“Yeah, I’m on it.” Landon shifted and stood. “Actually, I came over here so early because Miranda and I are going to head out.”
“What?” I asked in confusion. “I thought you were staying through the holidays.”
Landon grimaced. “Miranda wants to go back to Florida until Christmas. We’ll be back.”
“You’re staying for church today though, right?” I prompted.
“I…no,” he said.
I sighed heavily. “Not even for Mom?”
“I know,” he said softly. “I want to, but Miranda…”
I wanted to make some wisecrack about Landon being whipped, but it didn’t seem to be the time. Something was going on with him and Miranda. Their relationship was looking all too familiar. He knew better than this.
“Speaking of Miranda, I heard she freaked out last night.”
Landon blew out a grateful breath at the change of subject. “Yeah, bro, my ex-girlfriend Emery Robinson was there. You remember her?”
My body stilled, and everything narrowed down to that name. “Emery Robinson,” I whispered.
“Yeah. You know, my high school girlfriend. I didn’t even recognize her, and Miranda was pissed that she hadn’t been informed she’d be there.”
“You didn’t recognize her?” I whispered as horror and realization began to dawn on me.
“Nope. How fucked up is that?”
I ran a hand back through my short hair and closed my eyes. “Fuck.”
“What?” Landon asked in confusion.
I shook my head. This could not be happening. Em—my mysterious Em, my fucking Cinderella—was Emery Robinson. Of course, she would recognize me. But I hadn’t seen her in…God, ten years. No wonder she had ran away from me. I’d just tried to pick up my brother’s ex-girlfriend.
“Jensen, what’s up?”
I couldn’t tell him. There was no way I could tell him that I’d had the best kiss of my life with Emery Robinson. I hadn’t known it was her. And I knew Landon too well to drop that on him.
“Nothing. Hangover headache,” I lied. “Tell me more about Emery. I remember her…only vaguely.”
Understatement of the century. I remembered the taste of her lips and the feel of her skin and the way she kissed very well. Intimately. Everything else that came to mind about Emery was like a bridge over water on a foggy night. I knew it was there, but I couldn’t see it.
“We dated in high school for two years, but we broke up on graduation. The last time I saw her was our five-year high school reunion , and we didn’t talk then, and I had no idea she’d be at Sutton’s wedding. I guess Heidi invited her.” He shook his head. “I mean, I didn’t even recognize her!” he repeated.
“How could you not have recognized her?”
“When we dated, she was the captain of the soccer team, who liked to skateboard on the weekends,” Landon said in his defense. “Even at prom, she wore her hair up and no makeup. I don’t know what she’s been up to in the past decade. We’re not even Facebook friends.”
“And Miranda was pissed?”
Landon shrugged. “I don’t know why. I’m not interested in the girl I dated in high school, who I haven’t seen in years. I married Miranda.”
Oh, I knew why Miranda was pissed off. Emery looked hot as fuck. Whatever she had looked like and acted like in high school, she was a woman now. One I would very much like to get intimately acquainted with. Too bad I would probably never see or talk to her again.
“Is that the real reason you’re leaving this morning?”
Landon groaned and glanced back toward the door. “I don’t know, man. Probably. She’s super jealous of all my exes.”
I opened my mouth to say something to Landon about last night with Emery. It wasn’t that I wanted to keep it a secret, but what would really come of telling him? I wasn’t the dating type. I was the fuck-’em-and-leave-’em type. Even if I had done more than make out with Emery, it would have just been a hot-as-fuck one-night stand. It wouldn’t have fucking mattered who had dated whom a decade ago.
“Are you sure you can’t stay for church?” I asked instead.
At that exact moment, the front door crashed open. Landon sighed heavily and seemed to retreat into himself at the very thought of the person at the door.
“Miranda?” I hazarded a guess.
“The one and only,” he agreed. “I should probably head out.”
“Landon! Let’s go! We have to get on the road!” Miranda yelled from the foyer.
Landon’s eyes traveled through the open doorway. “I should probably go. I certainly don’t want to stand between the two of you in another confrontation.”