Landy added to the prayer. “Lord, also please lay your hands upon this poor woman and teach her how to cook. She nearly killed me with undercooked pork two days ago. I’m still feeling the effects.”
The anxiety attack I felt coming on disappeared just like that as I fought to keep from laughing, but I needn’t have bothered. The prayer was over and laughter from the others filled the room. I pulled my gaze from Rose and looked at Tammy. She was smiling, but when she looked at me, she did a double take and grabbed my hand.
“Are you okay, Emma? You’re white as a ghost.”
All the years of secrets I’d kept, lies I’d told, rushed through my head as I took a deep breath. “Of course. I think I’m just hot. This sweater was a poor choice.”
I could still feel Rose’s eyes on me, but I didn’t dare look her way. Tammy got up and poured a glass of water and brought it back.
“You need to make sure you drink a lot of water. Even being here for what, almost a month? You might still be affected by the altitude.”
Sipping the water, I nodded.
The rest of the meeting was filled with talk of the church’s winter wonderland; a potluck for next week’s circle; and anupcoming trip to Denver for a girls’ weekend, which Shannon and Tammy were very much on board with.
When the meeting broke up, Tammy laced her arm around mine and walked me out. “Told you they’re a fun group.”
She was right, they were an amazing group of women. “They did make me chuckle a time or two.”
Tammy laughed. “Just wait. They were tame today because you’re new and they didn’t want to scare you. Next week, the gloves will come off.”
“Oh boy, I can’t wait.”
I stopped at my car and gave Tammy a hug goodbye. “Thank you so much for being my friend, you have no idea how much it means to me, Tammy.”
Her head tilted and she gave me a soft grin. “Do you not talk to any of your friends back in Dallas?”
“No, most of them are wives of my ex-husband’s friends.”
“So, they picked him over you.”
With a shrug, I acted like it was no big deal. “It is what it is. A lot of them are military.”
This made Tammy raise her brows. “Was your ex in the military?”
“Yes. The Marines. He was in when we met and served two more years after we were married.”
Those first two years of marriage were perfect. If only I’d understoodwhythey were perfect. Because Ben was never home.
Tammy’s cell rang. “That will be Dalton asking when I’m coming home to save him.”
We hugged again and I climbed into my Pilot and headed to my apartment, where I knew I’d have to face the music. I hadn’t really talked to Aiden since I’d woken up on the sofa in his arms. The urge to snuggle into his chest had been one I had to fight off. I did my best to sneak away without waking him, but I hada feeling he’d been awake already. Maybe he wanted to save me from the embarrassment of falling asleep on him.
Ugh. My cheeks burned just remembering it. Other than church, he’d avoided me since, and I couldn’t blame him. What type of woman falls asleep in the arms of her boss?
The drive out to Aiden’s place wasn’t very long, but it was peaceful. The weather had gotten cooler, and I couldn’t wait for the snow to cover the mountains. I was told it would be any time now.
When I pulled into the driveway that was meant for the apartment, I saw Aiden and Hadley stepping outside.
“How was the circle?” Aiden asked, a smirk on his face.
“Interesting group.”
He laughed.
For some unknown reason, I wanted to know if Lisa had been a part of the group. Asking Aiden was out of the question, though. I would find out from Tammy. It was still strange to me that Tammy and Lisa hadn’t been close, especially since their husbands were best friends and worked together, not to mention their daughters were best friends.
Walking over to me, he shook his head and answered the question I was afraid to ask. “My mother could never get Lisa to join, much to Mom’s disappointment. When you walked into it like a lamb being led to the slaughter, I thought my mother was going to jump with joy.”
