Page 51 of On the Fly
The gnawing doubt he’d had for over two days now made him remember to keep it professional with her while he tested the waters. Reasonableness needed to replace emotion. The facts remained that Emma hadn’t uttered a single word of protest to stay with him. Maybe she didn’t care that he’d sent her away. Ander rubbed his temple where the ache started again. She hadn’t attempted to get him to talk or to understand his sudden about-face. She just walked away, as if it were the easiest thing in the world to do.
His heart squeezed, giving him a moment’s pause. Did a heart attack feel like the organ begging him to make all this right? To do whatever it took to win her over again? God, thoughts of Emma in his arms had his dick hardening, as it always did, reminding him of the power she held over him. No.Rein it in, Ander. Once he saw her reaction, talked to her directly, only then would he know the correct course to take.
~~~
Sunday
After ordering a sandwich from the adorable poolside tiki clubhouse, Emma pulled the lounge chair to face the sun and tossed her towel over the backrest. As she settled into the seat and closed her eyes, she let the warm Dallas sun seep into her skin. She drew in a deep breath and tried to release the tension of the last week with her exhale. She couldn’t have asked for better weather for her Sunday drive from Amarillo to Dallas.
She’d gotten Ander’s messages on Saturday but couldn’t bring herself to answer the phone while she’d been driving or reply to his multiple phone calls or emails once she’d stopped in Amarillo, Texas, late yesterday afternoon.
Sometime Friday, she’d shifted from hurt over Ander’s abrupt change in personality to furious at his unfettered gall at shipping her home as if she were a wayward puppy. If she had it all to do over again, she’d have let him have it at the elevator, then kept at it all the way to the hotel. And his phone calls and subsequent emails weren’t helping her ire.
She had figured out one thing while rehashing the events with Cara Friday night—she wasn’t quite ready to let Ander go completely. The events were too bizarre, and she needed to keep an open mind. This could be the end of their road, or maybe just one heck of a hurdle. For now, she didn’t yet know what she wanted to say to him, and on the road in the middle of the country, wasn’t the place to discuss it. He could stew in his own juices until she got home. Then she’d figure out the next step with him.
Her face heated from more than the penetrating rays of the sun, and she drew in another deep breath, shaking out her hands to dispel her irritation at the jerk’s high-handed ways. She’d been restless the previous night, tossing and turning. Every time she shut her eyes, the images of Ander at the elevator transported her back in time. She’d given up on any useful sleep at three that morning, showered, dressed, packed the few items she’d taken in with her, and gotten on her laptop to search for her next stop. She’d located a great deal on a resort spa in Dallas, so when the first hint of sunrise lightened the sky, she’d hit the road.
Almost six hours later, she’d arrived. While the hotel concierge couldn’t get her into her assigned room until later in the afternoon, he’d graciously stowed her bags and let her change in the spa so that she could take advantage of the pool and other facilities. Julia had insisted she pack swimwear for California, and though she’d thought the idea ridiculous, she’d shoved a one-piece and coverup into her bag. The scrap of material sat right there, just like she’d thought it would, until she’d seen the pool and the sun beckoned her. Then she sent a mental thank-you to her stepsister and hoped she was having a fabulous honeymoon.
As she relaxed poolside, with the sounds of happy guests chatting and splashing in the oversized resort pool, the tension drained from her soul.
“Ma’am? I have your order.” The softly spoken words drew her eyes open. The waiter set a low portable table beside her chair and balanced on top a tray filled with her lunch request. She hadn’t been that hungry when she’d ordered, but she’d never seen a more gorgeous tray of food. They’d flanked her sandwich with fresh sliced fruit and a small side salad. Her stomach rumbled, but the glass of ice water with cucumber slices set off to the side called to her.
“Thank you.” She sat up and reached for the glass, taking a long drink. “That’s amazing.”
The waiter smiled. “It’s the parsley. We leave a cucumber slice when we bring it out, but the parsley gives it a little something that everyone seems to enjoy.”
“It’s great.” She glanced at the tray for a bill she could pay but didn’t see one. “I don’t have a room number yet. I’m checking in today. Do you need a credit card?”
“No, ma’am. You enjoy. The concierge let us know. We’ve got a temporary tab opened, and it’ll be billed to your room once you have one assigned. My name is Paul. If you need anything else, let me know.” He smiled again and tipped an imaginary hat her way before sauntering off to the other pool patrons.
She lifted the sandwich and took a healthy bite, groaning at the flavor. Her phone rang and she glanced at her bag, debating on pulling out the device. At least she knew it wasn’t Ander. She’d set his phone number to go straight to voice mail. It could be Cara though. She’d been keeping track of Emma’s journey since she’d found out about the cross-country jaunt. Emma didn’t have it in her to ignore the call. She set her sandwich back on the tray, chewed as fast as she could, and rummaged in her bag to catch the call before it rang too many times. ID confirmed her suspicions and she answered as she tried to swallow the huge bite without much luck.
“Hey-wo,” she mumbled around the bite as she finally managed to swallow. She tried again, “Hey, sorry about that. I was eating.”
Cara laughed. “Well, it’s good you’re eating at least. You sound better than you did yesterday. Travels going well?” Cara had been her sounding board the last few days, ever since she’d laid out the entire fiasco with Ander. Well, it hadn’t all been a fiasco. In fact, most of it had been wonderful. The middle parts at least. Until whatever had happened late Wednesday night anyway. Emma scowled, then shook her head, refocusing on the call.
“Yep. I made it to Dallas in record time. I’m currently poolside at a resort spa, where they just brought out my lunch and the most fabulous glass of water I’ve ever tasted. I may never leave Dallas. You’ll have to move out here with me and we can live in this spa together.” She glanced around at all the carefree people enjoying the sparklingly clear day and it made her smile.
“Not to bring up bad juju, but did Ander finally leave you alone yesterday?”
Emma snorted at that. “I wouldn’t know. I set his number to go to voice mail, and I’m not checking work emails this weekend.”
“Ooh, now I know you’re pissed.” Cara laughed. “You never disconnect, no matter what.” She drew in a breath. “Well, I’m proud of you for taking some time for you.”
Emma popped a grape in her mouth, the flavors exploding across her tongue as she bit down. “His actions were so high-handed, and while he said in the one voice mail I listened to that he wants to apologize… I don’t know. I need some time to figure out what to do with that.”
Cara mumbled, “Interesting.”
Emma sighed and munched on another grape. She drew in a deep breath, and revealed, “I miss him. We fit so well.” When Cara laughed, she quickly added, “Not like that, dirty bird. Well, okay, like that.” Heat rose in her cheeks at the memory of their private time together. “But I mean we talked about everything, and even when our opinions differed, we could still debate the merits. It was fun to have someone I could talk to on so many levels. And we worked well together in the office too.”
“Maybe it’s worth trying to figure out what happened and seeing if it’s fixable.”
Emma hoped they could. “But his ability to turn off…everything—his personality, his compassion. How do we fix that? I couldn’t be with someone who could turn on me and I’d never see it coming.” And that was the circle she’d been going through, and her real reason for not wanting to talk to Ander yesterday. “Besides, I don’t even know if he wants to repair things.”
Cara scoffed into the phone. “A man does not call as many times as he did and he does not say he wants to apologize unless he’s interested in repairing something. He wants to talk to you. That has to mean something.”
“I guess. While groveling would help, I’m not sure it’ll be enough.” Emma ran a finger over her lips, contemplating her options. Nothing would be clear until she got home and listened to what Ander had to say.
