Emily chuckled. “Right, because men don’t like to admit they have feelings, let alone talk about them.”
“Yep.” And Jake had no intention of telling his mom, or anyone else, how Emily made him feel.
Chapter 11
Emily tapped her nails on the table. She was almost as fidgety as Daniel, although for different reasons. She wasn’t sure why she felt so antsy, but it drove her crazy.
“Can I take a shower?” Emily pushed away her half-eaten plate of biscuits and gravy and looked at Faith, who loaded dishes into the dishwasher.
Faith had assisted her with sponge baths the last two days, but Emily desperately wanted to wash her hair and feel clean.
“We’ll need to protect your casts. Let me see what I can come up with.”
She hoped a shower would help dispel the anxiety and frustration that filled her. She’d slept well after her late-night visit with Jake. Had the delicious hot cocoa done the trick, as Jake claimed, or was it the enjoyable conversation they’d shared? It had effectively rid her mind of yesterday’s memories. For a while, anyway.
Despite a late but good night’s rest, she couldn’t get the words she’d recalled yesterday out of her head this morning. Nor could she recall a single other memory, and that frustrated her.
She couldn’t stop wondering what the key she kept in the nightstand might go to. Many times, she considered telling Robert about it, but it was her only link to her memory, and she wasn’t ready to relinquish it yet. She’d held and fingered it so many times she had every groove memorized.
Twenty minutes later, Emily assured Faith she could manage on her own as she hobbled into the walk-in shower of the master bathroom. With casts covered in trash bags, she turned on the water and sat on the handicap chair.
She willed herself to relax as the hot water ran over her bruised body. Without warning, tears mingled with the beads of water. She made no effort to stop them. For the first time since waking up in the hospital, she allowed the emotions raging inside her free reign. Helplessness. Anxiety. Fear.
This was the fourth day since her accident. Robert had said he was working to find her brother, but so far, they hadn’t located him. Why wasn’t her brother looking for her? Were they estranged?
Why can’t I even remember my brother?
Emily took her time in the shower. Heat filled her face when she caught sight of her red eyes in the mirror. At least the bruise around her right eye had faded to an ugly shade of greenish-yellow. Her left eye had changed from purple to blue.
She couldn’t bring herself to make eye contact with Faith while she helped her dress and braided her hair. Gratefully, Faith pretended not to notice her red eyes. Instead, she talked non-stop about the challenges and joys of being a rancher’s wife.
Emily was too emotionally exhausted to analyze if Faith talked about being a rancher’s wife simply because she liked to talk or if she had ulterior motives.
When Faith helped her settle on the couch, Emily heard Jake’s deep voice out on the front porch. A strange fluttering assaulted her stomach. He came into the house a few minutes later and greeted her with a smile as he tipped his hat.
Emily’s heart stuttered. Such a gentleman. And handsome too, whether he was sweaty and dirty or making hot cocoa. There was something pure male about him, tender-hearted or not.
“Mom, I’m heading back out to the stables. Do you need anything from me before I go?”
The respect and affection he showed his mom made him even more attractive.
As Faith took a moment to contemplate, Emily did her own contemplating, surprised that Jake working outside disappointed her.
“I think we’re fine,” Faith said.
Jake tipped his hat and turned to the back door.
Emily sat up a little straighter. “Jake, could I borrow your laptop?”
“Sure.” He disappeared into his office and brought the laptop and set it on her lap. As he bent over her, he whispered, “How’d you sleep last night?”
Emily’s breath hitched. “Great. That hot cocoa did the trick.”
Jake winked at her. “I told you.”
She smiled. “Yes, you did. Thank you.”
Jake’s gaze held hers for a moment, then he was gone.
