Page 16 of Marrying Emma

“Honestly? Not for a second. I guess I’m a Texan, through and through. Besides, you can’t beat Clearwater. Small enough to have a true community, big enough to have everything you need, and close enough to a city to get everything else.” He gave her a gentle nudge with his elbow. “Besides, changing doctors would be a huge headache now.”

Emma’s eyes widened. “Oh, that would be a nightmare.” She looked thoughtful. “I can’t imagine leaving Clearwater, either.”

Marty wished they could continue their conversation, especially since Emma was starting to relax a little, but Wyatt came back in then. He wiped his shoes off on the mat as Mrs. Laughlin and Chrissy brought in trays laden with bowls and the three cartons of ice cream Marty brought. There was also a plate of cookies.

They set everything on the large coffee table. “We weren’t sure what kind of ice cream everyone would want, so figured we could dish it out here.” Mrs. Laughlin gave Marty a bright smile. “Thanks again for bringing it—that was very considerate.”

“You’re welcome. Thank you again for the invitation.” He motioned to the ice cream. He’d brought chocolate plus cookies and cream in addition to the rainbow sherbet. “Hopefully the combination will mean there’s something for everyone.” He smiled. “And the cookies look delicious.”

Chrissy eyed the carton of chocolate. “Well, I’m thinking some chocolate ice cream and a chocolate chip cookie sounds like heaven.”

Wyatt grinned and immediately set about getting dessert for his wife. Chrissy took a bite and released a happy sigh. “This baby is definitely a fan of chocolate.”

Marty didn’t miss the look of appreciation on Emma’s face when she took a spoonful of pineapple sherbet. It made him happier than it should have to know he’d played a part in that smile. He looked around the room. The house might be small and the furniture older, but it felt comfortable at the same time. He liked it.

He glanced at the portraits hanging on one wall. There was a picture of a couple; the woman was clearly Mrs. Laughlin from years ago. The man she held hands with looked down at her with obvious love in his eyes. Marty could see the resemblance between Emma and her dad.

Time was going by fast. He should probably take his leave soon before he wore out his welcome. It was hard to have a normal conversation with Emma, and having this opportunity to get to know her—along with her family—was difficult to pass up.

He cleared his throat. “Do you all attend church here in town?” It seemed like an innocent enough question.

Wyatt reached for Chrissy’s hand. “We go to Clearwater Baptist. My family has been attending there for years—even my grandmother goes there.”

“That’s awesome.” It’d be neat to go to church with his whole family. Marty looked at Emma and Mrs. Laughlin. “How about you ladies?”

Mrs. Laughlin glanced at Emma. “I started going to Chrissy and Wyatt’s church about a year ago. It’s wonderful.”

Emma said nothing, and Mrs. Laughlin redirected with a question of her own. “How about you, Marty? Where do you go to church?”

“Sunrise Community on Bay Street. I’ve been going there since I was a kid. When my parents relocated to Florida, it was nice to have friends there to rely on.” Marty glanced at Emma curiously.

She stood quickly and gathered bowls. “I’ll take these into the kitchen.”

Marty got to his feet. “Here, let me help you.” He followed her and placed his dishes in the sink along with hers. “Why don’t you go to church, Emma?” He’d known people who had home churches or chose to listen to podcast sermons instead. But it was odd for the rest of Emma’s family to attend when she didn’t.

“It’s complicated.”

She obviously wanted him to drop it, but he couldn’t. He didn’t entirely know why, either. “You mentioned you were a Christian, so I know that’s not the reason.”

Emma gathered her hair at the nape of her neck and twisted it as though she were trying to wring out the right words. “I guess God and I haven’t been on speaking terms for a while. Or at least not like we should be.” She sighed and released her hair again, a quirk that came to light when she was nervous or struggling with what to say.

Marty resisted the urge to reach out and finger one of the curls. “What happened?”

“Look, going to church isn’t the end all, be all, of a relationship with God.” There was a warning in her voice, though she seemed to be careful to keep it low to prevent the others in the living room from hearing.

“You’re right. But talking to Him is.” He rested a hand on her shoulder and did his best to ignore the electricity that skipped over the surface of his skin. “You know I’m here if you ever need to talk.”

Irritation flashed in her eyes, and she took a step away from him, a movement that hurt him more than it should have. He let his hand drop to his side.

Emma shook her head. “I’m good. We’d better get back out there.” With that, she walked away from him and into the living room.

Marty followed, but Emma’s words—and her actions—weighed heavily on his heart. It wasn’t long before he excused himself. He thanked everyone for the wonderful meal and insisted on leaving the cartons of ice cream. Once on his Harley, he waved before leaving Emma and her family behind him.

All the way home, he thought about what Emma said. He’d certainly had moments where he’d yelled at God. Questioned why he had to lose his leg, and why things had gone the way they had. But in the end, he’d known God had spared his life. Helped him heal. There were times in the process that he wasn’t sure he could’ve made it through if it hadn’t been for that peace from God.

If Emma hadn’t allowed herself to rest in God… No wonder she was exhausted, especially spiritually.

Marty turned off the street and punched in the code that opened a gate, allowing him access to the driveway leading to his house. When his parents moved to Florida, he’d been more than happy to buy his childhood home from them.

---