Mary Margret Daughtridge SEALed Bundle by Mary Margret Daughtridge

Author:Mary Margret Daughtridge
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Publisher: Sourcebooks
Published: 2018-02-12T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 20

“UNCLE TEAGUE ’S HOUSE IS ONLY A FEW BLOCKS AWAY in the direction of the river,” Emmie said. When she returned to the living room, her hair and makeup had been restored to their former perfection, and the flap of that flirty red dress was buttoned, but it still threatened to open with every step. “It’s a beautiful day, and it will be easier to walk than to find a parking place.”

Their walk took them through the historic section of Wilmington, where block after block of lovingly tended nineteenth-century houses, many restored to the ebullient reds and blues the Victorians had favored, faced the street with gracious porches and hid their interiors with lace curtains. Every door boasted a wreath, and lampposts sported red bows and sprays of greenery.

Sidewalks that buckled over roots of ancient oaks presented a hazard to someone unaccustomed to high heels, and after Emmie stumbled the second time, Caleb took her arm and kept it. He did it just right. Not holding on to her or making her feel fettered. He simply offered her his strength and stability, while adjusting his steps to hers. Her heels tapped the concrete with every step. His made not a sound.

The sun was warm and the bare branches of immense oaks threw a graceful tracery of shadows on houses, lawns, and streets. “I love to walk these old neighbor-hoods when the shadows look this,” Emmie remarked. “I like to fancy that the ancient trees have drawn delicate lines between things to point out to us that everything connects everything to everything else.”

“I’m surprised a biologist would be prey to the anthropomorphism of believing trees have intentions, much less a philosophy.”

Emmie gave him one of her dry looks, only this time she did it out of the corner of her eyes. Holy crap. Where had she learned to do that?

“Empirical materialism is as likely to limit understanding as expand it,” she commented quietly. “Now. Before we get to Uncle Teague’s house, tell me what’s going on with you. What’s your interest in him, really?”

“What makes you think I have any particular interest?”

“Well, you agreed to help me with the cake after you saw his picture, you steered me toward him at the wedding reception, and you accepted his invitation for both of us before I could say a word. Finally, and most telling, you were willing to put off sex in favor of this open house.”

Note to self: Emmie is an astute observer. Don’t be fooled by the wide, innocent eyes and otherworldly air. “Would you believe I was looking for an excuse, any excuse, to see you again?”

She peeped at him out of the corner of her eye. She chuckled. “No.”

He stepped in front of her, forcing her to stop walking so that he could look directly into her eyes. “Well, you’d be wrong, because I was. I want to see you again and again.” She had no idea how close he had come to forgetting his objective.

“Okay, you have two reasons,” she conceded, without backing down one bit.

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