“Aiden, let me ask you something, and I want you to answer me honestly. You said last night that when you first saw Emma, something happened. What did you mean? You never finished explaining.”
I stared at him. Last night, I had almost admitted to being attracted to Emma from the moment I saw her. When she called me Ryan and scrunched up her nose in a freaking adorable way and asked for a do-over on the introductions. But something else had happened. I’d felt something in my chest I hadn’t felt in years, and honestly never thought I’d feel again.
The feeling was different than what I’d felt the first time I saw Lisa. More intense.
It was a complete and utter shock. Even the two one-night stands I’d indulged in since Lisa’s death hadn’t made me feel anything. That was just sex. A way to rid myself of some stress and anxiety. Neither time had meant anything.
But one look at Emma Middleton two days ago, and I couldn’t get her out of my head.
“Nothing,” I lied. “I mean, it’s just a strange feeling, knowing she’s living in my house.” Guilt swamped me. I never lied to Dalton.
He nodded. “Is that why you were in a bad mood when you showed up this morning?”
“I guess. Seeing her in the kitchen making breakfast, and Hadley so taken by her. I mean, she bonded with Emma almost instantly. I just don’t want her to forget her mom.”
Dalton leaned forward. “She won’t forget her mom because you won’t let that happen. But Aiden, this is what you wanted. A female figure in Hadley’s life. Tammy met with Emma this morning for coffee, and she said she really liked her.”
“Yeah, Emma asked me if she could have coffee with Tammy. She also asked me what I wanted her to do while Hadley was in school. I had no freaking clue what to tell her. And why would she ask me if she could meet someone for coffee? I don’t own her just because she works for me.”
Dalton laughed. “You’ll figure it all out. Just try to relax and know what you’re doing is good for both you and Hadley.”
I let out a gruff laugh. “How is it good forme?”
“Hadley isn’t the only person needing a female in the house.”
I shot him a dirty look.
Dalton held up his hands. “That’s not what I meant, dude. I only meant it will be nice for you to have some home-cooked meals. Another adult to talk to.”
“We’re not playing house, and I’m not going to pretend like she’s something other than my employee.”
Pulling his brows together, Dalton stared at me intently. After a minute or so, he stood up.
“You may not want to believe this, Aiden, but you’re allowed to be happy. Listen, I know things between you and Lisa were bad before the cancer. Things were said, decisions made, but you still took care of her, and I know she loved you for it. Maybe not the kind of love that you both thought you should have for one another, but love, nonetheless. Lisa would have wanted you to be happy. She wouldn’t want you feeling guilty because of what happened between you.
“You loved her and never left her side, but dude, at some point you’re going to have to forgive yourself and move on. I’m not telling you to go have sex with the nanny. I’m just saying open up your mind to the idea of letting someone in who just might turn out to be a good friend. That’s all.”
With that, he turned and walked out the door.
I dragged my hands down my face. I knew he was right. Emma was a good thing for Hadley, and that was what I neededto remember. Not how she’d made me laugh for the first time in a year, or how her smile made my knees feel a bit weak, and for sure not how much my daughter was falling head over heels for her after one day.
Emma was a surprise. The first woman to really make my breath catch in my throat since high school, when I’d first caught a glimpse of Lisa. But that feeling with Emma? It was different. Stronger. And that scared me.
She was a beautiful woman, and it would be futile if I tried to ignore that fact. But what Icouldn’tlet myself do was think anything could ever happen between us. A difficult task for a man who hadn’t held a woman in his arms for far too long.
My phone beeped on my desk with a text from Emma.Speak of the devil.
I picked it up to see a picture of Hadley holding up a drawing. It was of her and me in the woods. The corner of the drawing said, “Me and my daddy. Ranger Aiden Bishop.”
Smiling, I replied back.
Me:I love it. Ask Emma to hang it up on the corkboard in the breakfast area.
My phone beeped back with a reply.
Emma:ieodn98h3dldkjyepwnfhvp.daddy
Emma:That was Hadley’s reply to you I’ll hang it up right now. See you soon.
