Page 97 of Marrying the Nanny

There hadn’t been any good way to break the news to her, though. He had known that, and at least Emma had seen her at her best for a few minutes. His mother had been welcoming and happy to meet her.

He’d been regretting how things had unfolded the whole time he’d been with his mother, however, and had been compelled to come back here the minute she’d gone to bed. He’d had to make sure Emma hadn’t left him—which is what he briefly thought when he woke to an empty hotel room.

Her things were still littered about, though. He found his phone in the bathroom with a text from her telling him she was downstairs with his mother. His tension returned and he hurried downstairs.

Emma smiled with visible relief when she spotted him, but he quickly realized his mother was still in the foggy state of medication.

“Hi, Mom.” He gave her a hug, trying to convey he wasn’t angry. “Good morning,” he said to Emma with a brief kiss. “Thanks for letting me sleep in.”

“Of course. We’ve been having a good visit.” A difficult one, he didn’t doubt, judging by the strain around her eyes.

He was overcome with gratitude that she was trying to establish a connection with his mother, though. Em for empathy, he thought, nodding for coffee and touching her shoulder as he said, “Let me get some breakfast. I’m starving.”

The rest of the day went pretty well, all things considered.

He drove his mother and Emma to three different dress shops, poking around in whatever was nearby while Emma tried on contenders he wasn’t allowed to glimpse. At one point he dragged them into a jewelry shop where they decided on simple wedding bands. Emma didn’t want an engagement ring.

“I can afford a ring,” he told her. “Don’t let Mom’s accusations get to you.”

“Knock my socks off with a five-year anniversary band. How’s that?” She was making a facetious reference to her failed first marriage of four years.

“Deal.”

Her remark sparked determination in him. Five years. He could barely imagine it. Storm would be starting school. None of this was the future he had envisioned for himself. He was never one to let himself get attached to any particular outcome. Too many things could go wrong, the disappointment too painful to face, but he looked forward to sliding a ring on Emma’s finger five years from today, maybe a little smug because he knew it had been a throwaway joke and she would have forgotten about it an hour from now.

He wouldn’t. Everything about this day was sinking into his long-term memory. Her kindness to his mother, her hair picking up glints of the sun as they walked to the car, the way her lacy white summer dress draped her subtle curves after they dressed at the hotel. The tremor in her voice when they made their promises to each other.

Olive and her husband joined them, adding a jovial touch to the dinner afterward. There was even a live guitarist who said, “Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve just been informed we have newlyweds in our audience. Let’s welcome them for a first dance, shall we?”

Olive returned to the table with a rueful smile. “I couldn’t resist.”

Reid was no Fred Astaire, but he wasn’t a coward. He stood and drew Emma to the small dance floor as the musician picked out Eric Clapton’s “Wonderful Tonight.”

“Please tell me this wasn’t the song you danced to with what’s-his-name.”

She chuckled. “Ed Sheeran. ‘Perfect.’ Kev’s sister was my maid of honor. She’s a huge fan and apparently had an ironic sense of humor. Shame, really. Ruined that song for me. This one is nice, though.”

He heard the lyrics about “how much I love you” and faltered slightly, fearing the slide into that state could be as easy as the lazy tempo of the song. Love was messy and complicated. He would rather stay right here.

“You do look wonderful,” he managed to say. She looked happy. It took his breath that she could glow so prettily when the baby he was giving her wasn’t in sight.

“Thank you.” She slid her arms around his neck.

“Thank you,” he said sincerely.

Her gaze softened with understanding. “It’s okay, you know. I don’t expect ‘perfect.’ That’s unrealistic.” She rose on tiptoe and tickled his ear with her breath. “I do expect some wonderful nights, though.”

They hadn’t made love since that day her brother had visited Raven’s Cove. He wanted to. Ached to. But he was hoping to do it without completely losing himself again.

Nevertheless, in this moment, as her weight leaned into his and her light scent filled his nostrils and he realized he was married to this woman, he closed his arms tightly across her lower back, squeezing her in for a kiss that made the whole room sigh out a big “Ahh” and clap.

Which made them break apart with laughter. It was wonderful.

Chapter Sixteen

For Emma, sex had always been a complex combination of yearning to please and physical frustration. Communicating around it had eventually become torturous, especially when she’d been trying to conceive. After her marriage ended, taking responsibility for her own pleasure had been a gift, one she didn’t particularly want to share.

Then came Reid, literally taking her on the ride of her life.

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