The memory hurt.
Even after she left her friends and the cafe an hour later, she couldn’t shake the feeling. Yearning beat through her, though she didn’t know for what. Emmeline pressed a hand against her chest, trying to push the feeling away, but it felt bone deep, embedded in a place she couldn’t extract it from.
Had it been there all along?
Concern spread through her at the prospect of working so closely with Luke at the bookshop. Even being around him this past week had felt like too much. Would she survive five more weeks in close proximity?
Lost in thought, Emmeline went down Main Street, turning onto Elderberry. Motu flew beside her as she took in a deep breath of winter air. She would call Torch to her side soon; she just needed to collect herself for a moment first. Her dragon would immediately sense Emmeline was troubled; she didn’t want to worry Torch.
A cold wind pushed against her, and she squeezed her eyes shut against it. It had stopped snowing, but everything was covered in a layer of ice, and even the wind felt like it carried tiny shards.
Keeping her eyes closed for a moment longer, she continued walking.
Until she felt someone grab her from behind, jerking her back. Her eyes flew open just in time to see a car skidding on the road, narrowly missing her as the driver regained control of his car.
With the breath knocked out of her lungs, Emmeline reeled, turning to see who had saved her.
It was Luke, his face livid. “Are you trying to get yourself killed?” he cried. Emmeline blinked, heart pounding. Motu had fallen back, but he flew to her side now, holding onto her leg.
Her hands shook. What if something had happened to Motu?
“I...” Emmeline opened her mouth to respond, but no words came out.
“Answer me, damn it,” he said, shaking her shoulders. The movement jolted her awake, and hot emotion spread through her.
“What do you care?” she asked, anger seeping into bothher tone and her expression. He scowled at her, countenance livid.
“Of course I care!” he snapped.
Her pulse quickened, and the question was out before she could stop herself: “Why? Why would you care?”
She glared up at him, and his jaw clenched. Time seemed to slow and stop as they looked into each other’s eyes. There was so much hidden in the dark depths that she couldn’t understand, even though a part of her nagged that it should have been obvious.
Luke released his grip on her then, taking a step back. He gave her a dirty look. “You’re smart enough, Emmeline,” he said. The sound of her name made her shudder. “Figure it out.”
Before she could respond, he stalked away.
Chapter 11
Luke had been on Elderberry Lane by chance that Saturday, and he’d spotted Emmeline instantly. Anytime he was in the Hills, a part of him always hoped to run into her, but that afternoon, she looked troubled, closing her eyes against the wind, and the scene had played out like one from a horror film: her feet carrying her onto the street, just as a car skidded on the ice.
He’d lunged to reach her, pulling her back.
When Emmeline’s eyes flew open, her gaze immediately went to Motu, worrying over him, and for some reason, the gesture had sent him over the edge. She took care of everyone else, but who took care of her?
Her negligence regarding herself had made him angry, and then she had had the audacity to ask him why he would care whether she got hurt or not.
A week later, as they worked together quietly in the Tales & Tails Bookshop office, the stupid question still pissed him off.
Of course he cared. He couldn’t bear the idea of her gettinghurt—how could she not know that? It was why, despite what she did, he had never retaliated. It would have been so easy to hold a grudge, but he didn’t want to hold a grudge—he just wanted to hold her.
A fact he desperately tried to ignore. He was supposed to be focusing on this proposal, after all. He was still facing a range of problems at Tempest, and this was his last chance at saving the business.
He was already behind on this month’s rent, a fact he’d been reminded of. For the last nine months it had felt like there were always too many bills to pay, both from the business side of things and for his mother’s medical care.
Luke focused his attention on his laptop. He was sitting in the bookshop’s office. Even from behind the closed door, he could hear the busy bookshop outside as customers asked booksellers for recommendations or directions.
He had decided the first floor would be best for the coffee shop, and was now doing research into menus. Since the Baby Dragon Cafe was a roaring success and only a block away, he knew the bookshop’s coffee shop would need a different focus.
