Chapter 10

Autumn

When I returned to his room, I was surprised to see he’d not even started on his food. “Is something wrong? I thought you’d have half of it eaten by now.” I carried my drink over and pulled out my own burger, which was still in the bag.

“I wasn’t going to start without you.”

“My, what manners you have, Mr. Burke. When we were kids, you’d have already eaten yours and half of my fries.”

“Well, to be fair, I did already eat a couple of fries, but I ate my own.” He pulled one out of the bag and bit the end.

“It’s okay. Dig in. I know it’s probably been a long time since you had one, unless you’ve made trips home that I didn’t know about?” I didn’t want to hear that he’d been home and not come to see me.

“Nope, no trips home. I haven’t seen my father. I kept in touch with him and my brother very little over the phone, but I figured that you and Jason needed time to make a life together.” If he had known the kind of life I’d had with Jason, he wouldn’t have felt that way.

“Yeah, well, you were a big part of our life, Emmett.” I didn’t know if I should tell him about my problems with his old friend.

He shrugged. “You had each other. I didn’t think that it was going to be an issue.”

“We would have kept in touch if we’d known how to find you, but we didn’t.”

“I know. That was my fault. I wanted to reach out a few times just to say hello, but it never seemed like a good time. I had so much going on trying to get my degree over the past few years, and with being deployed, it wasn’t easy.”

“But you got it?” It was nice to know he’d done things for himself, but it was no surprise, really. He’d always had a good head on his shoulders.

“Yes, I finally finished a few weeks ago. Well, over a month now. I keep forgetting I was out for two weeks.”

“Well, at least you’re rested.” I didn’t know what to say because I didn’t think he wanted to relive the incident that had put him there.

He took a bite of his burger, and by the look on his face, he was in heaven. He wiped his mouth and took a sip of his drink. I bit a fry and watched him as he enjoyed his. It almost felt like we were kids again, but we were so much more mature, and so much had happened.

“My memory is a bit sketchy, but it’s all coming back to me. I do remember that one minute, I was eating lunch with my friend, and then bombs were going off. I was shot trying to get us to safety. My friend had been shot in the leg, and I got shot in the chest.”

I covered my mouth and held my breath as I said a silent prayer and thanked heavens that he wasn’t killed. “That’s terrifying.”

“I’m just glad my friend made it. He’s got a wife and three kids that need him.”

“That’s just like you, always thinking about others. But you know, there are people that need you just as much.”

“I appreciate you saying that.” He took another bite and washed it down. “So, where is Penelope?”

“She’s gone to her friend’s house for a playdate.”

“I can’t imagine what it’s like to have a little one.”

“It’s amazing.” I took another sip of my soda. “I can’t believe you remembered her name.”

“It was your grandmother’s name.” He shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal, but the fact that he remembered her after all these years was endearing. “I used to love her. She had the best candy dish of anyone I’d ever visited. And she was always sweet to include me and Paul at Easter.”

“She loved the holiday. She would go all out.” I hadn’t thought of my grandmother in a while, and certainly not the Easter parties she used to throw. “Those were the best times. Grams would make a huge dinner, and then remember, she’d hide those big money eggs?”

“Yes, I found three bucks!” Emmett held his stomach and laughed.

I remember being upset he’d found more than me. “I found like two-fifty. Do you remember what we did with it?”

“Hell yeah, we walked all the way into town to the candy store and bought as much as we could, and then we split it.”

“We said that Halloween had come in the spring, remember? We bought all of the penny and nickel candy they had, I think.”

“Do they still have that place?”

“Yes, I take Penelope and Paisley there all the time.”

“Paisley? Is that your dog?”

I laughed and almost choked on my soda. “No, Paisley is my daughter’s BFF.”

“I bet they are something else together. Is she like you?”

“She looks just like me. Except there are a few times when she’ll do something, and it’s painfully obvious that she’s Jason’s child, too.” I rolled my eyes and laughed to keep it light, but I could immediately tell that he was picking up on my attitude toward Jason by his narrow stare.

“What happened to you two? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“I don’t. It’s just, I hope you’re prepared to hear my side of it. I know he’s your friend, too.”

“You’re my friend, Autumn. He was my friend, but if it hadn’t been for you chasing after him, I wouldn’t have hung around him. I had to make sure you were okay.”

He’d known in school that I’d broken up with Jason a time or two or three. “Yeah, well, thanks. I guess it would be fair to tell you I’m a bit bitter about the marriage, the divorce, and the fact that neither me nor Pen have heard from him in almost a month.”

“Damn. Really? Sorry, Autumn, I hoped he’d changed. I really hoped he’d be the man you thought he was.” He put his burger down and wiped his mouth.

I wanted to tell Emmett that he should have been there. If he had, then maybe, just maybe, it wouldn’t have been so bad. “You were the only person who gave him a conscience, Emmett. I don’t want you to think I’m blaming you, but without you around, he got worse and worse.”

