“Good.” He planted another kiss on the side of my head, making me sigh.
“Your grandparents would have loved this,” a woman’s voice called from in front of us. I looked up to see Erica’s mother andanother older woman whose name I couldn’t remember, but who’d attended most of the committee meetings. “The way you’ve decided to keep the farm, the way you pulled this festival together”—she clasped her hands—“you two getting cozy. It’s almost like they’re up there in heaven moving everybody around like chess pieces. You know how much your grandfather loved his chess games.” She chuckled and I gazed at Dan, who chose that moment to gaze right back at me before tightening his arm around my waist. “We’re all so very proud of you, Emmaline. I hope you’re proud of yourself.”
“Thank you.” I nodded at her. It was the first time I didn’t bristle at being called Emmaline. My life had been spent trying to craft a persona that took me away from being associated with my family’s more humble roots. My great-grandmother Emmaline Butler had been a woman who fought hard for those she loved. She’d kept the farm and town going during a war. Her strength and resilience were the reasons I was sitting on this curb, wrapped in the arms of the man I loved. She laid the foundation for the life I was growing to love.
“All right, Emma?” Dan asked, breaking my chain of thought. His thick, dark eyebrows furrowed in concern.
“I’m perfect.” I leaned forward to press our lips together. “And that’s Emmaline to you.”
My morning had been too perfect.
I woke up the morning of the festival to breakfast in bed, right before I became breakfast in bed. There were no last-minute firesto extinguish, no problems or cancelations. Even the weather was cooperating. The sky was a gorgeous robin’s-egg blue with a smattering of bright white puffy clouds. Most of all, I was happy. I was blissfully happy, so I should have known it was too good to last.
I had to do a double take when I saw Teddy marching toward me in the lobby of the town hall, where I was setting up the welcome center for the festival. It was the feeling you get when you spot a bird in the airport. Before I could draw in a breath to ask him what the hell he was doing in my town, he wrapped an arm around my waist and guided me into a nearly deserted corner of the hall.
Over my shoulder, I caught Dan’s eye. His expression was a mixture of concern and possibly anger. I smiled at him and mouthed the wordsIt’s fine. His eyes narrowed but he didn’t move.
When Teddy stopped walking and finally turned to face me, I found my voice.
“Teddy!” I whisper-shouted. “What the hell are you doing here?”
He scoffed and gave me an incredulous look.
“What the hell am I doing here?” He put his hands on his hips. “Emma, what the hell are you doing here?”
“You know my grandparents left me the farm. I had to come here.”
“Then what the hell are you still doing here? It’s been four fucking months since your grandparents died. You been neglecting your life in Atlanta with me to do what?” He gestured around the hall. “Plan a hoedown or whatever the fuck this is?”
“First of all”—I put my hand on my hips, mirroring his posture—“lower your voice and remember who the hell you’re talking to.” He tilted his head to the side and pursed his lips. “And secondof all, it’s the annual Harvest Festival, and it’s a big damn deal and was a lot of work to put together. These types of events don’t magically appear out of thin fucking air. It takes time and effort, just like fundraisers, mixers, anniversary parties…”
“Listen, Em, I—”
“And third of all, we don’t have a life together. We broke up, Teddy, remember?”
“And I told you that I’m not gonna let you throw away over ten fucking years of my life because you’re bored.”
I felt my cheeks flush with anger. “Teddy, I don’t know what you want to hear before you can finally move on.”
“I don’t know who the fuck you are.” He furrowed his brow in confusion and shook his head. He reached up and took one of my corkscrew curls between his fingers before pulling it straight and watching it spring back into place. “You look different. You dress different. You act different. Where’s my Emma, the woman who was gonna help me conquer the world?”
“That Emma doesn’t exist anymore.” I sighed. “She hasn’t for a while.”
“I won’t accept that.” He took a step closer, and I backed away from him.
“You don’t have a choice,” I responded.
“Listen, Em.” His voice was earnest. “Preston Smith reached out to me.” I jerked my head up to meet his eyes. My expression must have mirrored my shock because he nodded. “Yeah, he told me all about his offer on the farm and his plans for the town. This is a golden opportunity for us, baby. His firm is willing to raise their offer on the farm. We could use the money to finance mycampaign, put a down payment on a house.” My stomach contents churned.
“Plus, Preston’s firm is looking to revitalize rural farmland in Georgia to transform it into lucrative tourist attractions that could generate billions of dollars in revenue for the state. If I spearheaded this initiative during my senate run, I would be assured a win, which would make an even clearer path to the White House, with you by my side. You wouldn’t have to worry about working. You could focus all your time and energy on the campaign… starting our family… C’mon, baby girl. Come home. Whatever’s going on, we can fix, but this can’t be the end. We’re Teddy and Emma. We’re invincible.” His face spread into an eager grin.
“You’re delusional,” I whispered incredulously. All these years, I’d been mistaking Teddy’s narcissism for ambition and had allowed myself to be swallowed by his selfish dreams. Had he ever loved me, or was I simply a tool he would use to continue to elevate himself?
My eyes drifted to Dan, who was still watching Teddy and me. His face was a mask of concern and anger. Teddy’s eyes flicked away from mine and over my shoulder. They narrowed and his lips tightened, letting me know that he must have seen.
“Who is that?” His eyes cut back to mine, and he was seething with anger. My silence must have been speaking volumes, but I was desperate not to cause a scene. “Are you fucking that guy? You ran away from your life to come here and fuck some other man behind my back? Answer me, goddammit.” Teddy grabbed my arm and shook me so hard my teeth rattled.
Before I could react, Dan had rushed between us, severing our contact and blocking Teddy’s access to me with his body. “Get your fucking hands off of her, eh!” he shouted.
