Page 50 of You Found Me
“Everything is good now,” she assures me. “I talked to Mia about it, and she basically said the same thing as you. I do appreciate you telling me before I inevitably heard it through the town grapevine. Let’s just be sure to lay it on thick today.”
“Of course, baby girl,” I say with a smirk, watching her roll her eyes but noticing a small smile forming. I place my hand out. “Shall we?”
All of Main Street is decorated with colorful leaves, twinkle lights, carved pumpkins, a few fair rides, booths with various games and stuffed animal prizes, and food vendors, to welcome the start of Fall. Emmaline is next to me, holding my hand, while sipping on a hot apple cider we picked up on the way from Edie’s.
As we walk, we get a lot of curious glances, followed by multiple people pulling out their phones. I’m sure before the day is over, everyone in town will know for a fact that we’re together.
We’re supposed to meet everyone at the beer garden to come up with a game plan for the day. This group loves their plans and honestly, I can get behind it. Emmaline notices a stand selling fresh apple cider donuts, as well as pumpkin donuts.
As soon as she sees it, she looks up at me with pleading eyes. “I know we’re supposed to be meeting up with everyone, but I mean come on, fresh donuts. Also, I know for a fact they roll them around in cinnamon sugar.”
“You think I’d ever say no to fresh donuts? It’s like you don’t even know me at all,” I tell her with fake hurt before smirking. “How about you go sit at one of the tables while I stand in line to wait for them. It’s the gentlemanly thing to do.”
“You are such a dork, but thank you. I need to check my email anyway.”
“Do you want a mix of both? Or . . . ?”
“Surprise me, Spence. I trust your judgment.”
And when she says that, I look at her face and actually believe she means it. I hate that we’re doing this because she’s dealing with the Chance of it all, but I am thankful that I’ve been able to get to know her better. She’s intrigued me since that first night I met her back in college.
Obviously, there was a mutual attraction. We both felt it. But hearing that she’s starting to trust me brings out an entirely different feeling.
After a year of not hearing from her, I gave up on the idea of there ever being anus, chalking the whole meeting up to just a fleeting connection, and moved on to dating Kat. That relationship was more to combat loneliness for the both of us and ended before winter break our senior year. She understood I was focused on school because so was she. I think the best description of our relationship would befriends with benefits.
I make it to the front of the line and go with two dozen each. They’re mini donuts and if we walk into that beer garden with only a few, the others will riot. I’ve only been around Callum a couple of times but he’s super serious about food.
Making my way back to Emmaline, I notice her staring so hard at her phone that she could burn a hole through it. “I secured the bag, aka the delicious donuts,” I tell her, bags raised in the air. She stands up but doesn’t bother to look up. “Is everything okay?”
The last thing I want is for Chance to ruin her mood again.
“Um, yeah. Everything is great actually.” She looks up right then, and I notice her eyes are watery. “I, uh, got into the master’s program at USC Charleston for spring semester.”
I sit the bags on the table and pull her into a hug, spinning her around. “I knew you could do it, Buttercup.” I place her back down and decide to be bold.
Reaching my hand up to cup her face, I lean in, giving her a chaste kiss. Much like the one she gave me on our date. Snifflingreaches my ears, and I step back from the embrace. “I’m sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have done that.”
A weak chuckle passes her lips. “No, the kiss was unexpected but nice. I’m a little emotional because I’m proud of myself for doing this. Chance didn’t like the idea of me continuing my education or even working because he said, ‘when we have children, your only focus should be them.’ He’d say it in such a loving tone that I agreed every time. He has no hold over this part of my life anymore.”
Every part of me is mixed with anger at that asshole and immense pride for the incredible woman standing in front of me.
I lean down to kiss her forehead. “I’m so proud of you, Emmaline. Now come on, let’s dig into a few of these donuts on the way to meet our rowdy friends.”
“Thanks, Spence. It means a lot,” she says as she reaches for a bag of the donuts. “Good grief, how many did you get?”
“Four dozen. I was going to only get two, but since they’re mini and we’re meeting up with everyone, I wanted to make sure we had plenty.”
Emmaline throws her head back laughing. “I think we’ve got morethan enough.”
“Guess we’ll find out,” I say as we walk into the beer garden. There’s a chorus of hellos from everyone. I’m finally able to meet Cori, and while she and Colette are definitely twins, they have very different vibes.
After we get settled at a large picnic table, I stand. “I know this isn’t a formal dinner or anything, but I’d like to propose a toast.”
When everyone raises their preferred drink, I continue, “As you all know, Emmaline and I are dating.” I watch as Mia and Theo both make a face and then realize the other has made the same one. “Well, this smart, beautiful woman is the newest grad student in the Family Nurse Practitioner program at USC Charleston.”
Squeals erupt from the girls as they jump up to hug her. Theo and Callum tell her they’re happy for her, with Callum adding, “If you ever need anything while you’re there, just let me know. I teach at the high school a few blocks from campus.”
She smiles. “Thanks, Callum.”
