Page 17 of Taming His Honeydoll
“Emma,” he whispered into her ear, the sweet smell of honeysuckle tendrils floating up from her neck and hair. “God, I’ve missed you so much!”
They were oblivious to the people around them as she held his face in her soft palms while they kissed the world away. Then she slowly leaned back and smiled at him. She knew he’d never let her fall, no matter how many times he’d pretended to drop her in the past. Regret coursed through him when he realized he had let her fall though, just in a different way.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” she said tremulously, her gorgeous eyes damp.
“I’m never leaving you again,” he vowed. “And I can’t wait to meet Levi.”
Something flickered in her eyes and she seemed to withdraw. When she wriggled against him and dropped her long legs from around his waist, he reluctantly let her slide down his body until her feet touched the ground.
“You know about Levi?” she croaked, her eyes suspiciously bright.
He nodded, keeping her in the circle of his arms. “It’s a long story, and this isn’t the place for it, but I do know,” he said softly. “What I don’t know, is why you didn’t tell me yourself?”
“Let me ask you this,” she retorted softly. “If you hadn’t known about Levi, would you still be here?”
Nonplussed he stared at her. There were so many possible scenarios to that question that he didn’t know what to say. When pain flashed in her eyes and she spoke again, he knew he’d made another mistake.
“Don’t bother to answer, your silence says it all. You didn’t find me for me, only for your son.” She turned out of his arms and walked away.
Sawyer started after her while the others stared curiously at him.
“Chessy, I need my car keys, please,” Emma said in a wobbly voice. “I want to get Levi and go home with Oliver and Marsha now.”
“I’ll come with you,” Chessy answered quickly. “I’ll drive since you’re hurt.” She glanced at Ty for affirmation and he nodded.
“Emma, wait,” Sawyer called, but the girls ignored him. He started after her but Oliver held out his hand.
“Sawyer, right?”
Ty closed in beside Oliver and he realized the two men were forming a protective front that he wouldn’t get past without a fight. He held up his hands in defeat. “I’m not out to hurt Emma, I just want to talk to her.”
“My wife mentioned to me a few months back that Emma had once mentioned a boy she’d met at school. His name was Sawyer. Is that you?”
Sawyer nodded grimly. “Yes. Emma and I had just met around the time you were getting married. She mentioned Marsha too, that she really liked her.”
“Emma got married the next March. What happened to you?” Oliver asked shrewdly. “Levi was born about eight months later. We all thought he was an early baby. I’m taking it we were wrong?”
“Apparently so.”
Ty’s eyes narrowed and his lips thinned.
Holy shit! That man looked like he could be a mafia enforcer.
“I went into the military,” Sawyer replied evenly. “And before you asked, I didn’t know about Levi when I went in.” He shifted his stance, tired of being questioned like a schoolboy. His own eyes narrowed. “If we are through with twenty questions, I’ll just let you know that I intend to talk to Emma. We have a lot to discuss about our future, and about Levi’s future. Even if Emma doesn’t love me, that doesn’t mean she can keep me from my son.” He stomped out around the two men and headed for his truck.
He was just rolling down his window to let the heated Maine air out when Oliver appeared at his window and handed him a piece of paper.
“Here is my address and phone number. I know my sister and avoiding her problems instead of meeting them head on is a bad habit with her. She also likes to hide things from me. Since it’s obvious you both have things to work out, I’ll allow her to talk to you. But if you hurt her, I have a badass detective friend and his badass detective wife who solved serial killing murders that spanned thirty years. They can make you disappear without a trace.”
Sawyer stared at him. His glance flicked to Ty about three steps behind him with his hands in his peacoat pocket that left him wondering if he was packing. The sunglasses hiding his eyes completed the whole mafia image. If he were a lesser man, he might be afraid, but Sawyer had to admire their determination to protect his girl. He put his hands up on the steering wheel and spoke.
“Because you are going to such great lengths to intimidate me, I’ll let you in on a little secret. I will never hurt Emma, not intentionally. I was trying to locate her house when I drove onto the fire scene. One of the police officers there told me that the word is going around that it might be arson. He could neither confirm nor deny. But if it is, your protection is doubly appreciated since he told me I might want to take extra precautions to ensure her safety.”
Ty hurriedly moved in and snapped, “Who told you that?”
“The young cop I spoke with. Who, by the way, got his ass chewed for telling Emma over the phone that her house was on fire. He’s a rookie and inexperienced, but he was well-intentioned. If that was one of you who lit a fire under his sergeant, you might want to withdraw that complaint so he doesn’t lose his job. He took his mistake pretty hard.”
Ty nodded. “So, noted. He needs better training.”
