Chapter Twenty-Eight
Emma didn’t even care that her clothes were the same things she wore yesterday, hastily laundered in Hunter’s machine when they had arrived at his house several hours earlier. She smoothed her T-shirt over her jeans and blushed at the memory of them stumbling through his front door in a heated rush. They had been so consumed with each other, it was a wonder she had remembered to throw her clothes in the wash at all. But now, with the summer festival in full swing and her hair tied back in a ponytail, she had never felt more beautiful.
She spotted him walking toward Haven on the other side of the wharf. He glanced back and smiled at her, and she could feel his warm gaze all the way to her toes. Hunter’s grand opening had been advertised in Seattle and the surrounding Puget Sound areas, and more tourists were visiting than ever before.
They had set up their vending tents side by side, on one corner of the square. Molly and three of Hunter’s staff were busy selling the cookies and cupcakes they had painstakingly created through the night.
James Sullivan had been checking in with Molly throughout the day, buying cookies for some of his nephews or coffee for himself. From the number of cups he had purchased, and the way he was flirting with her, it was pretty clear he was smitten. Molly seemed pleased by his attention, even though she pretended to ignore him.
Emma smiled secretly to herself. Today was turning out so much better than she expected. No doubt her hasty breakfast of a “Bliss Day” cupcake and coffee had something to do with it. A day of bliss, indeed.
Mrs. Mooney sidled up to the cupcake stand with a triumphant smile. Today she wore a batik caftan with purple eyeshadow and a matching purple flower pinned in her hair. Poor Bonbon was clutched under her arm like a designer bag reject, his claws painted lilac.
“Well, what an amazing success you’ve had today,” Mrs. Mooney burbled. “And my dear, I have even better news.” She turned and waved over a young couple. “This is Tom and Betsy.”
The man carried a little boy on his shoulders and the woman was holding a baby. The adorable baby gave her a gummy grin.
Mrs. Mooney beamed. “They’re looking to adopt a puppy, and I told them about Buddy needing a home!”
Emma’s smile faltered. “Oh.” She stared out across the field where Juliette was taking Buddy on a walk through the festival. He scampered around on his leash, sniffing joyfully at everything he encountered. Emma had grown so fond of having him in her life, she hadn’t realized how much she needed him until she was faced with the prospect of losing him.
The woman named Betsy smiled warmly and shifted her baby to the other hip. “Now that our son will be starting kindergarten, we wanted to add a puppy to the family. Yesterday we met Mrs. Mooney in her shop. She mentioned you had a puppy who needed a home.”
Emma tried to nod, but failed. Instead, she found herself shaking her head. She just couldn’t give him up. That day Juliette had shown up with him at her house seemed like a million years ago. He belonged with her and the house now. They were family. It might not be the typical family with parents and kids, but it was still real. “I’m so sorry, but I’ve decided to keep him. I’ve found I just can’t live without him.”
The woman nodded her understanding. After they said good-bye, Emma turned to Mrs. Mooney. “Thank you for trying. They really seemed like the perfect family. I’m sorry I had to say no.”
“Sorry?” Mrs. Mooney cackled. “I’m thrilled you’re keeping him. I didn’t want to sway your decision but Bonbon would have been so heartbroken to lose his friend.”
In a rush of gratitude, Emma gave Mrs. Mooney a hug. As she squeezed the woman tight, Bonbon licked her cheek.
Emma pulled back and stared wide-eyed at the little dog.
He snarled politely.
Emma blinked. Maybe it wasn’t an actual snarl. She tilted her head and squinted her eyes.
His gums lifted around the edges to reveal snaggled teeth. To Emma, it almost looked like the dog version of a smile.
She reached out and patted his head. “Thanks for the kiss, Bonbon.”
Mrs. Mooney nodded her approval. “That’s my good boy. He’s always had impeccable manners, did you know?”
“Mmm.” Emma gave them free cupcakes and waved as Mrs. Mooney wandered away, her purple caftan billowing behind her.
“Coffee?” murmured a voice behind her. Emma smiled and turned to find Hunter standing there.
“Definitely.” She took the cup he offered, and felt another swell of the giddiness that had permeated her brain all day. They had spent two blissful hours at his place early that morning. Who knew what would happen next? All she knew was she’d finally be able to pay her mortgage, her shop wasn’t going to be torn down, and he wanted to be with her. It wasn’t perfect, she knew that. But what was?
He wrapped an arm around her waist and smiled down at her. Maybe the truth was, there was no such thing as “perfect.” Maybe you just hoped for the best and held on and weathered whatever came next. Maybe the answer was that life would always be uncertain, but it was so much sweeter when shared with someone you love.
And she really loved him. Emma knew it with a certainty that eclipsed every other emotion. Even if he didn’t love her back, she had to be honest with herself. No matter what happened next, she deserved that.
She leaned her head against him and sighed. “I think I’ve met my quota ten times over today. And I’ve got some catering contracts lined up for the rest of the summer. Things are definitely looking up.”
“Yes.” He bent closer and murmured, “When this is over, I say you come home with me so we can celebrate.”
Emma laughed. “Aren’t you exhausted? It’s five o’clock and I’m about to keel over.”
Hunter had spent the day back and forth between their vendor booths and his restaurant. The floor manager had assured him everything was going smoothly, aside from the low variety of baked goods and desserts, but the stellar lunch menu made up for that. All in all, things were going better than he had thought possible.
“Sure I’m tired.” He winked. “But some things are more important than sleep.”
Emma stared at his mouth. Sleep? Pshaw. Who needed sleep? It was totally overrated. Then she remembered Buddy. “I want to, but I have to go home. Juliette’s been taking care of Buddy, but I need to feed him.” She gestured to the till as Molly handed a tourist a bag of cookies and made change. “I also have to take the money home. But you can come with me. I mean, if you want?”
She felt shy all of a sudden, and worried he might say no. As much as she vowed to embrace whatever came her way, the little girl inside her still wanted assurances that everything was going to be okay. That same little girl wished so much that she could just skip to the end of the story to make sure.
“I want that very much,” he said.
Warmth radiated through her body. Elation. That was the feeling. Emma wanted to kiss him right there, in front of everyone, but she didn’t get the chance, because he kissed her first. Hunter brushed his lips against hers, and everything around them fell away.
Molly giggled.
James clapped.
Gertie and Walter hooted from across the field.
Emma smiled against Hunter’s mouth. “I think we have an audience.”
“Then we better make it good.” He kissed her again, slowly, softly, thoroughly, and she melted against him. For one perfect moment, the pages of her story seemed to flip to the end and Emma glimpsed nothing but happiness.
Looking back, she often wondered if she could have stopped what came next. If only she could have done something different that day. If only she had known.