Page 52 of Engulfing Emma

In my experience honesty is usually the best way to go. I tell them the story. Some of it anyway.

“There was a snake,” I say, going into the kitchen for a much-needed glass of water.

As I pass the back door, I think of the man who just went through it. Tingles shoot through me as I think of his whispered words in my ear.

Chapter Seventeen

Brett

Through the baby monitor, I hear Leo stirring. I throw on sweatpants and cross the hall to his room. “Morning, buddy.”

He stops playing with the stuffed animals in his crib and stands, waiting for me to pick him up.

I pull him into my arms and give him a hug before putting him on the changing table to get him in a fresh diaper. Leo’s window is next to the table. I peek out, hoping to see her.

“Binky,” Leo says, reaching toward the crib.

He calls the pacifier his binky. He never goes anywhere without it. I pick him up and fly him around like an airplane, swooping him down so he can snag the binky. He squeals in delight.

I stop mid-flight when we pass the window. I stand in front of it and pull the curtains back, checking the view. I know exactly which window is hers. I’ve been in her room. In her bed. Inher.

My cock twitches thinking of it.

Her curtains are still drawn. It’s early, and the sun isn’t fully up yet. Still, I stare at them, willing them to open. Did she think about me after I left yesterday? She wouldn’t go to dinner with me, not even after what happened. Is she that scared of dating a firefighter?

I think of her other fears. Tall buildings. Airplanes.

I used to be afraid of going into tall buildings for the same reason she is. But if I wanted to be a firefighter, I had to get past it. And just like how she went back into the school, the only way to get over fears is to confront them.

I feel a gnawing in my gut, knowing I want to be the one who helps her do it. But the way she kicked me out yesterday, as comical as it was, I still got the feeling that what happened was a one-time thing.

As I’m staring at her window, her curtains flutter open and suddenly she’s standing there in a nightgown. She can look anywhere—the street, the sidewalk, the sky—but she looks right at me. I wave, knowing she can see me. She’s obviously surprised to see me standing here looking at her. She pulls her robe around her and backs away. She backs away without acknowledging my wave.

Does she regret yesterday?

“Daddy fly,” Leo says, patting my face to get my attention on him.

“Okay, buddy.”

I take one last look out the window to see her curtains drawn again. Then I look at my son. “How about we make pancakes today?”

“Paycakes,” he says in excitement as I fly him into the hall.

In the kitchen, Bria is sitting at the table drinking coffee with Bonnie.

“Bia! Bia! Bia!” Leo screams, wiggling out of my arms to run over to his aunt.

She scoops him into her arms and plants kisses all over his face.

I love the relationship they have. She’s definitely the “cool” aunt. The one who lets him eat more chocolate than I allow. The one who takes risks and has fun.

“What are you doing here so early?” I ask.

“Couldn’t sleep,” she says. “Too excited.”

“Right. The audition.” I pour myself a cup of coffee and join them at the table. “Tell me how it works.”

“White Poison is based out of New York. They’re all Brits, but they live here, which is great for me. But unless I make it to the final cut, I won’t even meet them.”

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