Chapter 17

Emmett

I opened my eyes, wondering why the old man in the hospital room next to mine had to make so much damned noise, but then, Autumn’s guesthouse came into focus. I was no longer in the hospital, and more importantly, the night before hadn’t all been a dream. The soft knocking persisted, and I got up, pulling on my shorts to go to the door.

Penelope was on the other side, trying hard not to spill the tray she carried propped against her as she knocked.

“Whoa, let me help you,” I said as I opened the door. I took the tray which held a breakfast sandwich and one of those kids’ pouch drinks.

“I made you breakfast, Emmett.” She walked in, and suddenly, I realized she was staring at my wounds. “What’s that from?”

She had seen me in the hospital with bandages, but I figured she’d never seen anything like this before.

“Pen, it’s not polite to ask people about such things.” Autumn came in behind her, looking fresh as a flower. It didn’t feel much different from the day before, but at the same time, it felt completely different to see her now, remembering what she had looked like on her back and panting.

“It’s okay, but how about I tell you all about it another day?” I asked.

The little girl nodded. “Okay. I only asked because my daddy has a scar on his arm.”

I nodded. “That’s right. He sure does.”

“You remember him?” Pen asked.

“Of course, I do. It’s been a long time since I saw him, but I remember when he got that scar.”

“You were with him?” Pen sat down on the loveseat as I brought my food to the nearby kitchen counter and Autumn leaned against the back of the sofa.

“I was. We were fishing at the creek, and he slipped on a slick log. He landed right on that arm. I had to carry him all the way to his car and then drive him to the hospital.” I didn’t tell her about the gory details or how he’d thrown up on the way to the hospital. It had been a horrible day, and my arm hurt just thinking about it.

“I bet you have a lot of stories about my daddy.” She leaned back against the cushions as if she had all day to hear about it.

Autumn rolled her eyes and then seemed to take a deep breath. I had a feeling she was remembering our wilder days and hoping I would keep some of the things Jason and I had done in the past where they belonged.

“Yeah, we played sports together, went fishing, hunting a few times, too.” I took a bite of the egg and bacon sandwich and then poked my straw into the small drink pouch.

“I miss him. Do you think if you called him and asked him to come over that he would come and see us?” The request hurt my heart. This was a kid who needed her father, and it made me want to step in and fill Jason’s sorry shoes.

Autumn walked around and sat on the couch across from her. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea, honey. We don’t want to put Emmett in the middle like that; it’s not fair.”

“I haven’t talked to your dad in a long time, Penelope.” I sipped the drink pouch and thought of how I’d like to jab the straw into her father’s jugular for her sadness.

“Sorry.” She put her little head down and fidgeted with her shirt. I didn’t see how anyone could abandon their kid the way Jason had, and I had a good mind to call him up and tell him what I thought about it. He’d always been difficult to like, but I’d given him the benefit of the doubt and been his friend anyway, but looking back, I wished I’d never given the asshole the time of day.

Autumn leaned forward and softened her voice. “I’m sure your father is just busy, Pen. You know I told you that my father was the same way.”

“But Emmett is here. He’s not busy working.” She didn’t understand why I was getting so much time to be around. Things were worse than I thought.

“To be fair, I just got back from working and being away for ten years. Sometimes men just have to go and take care of things so when they come back, things can be better.” I looked at Autumn and shrugged.

Even though I knew she was hurting for her child, she gave me a half-hearted smile. “Speaking of better things, I think we have some shopping to do today. Emmett needs some new clothes that won’t make him blend into the background, and I’m ready to see him in something besides camo and hospital gowns.” She gave Penelope a wink trying to lighten her mood. “Do you think we can help him out?”

It seemed to work. The little girl sat forward and grinned as she threw her fist in the air. “Yes! Can we buy him a tuxedo?”

Autumn and I exchanged a look, and then I tried hard not to laugh. “I don’t think a tuxedo is going to work, but maybe a nice suit and a tie or two. I’m sure after tomorrow, I won’t ever wear camo again.”

Autumn got to her feet and put her hands together. “Then it’s settled. We’ll have a shopping spree and hit all the stores.”

“I don’t want to waste your entire Sunday on my wardrobe. Let’s do something fun.” I wanted to take them out and show them some fun since Jason’s sorry ass hadn’t in a long time.

“We’ll do both. Let’s hit a few stores, get you some things to get you started, and then we’ll go do something fun on the way home.”

“Can we go see Oscar?” Penelope got to her feet and walked over to join her mother with a pleading look on her face.

“Oscar?” I looked up at Autumn, wondering who in the world she wanted us to go and visit.

Autumn pulled Penelope close, standing behind her to address me over her head. “Oscar lives at the zoo. He’s a giraffe.”

I had forgotten all about the zoo. “The zoo sounds fun. It will give me a bit of fresh air and keep me from feeling so cooped up.”

“Then it’s settled, shopping and the zoo.”

I finished a bite of my sandwich. “And lunch in between, all my treat.”

She gave me a sideward look. “That’s not necessary.”

“Yes, it is. It will make me feel like a human being again and not a sack of bones. I have money, Autumn. You may as well let me spend it.” I sipped the last of my juice pouch and turned to pour a glass of water at the sink.

“Fine. And thank you. I think we better leave you to get ready. Come on over when you’re done.”

“I think my first purchase is going to be a pair of jeans.” I hated that I had to wear the camo pants into town with them, but I knew I could always change into something at the store. I was lucky enough that I had my wallet, and that the military had sent what clothes they had, but I was ready to feel like my own person again.

“I know just the place. See you soon.” Autumn encouraged Penelope to the door as she turned and gave me a sexy smile.

I placed my hand over my heart and gave her a wink which made her smile even bigger. I wanted to kiss her so badly, but I couldn’t yet make that kind of move with Penelope around. I hoped that one day soon, it would be a natural thing.

I took another bite of my sandwich and watched them through the window as they made it across the patio to the other house where they disappeared into the door.

Watching them go, I wondered what it would be like to stay in their lives and try to be the father that Jason never was. I knew that the rest of the day was going to be a lot of fun, and maybe it wouldn’t hurt to pretend.

I couldn’t stop thinking about the night before and how good it felt to have her and to have my lifelong fantasy come true. It felt just as good to see that it hadn’t changed anything and that our friendship was still strong. I hoped that it would build and grow and that I could be worthy enough for her.

I cleaned my plate, and then after washing it down with water, I cleaned up the mess and then headed to the room to get ready.