“And I’m keeping you standing out in the cold. Come on. I’ll take your things upstairs.” He reached for her purse. “You go find Cass. She’ll get you sorted out.”
“Thanks.” Now she felt like an ass for snapping at him. “You’re a good guy, Emerson.”
“I don’t know about that. If I was a good guy, I wouldn’t do this.” He bent down and brushed a kiss over her cheek, then captured her mouth with his. She knew she should push him away, but the spark that lit between them had her leaning in for more, instead. Up close, she could smell the soap he used, something masculine and fresh. His flannel shirt was soft to the touch, his muscles hard underneath. Kissing him felt good.
Emerson pulled back. “Dinner first, then we’ll put your feet up. Find something good to watch on TV.”
Before she could protest, Wye found herself inside Cass’s warm kitchen, a beer in her hand, her butt in a chair and the room filling with all Cass’s sisters and their husbands as they came to greet her and hear about Mindy. Her tension melted away among their questions and chatter. Emerson took a seat next to her a few minutes later, having stowed her things in her room. He leaned in close.
“Tell your brother tomorrow he can’t keep commandeering you forever. You’ve got people here who need you, too.”
“People?” Wye leaned back so Cass could set down a plate of food in front of her.
“Me. Look—whatever happens between us, I’m in your life now, and it makes a difference to me if you come home or not. If you’re happy or not. You tell your brother you have people who need you here—or I will.” He took her hand. “We need to talk. When you aren’t so tired. Things have gotten a little complicated.”
Did he mean because of Mindy’s disappearance and the time she was spending at Ward’s—or something else altogether? Had he changed his mind and decided he didn’t want to marry her after all?
Why did the thought make her wince? Hadn’t she promised herself she’d break things off with him?
“No more talking tonight—please?” she asked. “I’ve had about as much as I can take today.” She wasn’t sure if she was putting him off to avoid telling him they were through—or because she was afraid he might end the relationship himself.
She didn’t want to examine her motivations, either.
“Okay,” Emerson agreed. “I can wait.”
The next day passed much like the previous one had. Emerson busied himself helping the General and staying out of everyone else’s way. The General continued to fuss about the insubordination of his daughters and their husbands and refused to do any of his physical therapy exercises, even when Emerson pointedly did his own in full view of him. Everyone else was perfectly polite to his face, but he couldn’t help wondering what they were saying behind his back. Late that afternoon, he found himself searching online for apartments to rent in Billings—and looking for a full-time job to take on in addition to his reserve work.
He kept hoping the General would talk to Cass, Brian and the others and that together they’d decide about letting him—and Wye—stay, but no one seemed in a hurry to debate the topic.
Which left him hanging in an unpleasant way.
Wyoming missed dinner again, an awkward meal at which the General said little and everyone else said too much to try and fill in the gaps. When she did arrive later in the evening, she was on her phone. Emerson caught her heading in the kitchen door. Wye lifted a finger to tell him she’d be off in a minute.
“That’s good news,” she said. “Where is she?” She listened a beat. “Idaho? Is she coming back?” She listened some more, the furrow between her eyebrows deepening along with her frown. “Okay. See you tomorrow.”
“What was that about?” he asked.
“Mindy has been spotted in Idaho,” Wye said tiredly, shedding her coat, purse and carryall. Emerson helped her put things away. “She sped through a light, and an automatic camera took her photo. The local police passed it on to the Chance Creek sheriff’s department. Cab called Ward just now, and he called me.”
“She’s coming home?”
Wye shook her head. “No one even knows where she is now. Seems she was just passing through Boise. There was no one else in the car,” she added. “Not that they could see, anyway.”
Emerson processed that. “So she’s on her own.”
“At least she hasn’t been kidnapped—and she’s still alive—although I’m not sure that’s going to make Ward feel any better.”
“Why were you so late?”
“Ward kept me waiting again.”
“Was he out looking for Mindy?”
She shook her head. “I think he was drinking. I thought so yesterday, too, but today I could smell it on his breath. He said he had only one beer, but I stayed to make sure he ate a meal and drank a few cups of coffee before I headed out. He was completely lucid the whole time, and I’m probably making a mountain out of a molehill, but I had to be sure he was sober enough to care for Elise. I wish I’d brought her home with me.”
“You want me to go back there with you and get her?”
She scanned his face. “You’d do that?”
“Of course.”
She thought about it. “No, like I said, Ward was fine when I left.”
“How about when you talked to him on the phone just now?”
“He was definitely down after that call from Cab. He said he planned to go to bed early, so hopefully he’ll get some sleep, and I’ll be there first thing in the morning.”
“If Mindy doesn’t come home, how long are you going to keep watching Elise?” Emerson asked carefully. He respected Wye for how she was stepping in to help, but Ward didn’t seem the least bit grateful for what she was doing—nor did he show the least amount of respect for her time. Wye deserved better.
She pocketed her phone. “I don’t know,” she said. “Until he figures something out, I guess. I’m sure she’ll come back—sooner or later.”
And Emerson was just as sure Wye would keep filling in for her sister-in-law, no questions asked, until then.
Which made her a good person, he reminded himself.
“Why does it bother you so much that I’m spending time with my niece?” she asked him.
Hell, was that what she thought? “I’m not bothered by that at all. I’m bothered by Ward taking advantage of you.” He struggled to explain. “Reminds me of someone I used to know. It’s not important.” He waved it off, but the truth was Ward’s behavior bothered him a lot. It reminded him of the way he’d worshipped his older cousins growing up at his aunt and uncle’s house. The way he’d rushed to help with their chores and to fetch and carry things for them because he wanted to tag along on their adventures. The way he’d covered for them so they wouldn’t get in trouble with their parents.
The way they’d cut ties the minute his uncle kicked him out. One day he was part of a big family. The next he was on his own.
“Cab Johnson told Ward he can’t treat the case as if there was foul play. ‘Looks like she drove off on her own accord,’ is how he put it. Ward’s furious.” She made a face. “He demanded to know if Cab thought Mindy ran away from him.”