Page 26 of Marrying Emma

They had nearly twenty miles on the highway before their next exit. Marty relaxed into the back of his seat. “I have a hard time believing you’ve never, in your entire life, wanted to learn something or pursue a dream.” When she said nothing, he pushed a little harder. “When was the last time you were truly inspired by something you were doing?”

Marty didn’t think she was going to answer until she finally took a deep breath.

“I guess it was while I was working at the veterinarian clinic. I mean, it’s not like I was a vet myself, but I was a tech. Sure, there were heartbreaking cases where a loved pet had to be put down. But most of the time, it was all about helping animals and making their lives better.” A ghost of a smile pulled at her lips. “Thanks to my health issues, it took me forever to graduate and get my license, but I did it. I worked for a vet in Clearwater for nearly two years.”

“And that’s when your health started to fail again?”

“Yeah. Fail more, anyway. I was getting sick constantly. My doctor worried all the chemicals and even the cleaning supplies were irritating my lungs. My boss was super understanding, but after missing work as much as I did, even he was worried about keeping me on the payroll. I finally quit when I realized a transplant was my only option.”

Even after everything he’d gone through with his accident, it was still difficult to understand being in a position where he knew that a transplant was his only hope to live. “You’re healthy now. Maybe you could look into working with animals again.”

Emma shrugged.

“You do that a lot,” he told her.

“Do what?”

“Shut down when you don’t want to respond.” When she shot him an annoyed look, he gently nudged her arm with his elbow. The short contact sent electricity skittering across his skin. “Hey, we all have our defense mechanisms.”

“Believe it or not, being a vet tech doesn’t pay a whole lot more than I’m making working for Caleb. And Caleb understands if I don’t feel well. I’m not sure I could handle getting a job as a vet tech again only to lose it because the boss doesn’t tolerate that.”

Marty couldn’t remember Emma taking a single day off for being sick since he’d started working for the gym. “You’ve been healthier, right?” She nodded. “Then it seems to me you’re confident it’s a given that something bad is going to happen.”

“There’s always a possibility that my body could suddenly reject my heart. Or I could get sick and, thanks to my anti-rejection medication, couldn’t fight it off.” Her voice sounded gruff, as though she were on the verge of tears. Or maybe it was frustration.

Their exit was coming up fast. Marty flipped on his blinker, got into the right lane, and took the exit around until it deposited them on another highway. At least their next exit was only a mile up ahead. As soon as they took it and were on a side road, he pulled into the first parking lot they reached.

Emma looked around, confusion on her face. “This doesn’t look like the gym.”

“It’s not.” He put the truck in park and shifted to face her more. Her green eyes watched his and the vulnerability he saw there made his heart stumble. “Look, I’m going to say something, and I know that you’re probably not going to appreciate it.” Her gaze hardened, and he swallowed. Marty pointed to the left side of her chest. “You got a gift when you received that heart. A second chance a lot of people would give anything to have. It seems to me, when you live in fear like you’re doing, you’re not appreciating what the gift truly means.”

Emma pressed her lips together into a thin line, the muscles in her jaw flexing as she clenched her teeth. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Actually, I think I do. Probably more than a lot of people.” He paused. “Why don’t you go to church, Emma?”

“I’m not talking about that with you. Certainly not now.” She bit her lower lip hard. “We’re going to be late, Marty. Just drive. Please.”

He held both hands up in surrender. “All right. Like it or not, Emma, I’m your friend. And a friend tells it like it is.”

Marty hated that he might have hurt her feelings or made her angry with him. But at the same time, she’d clearly been focused on the limited range of her life for far too long.

Father, please let her see how much she has to look forward to. Give her something to fight for, something to inspire her.He glanced at her as she kept her profile turned from him and watched the world go by outside her window. Emma was hurting, and there was little Marty could do to fix it, especially when she wasn’t open to his help.

11

Emma hadn’t known what to expect with the ninja competition. A crowded gym, dozens of competitors, and friendly faces quickly made her realize how tightly knit this group of people was. It didn’t matter who competed, everyone cheered and encouraged each other.

It was different than most sports Emma had seen. Sure, people were competing against each other, but it was more like they were challenging themselves to better their previous time on an obstacle or to go further than they had before.

It was inspiring. It’d lightened Emma’s foul mood a great deal, too. Something she desperately needed after Marty’s not-so-welcome attempt to chastise her on the drive over.

Seriously, he had no idea what he was talking about.

His words had elicited an anger she’d rarely experienced in her life. How dare he suggest she didn’t appreciate her new heart?

Marty cheered from beside her as Caleb stepped up, ready to begin his second run on the obstacle course. Emma shook her melancholy thoughts from her head so she could cheer for her boss. She cupped her hands around her mouth. “You’ve got this, Caleb!”

Emma was quickly caught up in the adrenaline of watching Caleb race through the obstacles and make it up the warped wall at the end. He hit the button to record his time and then threw his arms above his head with a grin before climbing back down again. Before long, the time was recorded, and it was announced that he’d made it to second place with that run.

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