Page 66 of The Emma Special

Kenna’s high-pitched scream came from the backyard. It wasn’t a scared cry, but Lottie got to her feet and looked out the window. “Come look at this.”

Sharon and Emma moved to Lottie’s side to see. Kenna sat atop James’s shoulders as he chased Myrtle around a pink playhouse. Lottie’s brown ringlets bounced around her face as she cackled.

“He’s so good with her,” Emma whispered.

Oops. How did that sneak out?

Wait, she was supposed to be admiring James. She was his fake date.

“He is. You should have seen him when she was a newborn. He wouldn’t get within three feet of her.” Lottie chuckled. “It was funny seeing the big guy afraid of a baby.”

“I think I saw a bit of that at the office when a client came in with an infant. You think he was actually afraid of that little girl?” Emma asked.

“He said he didn’t want to hurt her. She was so fragile. It took him a few months to work up the courage to hold her.” The joy in Lottie’s voice faded. “I wish Harrison would play with her like that.”

Harrison sat on the swing with his head lowered to look at his phone.

Kenna squealed again, and Emma’s attention was drawn back to James. He stopped his jog and lifted Kenna from his shoulders.

Sharon wrapped an arm around Lottie’s waist. “Let’s go outside.”

As soon as Emma stepped onto the porch, James found her. His intense stare bored into her so fiercely he could probably see straight into her jumbled mind.

There was a wire between them. A live one. The connection was pulled tight, sending signals that sent her heart racing. This had more depth than method acting ever afforded her.

She leaned against the porch rail, and though Kenna kept running around with Myrtle, James was locked in an invisible dance with Emma. When she looked at him, he was looking at her. When she moved, he moved. Even from across the yard, she felt him like a hot coal in her middle. If she added tinder and blew on it just a little bit, she’d start a wildfire.

She was so focused on James she didn’t see Harrison stomping toward her until his shoulder bumped against hers. Emma turned to the swing where Lottie sat between Garrett and Sharon with a look on her face that said she was nothing short of heartbroken.

Harrison stopped right in front of James and crossed his arms over his chest. “I need you to call in one of your favors.”

Emma glanced down at the white railing. Great. Another brother was asking James to save the day.

“I don’t keep tabs of favors,” James answered without any heat.

Of course he didn’t. He did kind things for people out of the goodness of his heart, not to have an IOU in his pocket. Because she would have racked up her limit by now.

“We missed the deadline to get Kenna into Bethel Academy. It’s just a daycare, but Lottie won’t shut up about how she wants Kenna in that specific private school. Can you make a call to the director and get them to take our application?”

Emma’s grip tightened on the railing.

When he glanced at her, she felt the sinking in his gut. How did he have the power to transfer his emotions to her? He was tired, and the same heaviness rested on her shoulders.

Emma lifted her chin in a silent question. You ready to go?

James excused himself from Harrison and caught Kenna as she darted his way. “I need to get Princess Emma home now. Will you be good until the next time I see you?”

Kenna wrapped her pudgy arms around his neck and squished her cheek against his. “I will.”

James slowly approached the porch and held out a hand to Emma. “You ready?”

“When you are. I just need to say goodbyes.”

Farewell in the Moore house varied from quick nods to bear hugs that squeezed the breath from her lungs. Emma had a lunch date with Sharon and a job offer from Lottie as she followed James through the house.

When they exited the front door, she leaned against it. It was time for the evening to end, but she wasn’t ready to leave just yet.

James stepped up, toe to toe with her, and smiled. “What’s got you looking like a kid with a secret?”