Page 54 of Higher Ground
“I’m your son. If you kick me out, you’re no better than me.”
A laugh rumbled through Byron. It was laced with irony that seemed to fuel Byron’s rage. “The difference between you and me,” he drawled, stepping out from behind Emory and right into Jaxon’s space. Byron towered over his son and almost cracked a smile when he saw Jaxon tremble. “Is that Emory and Clayton belong with me. And I love them both with every single tiny little piece of my heart. But sheneverbelonged with you. I should thank you, really, because every shitty thing you did only served to bring her closer to me. You’re a worthless piece of shit and I amashamedto call you my son. But that’s what you are, so there will always be room for you in my life, but only when you’re ready to start making things right.”
Jaxon took a step back, stumbling over the threshold.
“But … you … my …”
Byron was done. Adrenaline raged through him. His hands were tight fists again, and each breath burned his lungs. Stepping forward, Emory reached past Byron and swung the door shut in Jaxon’s face.
They stood, staring at the door until they heard Jaxon’s old car revving off down the driveway.
Emory stepped in front of Byron and leant her shoulder against the wall. “I should have told you he was in town. I forgot, I’m sorry.”
“You knew?”
Nodding, Emory ran her hand along her arm. “I saw him before the flood. The day I bought the condoms.”
That explained why she had been so off guard that afternoon. Fuck, Byron felt terrible. Not because she hadn’t told him, but becauseJaxonhadn’t. As far as Byron was concerned, it was just another big X against his adult son.
“I should have told you,” Emory added. “I meant to tell you, but then you saw the condoms and I was so embarrassed again and I just … I forgot.”
Byron shifted his shoulder and winked. “I distracted you.”
Dropping her head to the side, Emory leant more of her weight on the wall. “He was right, you know, I …”
“No.” Byron stepped forward, turning Emory so her back was on the wall, caging her in with his arms. “You did none of those things, Em. Don’t let him get inside your head.”
“Clayton deserves to know who his father is.”
“He deserves a man who loves him to death and would do anything for him. Not some spineless excuse of a father who only wants to see him as a way of getting under your skin.”
Emory placed her hand on Byron’s chest. His heart calmed under her touch.
“He has that, Byron. He has you.”
“Then he has everyone he needs.”
Chapter 27
Emory
Emory knew what she wanted, and the finality of her decision sparked through her until all her hairs stood on end. There was still the question of how it would work: her job and the town and the farm. But those things seemed inconsequential compared to the love that was racing through her. All that mattered was that she loved Byron, and he loved her. He’d said so.
The rest they could figure out, but sheknewthey had to be together. Somehow.
Byron’s arms dropped a little from the wall on either side of her head. His hands fell onto her shoulders, and she tilted her head to run her cheek along his wrist.
“You know,” she said, looking up at Byron through her damp lashes, “Clayton will probably be sleeping for a while longer.”
He didn’t seem to take the hint. Falling forward, he rested his forehead against the wall next to her ear. “Emory,” he whispered. Her name caught in his throat, and she thought for a moment he was crying. “It’s going to fucking kill me when you go back to the cottage.”
Leaving was going to kill her, too. If telling Byron where she planned to go didn’t do that first. More and more, she was wondering how she would cope, if she would cope, or if she’d hate her whole adventure to the city and come running back to Byron. She turned her head, nudging Byron’s face with her own. “I know,” she whispered, still too afraid to have the conversation she knew they needed. “But I don’t want to think about that right now.”
“What do you want to think about?”
“You.”
Emory kissed his cheek. Her lips lingered on the rough stubble from his grown-out beard, the tingle sending a shiver straight to her core. Her body remembered how fucking good that stubble felt on other parts of her. Byron groaned, but turned into the kiss and claimed her mouth with his own. His hand slipped up her shoulder to the back of her neck, and he sank his fingers into her hair.
