Page 43 of Trouble Me
Chapter 15
Rock, Meet Hard Place
Icould hold her likethis foreverwas the thought that kept running through Shane’s mind. She was soft and smelled so fucking good. He closed his eyes and bit back the nausea that hit him in the gut. Her body language and the fact that she told him about her accident made it clear she trusted him.
Jesus, he was stuck in his own private hell. He didn’t have a clue as to what he was going to do now that he knew about the property.
She leaned back. “Ready to head back?”
He nodded and they started toward the house hand in hand. Shane gazed around while Emma pointed out different things about the trees and told little anecdotes. His business brain took over and he was in heaven thinking about all the possibilities, which only made the guilt dig its heels in.
“When did they close down the B&B?”
She continued to walk but looked down. “Not long after my dad died, so a few years ago. He handled the excursions, and after he died, my mother tried to keep them up because they were profitable add-ons, even after all the expenses that came with them.”
Another moment passed before she continued. “After my dad sold all the horses to pay off his gambling debts, he went back out and gambled again. This time, he had to cash out his life insurance policy to pay off the debts because he’d mortgaged the house and the land. After a while, my mother couldn’t afford to keep the help, couldn’t afford to keep the place open at all.” Emma sighed. “The rest of the family had no idea his gambling had gotten so out of hand. He’d had issues before. My uncle Paul bailed him out a couple of times. But after the last time, my father swore he would never do it again.” Her mouth hardened into a straight line. “He did, he just kept it well hidden from everyone.”
With the bits of info he had from the broker and what she’d told him, Shane was beginning to put the pieces together. It wasn’t a pretty picture, and it made him hurt for her. Which made the situation shittier for him. “That’s when you sold your business, isn’t it?”
She looked away, her eyes unreadable. “It was the only thing I could do. I made a lot of money during my run in business. I was able to sell it for a pretty penny.” She shrugged. “It wasn’t what I wanted to do, but my mother needed it. Her health was failing and she faced losing the last thing she had—the house and the land. I told her we wouldn’t lose them, and we didn’t. But I’ll admit it’s hard to keep up with things now, day in and day out.”
He looked around at the expanse of dormant, yellow grass covering her acreage, dotted with islands of trees here and there. “How many acres of land do you have here?”
“Um, just a little over forty.” A smile lit up her face. “Come with me, I want to show you something.”
Emma pulled him toward a large tree where a tire swing hung from a large branch. “Hey, look at that. I always wanted a tire swing,” he said, smiling.
“It’s really old,” she said, looking up to the thick ropes wrapped around the tree. They were anchored to an old, thick branch of a massive oak tree. “It was here when my mom was a kid. Although my dad changed the ropes a couple of times, it’s been a while. I hope it will still hold me.”
Shane tugged hard on the ropes that were as thick as his bicep. They reminded him of ropes on a large boat and didn’t budge an inch. “They seem secure to me.”
Emma grinned. “Perfect.” She climbed in and perched on the edge of the enormous tire, then began to rock back and forth, trying to gain momentum. She bit her lip, concentration etched all over her face. His Emma knew how to focus.
HisEmma? When the hell did that happen? Pushing the thought aside, he turned his attention back to what she was doing.
“Want some help?” he asked, after a couple of moments.
She turned her face to him. “Please? It seems I’ve forgotten how to get this going.”
Shane pushed the tire, sending it swinging in a pendulum, pushing it again when it came back his way. Emma laughed as she sailed through the air, her dark hair flying behind her.
She was a beautiful sight, one that took his breath away again and again. He wasn’t sure he’d ever get used to it, wasn’t sure he would be able to walk away from her when the time came. And the time would come, because he couldn’t continue this...whatever it was with an employee. Not to mention he was only in Madison Ridge temporarily. Shane didn’t do long-distance relationships. Hell, he didn’t do any type ofrelationshipanymore. Not since Marlene.
Shane also knew that once she found that he was trying to buy her house, Emma would never speak to him again. And he’d have one fewer employee. He had to figure out how to get out of this mess he found himself in. But, for the moment, all he wanted to do was spend more time with her. However long that time may be.
She dragged her feet along the ground, kicking up dust, trying to slow down the motion. When the swing finally came to a stop, her cheeks were flushed, turning that creamy skin into a rosy color that had his body tightening.
“Ah, that was fun. I haven’t done that in ages,” she said, laughter still in her voice. “Now let’s see if I remember how to get out of here.”
