Her Unwanted Protector by Ivy James

Author:Ivy James [James, Ivy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kindred Spirits Publishing

14

Emma arranged for a meeting of the Besties later that evening. Jolie was surprised by the texted invitation to appear at her coffeehouse so soon after Emma’s return, but then the group never stayed away from each other for long. It was an unwritten rule.

“So, tell us,” Morgan said once the group was settled around a table in the front where Jolie could keep an eye on things. “How was the honeymoon? Did Ian let you leave your hotel room to explore the islands at all?”

“Morgan!”

Emma’s face bloomed with color, and Jolie was pleased to note her friend looked insanely happy.

“It was wonderful, and yes, we left the room. Ian’s friend arranged for a private tour, and we went all over the island,” Emma told them. “It was amazing. I even got to go snorkeling. You wouldn’t believe all the colors of the fish. They were amazing.”

“Did Ian go into the water?” Tasha asked, the question no doubt stemming from Ian’s Navy SEAL days. Ian’s blindness had forced him to face his only phobia— that of dark, claustrophobic places. Blindness was Ian’s personalized hell as it trapped him in his head with his worst nightmares.

Emma shook her head and frowned. “No. He stayed on the boat and fished, though. And he’s promised to swim with me at home,” she added, her excitement at Ian’s progress written on her face.

Across the way, Jolie watched as Kaylee bent to pick up a few napkins that had fallen on the floor. A grimace flashed over her pretty face as she straightened. Jolie frowned, the tension inside her growing by leaps and bounds.

“Hello? Earth to Jolie?” Tasha said, getting Jolie’s attention. “You okay?”

Through a force of will, she pulled her nails from her skin and soothed the nail-rimmed area with light strokes of her fingertips. “Fine.”

But when Jolie glanced around the table, she noticed Emma looking down, staring at the half-moons now embedded in Jolie’s skin. She quickly repositioned her fingers and hid them from view, but from that point on, Emma’s enthusiasm dimmed, and Jolie knew her time of reckoning was closing in fast. Emma’s expression and the long stares she sent Jolie’s way made it clear Emma had questions.

Over the next hour, Tasha filled them in on the latest anecdotes of being a vet in a fairly small town. Morgan broke the news of her plan to forego job hunting to place herself and the kids at her ex-husband’s mercy regarding alimony and child support, and explained her plan to practice for the big baking competition to be held over the holidays.

Since Jolie didn’t have anything to add other than how many hours she’d worked, she listened and laughed and commented where appropriate, leaving the conversation several times to help Kaylee close up.

Once the door was locked and the lights dimmed, she suggested the Besties move to the other side of the fireplace and the more comfortable couch and chairs.

“This is really nice,” Tasha called out from behind the wall. “Cozy and comfortable.

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