Page 62 of Take A Chance

“When they accused me of helping Alberto inform on the family, I fled. I had no other choice. They would have killed me too, just to make an example of me. Mr. Emmerson, you have to believe that if I had thought for a second that it would endanger Katelyn, I’d have never come here. And when Amelia—uh,Emma—arrived... well, I knew it was only a matter of time before they found me too.”

Taking a deep breath, I studied her. She was being painfully honest with me, and I respected that. It didn’t make me pleased to know my staff had missed this when she applied. I had fully vetted every person who came through this door myself, so missing this meant we needed to tighten things up a bit, but I loved Greta like she was my dear aunt or close family friend. I let my head drop then turned back up to look her in the eye.

“It takes a lot of bravery to do what you did, running from the mob, creating a false identity, lying to your boss.”

Her bottom lip quivered and her tears brimmed. “I’m so sorry, sir.”

“But you are here. You’ve become a part of this family. I could never turn you away. Besides, Katelyn loves you and so does Emma, and if you were trying to harm me or my daughter, you’d have done it a long time ago.” One thing still puzzled me, though. “How did you do it, get past my security scans and the background checks?”

She let her head fall. “I’m afraid to say I was very uncouth in my behavior. I lived with a dear friend of mine for a time after fleeing. Her name was Greta. Her husband was deceased, her children grown and moved away. She passed away quietly one night in her sleep, but I remained living in her home. I did not report the death. When Bonetti came after me, I went to a former contact and asked them to help me escape. I switched my identity with Greta’s, leaving her as Giada Luccino, deceased in her sleep. The coroner had her cremated before her children were the wiser, and I use her identity to continue living my life.”

Yet another mess of a detail I’d have to iron out, but at least it didn’t mean chasing her across the state and having a knife fight. I chuckled, and it made my side hurt. She looked up at me in surprise. “You women are going to be the death of me.”

A slight grin on her face turned into a huge smile. She opened her mouth to speak, but Katelyn came bursting into the room shouting, “Daddy! Emma is going to teach me to dive today!”

Emma followed behind by a few paces, dressed in her bikini. She was stunning. I stood to greet her, and she walked up to me and offered a kiss right in front of Greta, who blushed. “I’ll be by the pool, Daddy,” she said, winking. Then she took Katelyn’s hand and walked out the back door.

“What was that?” Greta asked, curiosity in her tone. When I looked at her, I noticed her sly grin.

“Emma has agreed to be my wife,” I said calmly, but she squealed and clapped her hands.

“Oh, I just knew something was going on between you two!”

“Yes, and we’ll need your help with the planning. I am thinking a nice ceremony in the back yard, maybe in a month or so. Of course, we have to tell Katelyn, but she will love this news, I’m sure.” I couldn’t help but smile. “And we are planning to tell Katelyn too, but Emma is pregnant.”

Greta threw her arms around me and kissed my cheek hard, then pinched it. “I just don’t even know what to say. You two are perfect for each other. I never thought you’d find someone, you know? And this is just... well, nothing short of a miracle.” Greta gasped and looked up at me with eyebrows raised. She held her hand up, ticking things off on her fingers as she started rambling and walking toward the hall. “We’ll need a menu, some flowers. Oh, I’ll have to rent chairs and buy decorations. Gosh, I’m going to enjoy this...” Her voice faded as she shuffled away.

I shook my head and chuckled as I strolled out the back door toward the pool. Emma was already in the water, splashing around with Katelyn. I kicked my shoes off and pulled my pant legs up, sitting on the edge. The water was cool on my toes, and I didn’t know how the two of them could get in, but I wanted to be with them.

“Look, Daddy, I float,” Katelyn said, throwing her feet up. She floated on the surface of the water easily. Emma had done an excellent job teaching her how to swim. It was something I knew every child needed to know, just not how to go about teaching her.

“That’s great, Katelyn. I’m so proud of you.” Emma swam over to me and leaned against the side of the pool. “Think we should tell her now?”

“I think anytime is a great time.” She looked up at me, all smiles, and I knew that she was thinking the same thing I was. Emma was going to be more than just Katelyn’s new mommy. She was going to be my wife. I knew she was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.

“Katelyn, sweetie, can you come over here?” Emma called out to her. Katelyn swam over to us, looking up at us expectantly. She pushed the hair out of her eyes and leaned on the edge of the pool like Emma.

Emma took a deep breath before speaking. “Katelyn, your dad and I have something to tell you.”

“What is it?” Katelyn asked, her eyes wide with curiosity.

“Well, we’re getting married,” I said, grinning from ear to ear. Katelyn’s face lit up with excitement, and she let out a little squeal.

“That’s so cool! Can I be the flower girl?” she asked eagerly. Emma and I both chuckled at her enthusiasm.

“Of course, you can be the flower girl,” Emma said, pulling Katelyn into a tight hug.

“Wait, does that mean you’re my mommy now?” Katelyn asked. She looked up at me, and I nodded. Katelyn would never know what an amazing mother she truly had, not until she was much older.

“And not only that, but you’re also going to be a big sister,” Emma told her, kissing her cheek. She let go of Katelyn, who giggled and splashed.

“Really? A baby brother or sister?”

“We don’t know yet,” I said, shrugging my shoulders. “But we’re excited to find out.”

As we broke the news to Katelyn, a wave of excitement washed over me, and I looked over at Emma, feeling incredibly lucky to have her by my side. Katelyn was thrilled at the idea of being a big sister, and I couldn't wait to see her bond with her new sibling.

After telling Katelyn the exciting news, we spent the next few hours celebrating by swimming and basking in the sun. It was a perfect day. The sky was a clear blue, birds sang in the trees, and life felt full of endless possibilities. I couldn't wait to start planning our wedding with Emma and Katelyn.

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