“And when does anyone truly grow up, anyway?” Mrs. Pawloski continued. “You should have seen me in my twenties! I was wild. Oh, it was such fun! Even now I’m not perfect. No one is, my dear.”
“Thank you,” Emma whispered, squeezing the woman’s hand.
Mrs. Pawloski smiled and leaned back. “Now, did you know that Mr. Peaches is two percent English Bull Terrier? It’s true! Iknow he doesn’t look it at all. But I did one of those DNA tests and that’s what it said. Oh, do you want to see it? It’s framed right over here.”
For the first time in years, Emma forgot to look at the clock as Mrs. Pawloski talked, intent on listening to every word her old friend had to say.
The sun was disappearing behind the park by the time Emma left Mrs. Pawloski. As she walked back down the block toward home, she vowed to spend more time visiting her. Maybe bring Nadine, too. She pulled out her phone and was so busy texting the idea to her friend that she all but ran into Knightley coming down the front steps of her house.
“Oh,” she said, taking a step back. “Sorry, I was on my phone—”
“Yes, I see.”
They were silent for a moment as they stared at each other, the fire of their last encounter replaced by something cold and unfamiliar.
She tried to smile. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you leave our house from the front door before.”
He nodded. It was only then that she noticed the leather duffel bag in his hand. Her stomach dropped.
“Were you here to see Dad?” she asked, trying to keep her tone light.
“Yes. He mentioned you might have gone to see Mrs. Pawloski?”
Emma took in a shaky breath. She hadn’t planned on telling Knightley. In fact, she was hoping he wouldn’t find out at all. So she didn’t answer, but her silence was confirmation.
“That was very big of you, Emma,” he said quietly.
She didn’t reply. That devastating look of disappointment wasgone from his clear, golden-brown eyes. She nodded slightly, trying to conceal how much his words meant to her.
After a long moment, Emma nodded to his bag, “Going somewhere?”
“Los Angeles.” He said it abruptly, then motioned to a Suburban idling at the curb. “I came by to say goodbye to you and your dad.”
Emma blinked. “Oh.” A trip wasn’t out of the ordinary, but something about his tone, the way he was looking at her… it was off. “When are you back?”
“I don’t know. The deal is being finalized, so there’s a lot to do. It could be a while.”
“But… you are coming back, right?”
He hesitated. “Of course,” he finally answered.
It should have been reassuring, but it wasn’t. Nothing about this felt familiar or good.
“So that’s it? You’re leaving right now?” she asked, her voice rising.
A quick nod.
Panic and anger rose in her throat, leaving a hard tinge to her words as she said, “Were you even going to wait for me to get home before you said goodbye?”
He sighed, running his hand through his black hair. “Emma…”
He was cut off as her phone rang in her hand. She looked down at it as Knightley did the same; they both saw Montgomery’s name and photo displayed prominently on her screen.
“You better get that,” Knightley murmured.
“It can wait.”
He nodded again, his expression tight. “I should go or I’ll miss my flight. I’ll let you know when I’m settled.” Knightley started toward the car, pausing at her side. “Goodbye, Emma.”
