “Just a little water damage, but I think it’ll be fine.” She smiled at Dani through her tears. “They’re just things, right?”

“Right,” Dani confirmed, leaning in for a hug. Pulling out of the hug, Dani used her thumb to wipe the tears from Emma’s cheek before kissing her tenderly on the forehead. “Okay, sweetie, let’s see what we can salvage and get you moved into my place.”