“Umm… No, not really.” Bacon? What?
Emmie laughed at my wide eyes. “It’s a pregnancy thing. I have to have bacon on everything or I’m not happy. And if I’m not happy, this little girl isn’t happy.” She rubbed her hands lovingly over her bump, something I had noticed her doing a lot of today. “So it’s bacon or nothing.”
I noticed on the list that bacon was underlined a half dozen times with exclamation points. The number six was next to it. “Is this a weekly shopping list?”
“Yep,” She handed me a credit card that had her name on it. “I’ve already alerted the right people that you will be using my card occasionally. Just sign your name and bring me back the receipt.”
It took me two hours to get the shopping done. When I returned to the beach house, Emmie was in her office with the door shut. As I unloaded my car and put away the groceries, I heard her voice rise every so often as she yelled at whoever was on the other end of the conversation.
It was just after six before she came out and asked me if I would make her a sandwich. She looked tense and I hadn’t seen her eat anything all day. Concerned, I pulled out the fixings for a turkey sandwich. “Go sit down, Emmie. You look beat. I’ll bring the sandwich to you. What would you like to drink?”
She sighed tiredly, her supply of energy having been depleted for the moment. “I don’t care,” she mumbled and went back toward her office.
I quickly put together a sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cheese, and a little mayo. I put a pickle on the side and because she had said that she had to have bacon, I wrapped a few slices of the microwaveable bacon in a paper towel and nuked it before putting it on her sandwich too. A bag of pretzels and a glass of milk, and Emmie’s snack was ready. I found a tray and carried it in to her.
She was leaning back in her chair, eyes closed, when I walked in. “When was the last time you had anything to eat?” I asked as she took a small bite of the sandwich.
“I had some toast this morning.” She grimaced. “I know, I know. I need to take better care of myself. Trust me, baby girl here is making her displeasure known.”
“Can I get you anything else?”
“You can fix yourself a sandwich and join me. I hate eating alone.” She took a larger bite of the sandwich. “And maybe another one of these bad boys.”
I grinned. “You got it, boss.”
For the next twenty minutes we chatted and ate. I hadn’t realized I was hungry until I sat down and took the first bite of my sandwich. Emmie inhaled her first one before I returned with the second. By the time we had swallowed our last bites, I felt like we had begun to develop a kind of friendship.
I took our dishes back to the kitchen and put them in the dishwasher, but Emmie called me back no sooner than I had the door to it closed. “Come keep me company,” she called out.
I had barely taken my seat when I heard the front door open and what sounded like a herd of buffalo storm into the house. Emmie’s eye lit up. “My guys are home.”
The way her green eyes sparkled told me that she loved them all. I wondered at the story behind them but kept my curiosity to myself. Someone called out for Emmie from somewhere, and I watched in complete fascination as those sparkling eyes darkened with something like passion. “Back in the office,” she called back. “Crap, I’m going to catch hell. I have to apologize for this morning.”
“Not something you do often?”
Emmie laughed. “I don’t like to give them that satisfaction.”
I couldn’t help but return her laugh just as the door was filled up with the delicious sexiness of Nikolas Armstrong. “What’s so funny?” His voice was just as sexy as when he sang.
“I’m sorry, Emmie blurted out.
Nik looked stunned. “About?”
She grimaced and told him about our day. Apparently, it hadn’t been Nik’s fault that he had to go into the studio this morning after all. Rich told him wrong, knowing that Emmie would be stuck with the movers on her own. Pay back for Demon’s Wings canceling their winter tour.
“I don’t know what to say.” Nik shook his head. “I’m speechless.”
“That Rich would do something like that?”
“No. That you would actually admit that it wasn’t my fault…” Emmie picked up her half full bottle of water and threw it at him with a precise aim that impressed the hell out of me. Nik had the good sense to duck.
The bottle hit the chest of pure male perfection behind Nik, causing the man to grunt. “Good arm, Em.” He bent to retrieve the bottle before pushing past Nik who was snickering.