He looked away, and I could see the muscle in his jaw feather as he gritted his teeth. “I’m sorry. I can’t believe he isn’t more concerned with his daughter. Did he not want children?”

“He said he did, but like everything else, Emmett, I think he just wasn’t mature enough to handle it.”

“So, what do you do? I mean, you’re working somewhere?”

“With my father, of course. He hired me, and I don’t think even he was prepared for that. I’ve done a few things to impress him, and the company is doing really well.” I couldn’t help but think he needed to come to work for us. With his degree, I could clear a place for him.

“It’s awesome that you’re doing so well. It looks like Jason didn’t slow you down any.”

“Nope, I wouldn’t let him.” I held my chin up and smiled.

“That’s my girl.” He chuckled. “You were always so determined, especially when you were pushed.”

I thought back to the times that I’d pushed him, and he’d usually fight back with me just as hard. Emmett gave me a challenge, while Jason had always tried to give me my way to pacify me.

I liked being called “his girl,” and as I sat there picking through my French fries, I couldn’t help but wonder if this was my second chance.

“What are your plans, Emmett? You said you wanted to talk to Paul about living with you, but what else?”

“I thought a new place might do him some good. I’m not sure where I’m going to put down roots, but I think he needs a fresh start somewhere.”

“Somewhere? Not Raleigh?” The thought of him moving away made me sad. I’d just found him again, and I didn’t want to let him out of my life this time.

“I’d need a hell of a reason to stay, I guess.” He looked up and met my eyes, and I wanted to be that reason so badly I wanted to beg, but I knew better. I didn’t want to guilt him into staying; I wanted him to stay with me because he wanted to.

“Things have changed around here since we were kids,” I said.

“I just feel like Paul needs a break. I hope he feels the same, but I have a feeling it’s going to take a lot to convince him. I walked out of his life, and he’s resentful.”

“I could be resentful too, but I’ve missed you too damn much.” I really had. I had wanted to reach out so many times, especially when I was scared of being a mother, and I was sad he hadn’t been around for Penelope’s birth. In a way, I thought it might have been easier for him and better to not be around to watch Paul self-destruct. “I saw him on the street years ago. He was hanging around with that kid from down the road; you know the one he was big buddies with when he was like eleven years old? That kid had joined a gang, and I knew he was bad news. His parents threw him out, and he ended up in bad trouble. I’m not sure if Paul had ever joined the gang, but I know he hung around with a lot of them.”

“Jesus. I guess it’s going to get worse, the more I find out.”

“I hope not. I really hope that’s all behind him. But he’s still young.”

“And he blames me for his shitty life. That was clear.”

“You weren’t his keeper then, and you’re not now. He’s a man, and any choices he’s made are on him. He could do better if he wants, and let’s hope he has. He did have enough snap to have you brought home and let’s face it; there’s no telling where he might have had them send you.” I knew that even if Paul just wanted to rub shit in his face, he did choose what was best for his brother.

“I know you’re right.” He picked up two fries and popped them into his mouth. “It’s just, I wish he’d had it a little easier like me.”

“You had it easy? I don’t think so. You still had to live with your dad, and you were the one around to see your mom die. Paul was still so little.”

He looked up and met my eyes directly. “But I had you, Autumn. I had you and your family to always include me and make me feel like I was one of you. Your mother was so good to me. She made me feel like I could do anything I set my mind to, you know?”

“You always could, too. She was right about that.”

“I liked showing her my report cards when I was young. Did you ever know that?”

“I knew you did, but I just figured since your dad was so out of it, you felt like you needed to show someone.” Looking back, it must have been hard not having his father be interested in his achievements. He’d worked so hard and was one of the hardest working students and athletes I knew.

“I showed her because I wanted her to respect me. I wanted her to see that I would work hard. It meant everything that she would take time to care about it when most people, even some of our teachers, didn’t.” He made me realize how important it was for him to know Penelope.

“Would you still like to meet my daughter?”

His eyes lit up, and he gave a wide smile. “You bet. I still have almost two weeks to go with therapy, and sometime between now and then, I hope to be getting out of here.”

“What if I brought her by tomorrow?”

“That would be amazing. You have no idea how awful it is to be in this room day in and day out.” He finished his last bite of food, and then after wiping his mouth, he laid back against the pillows.

I swallowed my last bite. “Then it’s a plan. I’ll bring her by tomorrow, and we can have a nice visit. You can tell her stories about us when we were little. She’s heard some from me, and she asked about you all the time. I’m beginning to think she thinks I’ve made you up.”

He chuckled and pulled the covers back up over his lap. “I can’t wait to meet her. I know if she’s anything like you, I’ll love her. And thanks again for dinner, Autumn. I’m stuffed, but it was sure good.”

“You’re welcome.” I pulled the tray away and gave him a big hug, and that was when I made up my mind that I was going to get him a job with my company, even if I had to create one for him.