Page 123 of The Emma Special

“Get over here.” She turned on her stool and opened her arms to him.

He stepped into her embrace and wrapped her close. It was their first hug of a long week. Missing these was a mistake. Even if she was upset with him, he could have asked for this sooner. Eventually, he pulled back and kissed the top of her head. “See you later. Have fun with Kenna.”

He and his dad were quiet on the drive to work. They didn’t bother with chitchat on a good day, and today was not a good day. As they pulled into the parking lot Dad cleared his throat. “Trouble in paradise?”

“Hmm? No. No, we’re good.”

Dad threw it into park and cut the engine. “I noticed you were drinking coffee from the breakroom yesterday.”

James slowly nodded. He didn’t need his dad on his case today. “Did you get the depo from Fred’s office? He said he’d send it over this week.”

His dad let the domestic conversation slide, and they moved easily into work. By mid-afternoon James was dropping fast. He’d returned from the courthouse with a brief high after settling another case, but it hadn’t lasted. Buried deep in emails, he’d lost all sense of time.

“Hellooo,” his mother sang as she breezed into his office.

James smiled at his mom. Stretching his arms over his head, he stood to greet her. He pulled her into a tight hug.

“Oof,” she huffed, then patted his back. “I’ve come to kidnap you. Can you wrap that up early?”

“Why, what’s wrong?”

“A mother can’t come see her son without ulterior motives?”

James pocketed his hands, eyeing his mother. “Not their grown sons in the middle of a workday, no.”

She laughed, free as a bird. “Jim called and said you and Emma are having trouble. I’m taking you shopping. I know she’s watching Kenna until four, so we have about half an hour until she’s free.”

Somehow, he let his mom coax him into her Lexus. She drove straight to Sunshine’s Boutique. “Don’t panic, son. I won’t make you try on hats. But they have a small flower case in the back. Emma’s friend, Summer, keeps them stocked with local blooms from her garden. Go pick something for Emma. I’ll wait.”

He threaded his fingers together. “Mom, I appreciate that you care, and I’m happy to buy her flowers, but I’m afraid that won’t fix this.”

“It certainly can’t hurt.”

“It might, actually,” he mumbled. If he bought her flowers would she feel burdened to pay him back? Could he give her anything just because he wanted to?

“James, whenever I see you and Emma together, you get along like two peas in a pod. It wasn't just romance on your mind. That girl liked you, and you liked her. The best thing about marrying a friend is being able to talk to each other.”

“We’ve talked.”

“You said flowers wouldn’t fix it. But what will? You’ve been married for such a short time. You’re figuring out how to match two lives together. Have you each talked about what you want? What you’re expecting? You are both fiercely independent, amazing humans. Merging two paths can be a little bumpy.”

“She doesn’t love me, Mom.” There, he said it. The ugly truth that had been haunting him since the wedding.

“So?”

James sputtered. “So, what good are flowers?”

“Does Christ always love the church?”

“Yes…”

“Then you get to always love your wife. That’s it. That’s the story. Get in there, and buy the flowers. If she doesn’t want them, send them to me.”

“Fine,” he snapped like he was ten years old again. He slammed the car door, stalked into the shop, and picked out a bouquet of mostly yellow and orange blossoms. Emma would probably like those.

Once back in the car, he sat with his shoulders slumped while his mom drove him home. She didn’t try to talk to him and it was just as well because he might not have been polite.

He worked up the courage to get out of the car, and his mom drove off before he’d taken two steps. He rolled his eyes. Was she the coward for leaving him? Or was he the coward for being nervous to walk into his own house?