Page 78 of Caught in the Middle

Her family. They were the people she called family outside of her aunt and she had completely torn into them, fueled by anger and betrayal, and then she attacked with her verbal nails. She’d spent plenty of her flight home hating herself for what she’d said, for deceiving them in the first place, and then she’d spent equal amounts of time getting mad all over again for what Lauren implied, her role in it.

As Emma walked into her kitchen and opened the empty fridge, which wasn’t surprising since she’d not been home in weeks, she sighed. She let herself wonder if Lauren and Asher still had their wedding ceremony or if the ugliness from the morning had put a stain on this day and that plan for them. She shoved the thoughts out. The guilt with it.

Picking up her phone, she ordered delivery. There was a text from her aunt asking if she’d made it home safely. She responded, letting her know they could talk more tomorrow after she’d rested. A small part of her was putting it off, knowing she’d feel ashamed of her words and actions the moment she said them aloud, no matter how much she’d been beaten down by everything else said.

As her aunt’s text came through saying she’d stop by tomorrow and to get some rest, Emma sat down on a barstool, facing her empty apartment. She bit the bottom of her lip, trying her best to refrain from any more tears. How did she have any left? But as a conversation between her and Cam tugged at her memories, she knew another dam was about to burst open. She could still feel his enthusiasm as he kissed her and she said she wanted to show him her life, where she lived, her favorite restaurants, and she wanted to know and experience everything about his life back in St. Louis. He’d peppered her with kisses, making her heart swell in ways it never had before, and then he proposed meeting her here at her apartment whenever she got back from Europe.

She looked around her home again, and although he’d never stepped foot inside it before, it now felt like it was missing his presence. She didn’t try stopping the tears as they came full force down her cheeks.

???

The next morning, after a fitful night of sleep, Emma began her laundry. She hadn’t bothered with unpacking last night, too emotionally drained to do anything but eat and curl up in her bed. Now she had to get the ball rolling before she hopped on another plane tomorrow.

She heard the knock on her door after she started the washer and quickly went to answer it. In the doorway stood her aunt with a smile on her face, the aroma of delicious food surrounding her, and holding a carrier with two coffees.

Emma took the coffees from her, turning to go place them at her dining table for two. “You’re a lifesaver,” she said, sitting them down as her aunt did the same with the food. Then she wrapped her in a big hug, inhaling that familiar scent of the woman who raised her. “It’s good to see you.”

“I’m glad to have you back, even if just for a day.” Her aunt smiled and gave her a kiss on the side of her head. “How’s my girl?” She took a seat at the table, pulling food from the bag. She’d told Emma she’d bring over breakfast, knowing her lifestyle enough to know that she wouldn’t have food here and a trip to the grocery store would be pointless since she left again tomorrow.

Emma took the other seat and gulped down the coffee. She needed this. “I’m good,” she said. “I didn’t start preparing last night, so I’ll have to get everything ready today. I’ll probably pop over to the store to refill some of my travel toiletries.”

Her aunt gave her a no-nonsense look. “Don’t lie to me. I know somethings up.”

Emma frowned at her. “What are you talking about? You just got here.”

“You were texting funny yesterday.”

Emma scoffed as she took a bite of her breakfast sandwich. “What? No, I wasn’t. I was texting normal.”

Her aunt shook her head, her brown eyes looking at her with the same insight she’d had all of Emma’s life since she moved in with her. She knew better than to think she could hide her turmoil from Aunt Mel.

“Fine,” Emma gave in, sitting the breakfast sandwich down and leaning back. “Do you want the good, the bad, or the downright heart-wrenching ugly?”

Her aunt’s brows rose. “Well, I suppose let’s start from the beginning,” she replied. “Then maybe we’ll have enough caffeine in our systems to face it together.”

Emma’s heart plunged at “together,” thinking about that brown-haired, blue-eyed man who had wanted to do the same. She took a steadying breath and began.

If she hadn’t already believed her aunt to be one of the greatest people on this planet, then she would’ve by the time she finished catching her up. Aunt Mel reached across the table, giving Emma’s arm a gentle and reassuring pat as she offered a mother’s smile. Not that Emma had ever called her by that title, but she’d always felt like she received that kind of love from her aunt.

“For starters,” Aunt Mel began, “I’m sorry you’ve been dealing with all of this on your own.”

Emma shook her head. “I’ve not. I had Lulu and Cam in the know until yesterday morning.”

“Yeah, but even twenty-four hours can catch up to you when your heart is bleeding out.”

Emma swallowed at that and nodded because that’s exactly what it felt like.

Aunt Mel laid one hand on top of the other in front of her on the table. “Sweetie, even the closest of families have the ugliest of fights.”

Emma’s shoulders sank. “This was worse than that. Trust me, you should’ve seen the way they were looking at me. I severed all ties.”

“You don’t think that with some time and self-accountability, the relationships could be mended?” She let out a laugh that suggested that was nonsense. “Love isn't that fragile, I can promise you that.”

“Lauren even said as much that I’m not family,” Emma protested.

“Yeah, and you called her desperate, a second choice, and implied she was after your leftovers,” her aunt responded, giving her a look that suggested she didn’t find that as one of Emma’s finer moments, though there wasn’t harsh judgment in those caring eyes. “Did you mean those things?”

“No,” Emma said, appalled.

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