Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
“ I think it’s this spot over here.” Marley peered into the distance and gestured to a secluded area in the park behind a row of trees.
Steady chatter rose and fell around Emma as she paused to glance behind her at the hordes of townspeople already gathered for the eclipse. Sighing, Emma straightened her back and glanced ahead, a smile hovering on the edge of her lips when she spotted her mother wheeling Henry in their direction.
He was pale, and his eyes were pinched, but there was no mistaking the gleam in his eyes.
Nothing, not even a stroke, was going to get in his way.
He hadn’t even bothered to ask how Emma had learned so much about the eclipse—hadn’t thought to question her about the clues she’d found in his study.
But Emma was sure there would be time for that later.
Jules fell into step beside Emma and laced her fingers through hers. “This is so exciting. What do you think is going to happen when we find the treasure?”
Emma shrugged and focused on putting one foot in front of the other. “I don’t know.”
“But we’ll tell the town, right? Otherwise, they might get suspicious or something.”
Emma shot her daughter a sideways glance. “That’ll be up to your grandpa.”
Since he was the true heir to the Sullivan family treasure, whatever he chose to do with the findings was entirely up to him. Emma hoped he had enough common sense to use some of the money to ward off the threat of foreclosure, but when it came to her father, she never knew what he would do.
Even now, his face didn’t give anything away.
Jack was the last to join them behind the cluster of trees, and everyone lapsed into silence. Marley ran a hand over another tombstone, the same one mentioned in the letters, and exhaled. Then, she stood up straighter and took a step back, melting into the shadows. In the background, excitement was reaching a fever pitch as a few more clouds gathered, and everyone waited with bated breath for the sun to be blotted out.
More and more townspeople were spilling out of the school auditorium, eclipse glasses perched on their heads.
Emma tilted her head back and stared through her glasses, the low thrumming in her ears only growing louder.
“Looks like it’s going to be a while,” Marley said, one hand raised to her face and the other tapping her thigh. “Anyone feel like going for a walk?”
Unable to stand still, Emma looped her arm through Marley’s and tugged her away. In silence, the two women stepped out of the park and wandered around the town square. A few horse-drawn carriages ambled past, with people leaning sideways to wave at the crowd. Out of the corner of her eye, Emma spotted a few kids rolling up snow while others raced over with carrots and an assortment of hats and twigs.
Marley stopped in front of a vendor who sold several types of hot chocolate and bought two cups. Wordlessly, she handed Emma one. She smiled when the lingering taste of peppermint filled her mouth. She took a few more sips and glanced over her shoulder at Jules, who held on to Kyle with one hand and used the other to make a sweeping gesture.
Despite the winter wonderland unfolding around him, Kyle only had eyes for her daughter.
It both warmed her heart and frightened her.
Emma didn’t want to admit it, but she was afraid Jules was setting herself up for heartbreak, just like she had.
“We’re almost there. You don’t need to look so worried.” Marley patted her back between sips of her drink. “I’m sure it’ll all work out.”
“I’m not worried about what the eclipse will reveal. I actually just want to get it over with.”
Marley tilted her head to the side, and they drew to a stop in front of the large Christmas tree, twinkling with hundreds of brightly colored lights. “What are you worried about?”
“I think Kyle is going to propose to Jules.”
Marley did a little shimmy, and her hands flew to her mouth. “Oh, that’s wonderful. Wait, how did you know? Did he ask for your permission or something?”
Emma shook her head. “He didn’t have to. I recognize that look in his eyes. It’s the same one Andrew had before he proposed.”
Marley’s smile slipped as she studied Emma thoughtfully. “You don’t sound too happy about it. I thought you liked Kyle.”
“I think Kyle is great, but Jules is still young, and she has a year of college left. With him needing to travel so much, how are they going to make it work?”
How were they supposed to be together without compromising one or both of their futures?
At least until Jules graduated.
Try as she might, Emma couldn’t picture any scenario where they both ended up with what they wanted.
“That’s the city cynic in you talking.” Marley waved her comment away and smiled. “I’m sure they’ll find a way to make it work. Kyle could go to less dig sites until Jules graduates, and she could join him whenever she’s got time off.”
Emma frowned and stared down at her drink. “I suppose.”
“Is this really you being worried about how they’ll make it work, or are you scared Jules is going to leave you alone in the city?”
Emma glanced up sharply. “I don’t mind being alone in the city.”
Marley raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that?”
Emma cleared her throat and looked away. “Jules already lives on campus, and I’ve got work to fill up my time, so it wouldn’t be that different.”
“Except it would. Jules wouldn’t be spending most of her free time with you,” Marley said softly. “I know that’s hard to wrap your head around, but I think that’s what’s really scaring you.”
Emma opened her mouth to protest, but no words came.
She didn’t want Marley to be right, not about this.
But a part of her ached at the future Marley was painting, at the thought of watching as Jules spread her wings to soar while leaving Emma behind.
Emma hated feeling stuck, and being left in the city was no exception.
Without Andrew there, and the prospect of Jules leaving looming ever closer, the thought of returning to Boston wasn’t as appealing as it once was.
The hustle and bustle of the city couldn’t make up for their absence.
Maybe Rockport wouldn’t be so bad, after all. At least you’d have your parents, Marley…and Jack, of course.
Except she’d barely looked at Jack since her father’s admittance to the hospital.
The few times she’d seen him since then, she hadn’t been able to bring herself to talk to him, to clear the air after the dance, and she couldn’t tell if it was a good or a bad thing. At night, she tossed and turned, replaying their passionate kiss on a loop and trying to figure out what happened next.
Spending an hour in close proximity to him but not being able to talk things out had been torture.
In the harsh light of day, Emma was forced to confront the truth.
They wouldn’t survive another attempt at long distance, not when they’d barely made it through the first year of her being at college.
Real life was harder and more complex, and she couldn’t see herself flying to Rockport every weekend, not with her demanding schedule.
And Jack had a whole life here: a son who lived in town and a business that needed his attention.
She couldn’t ask him to drop it all and leave.
Could she?
She thought of Andrew then, as she usually did, and she wondered what he’d make of all of this.
Would he be happy she was even considering moving on with Jack?
Marley waved a hand in front of Emma’s face. “There’s nothing to get so worked up over, babe. Everything is going to be fine.”
Emma’s lips lifted into the ghost of a smile. “Ever the optimist, huh?”
“I think you’ve been through too much for it to not work out. Whether you decide to stay here in Rockport or go back to your life in the city, whether Kyle proposes or not…it’ll all sort itself out. You’ll see.”
Emma threw her half-empty cup into the nearest bin and glanced up at the sky. “We should head back. My parents have probably talked Jack’s ear off by now.”
“I don’t think he minds,” Marley teased before looping her arm through Emma’s. “You should make some time to talk to him.”
“Has he said anything to you?”
Marley shook her head. “Not in so many words, but I can see it in his eyes. And after you told me what happened at the Christmas dance, I—”
“I don’t know if it can ever happen again. Not until I’ve figured out what my future looks like,” Emma interrupted with a quick look over her shoulder at Jules, who was tucked into Kyle’s side, the two of them looking blissful and content. “Otherwise, it wouldn’t be fair to him.”
Marley said nothing as the two of them crossed the street.
When they emerged through the cluster of trees, Marie was sitting on a foldable chair next to Henry, who was studying the skies intently. Jack was leaning against a nearby tree, a half-smile hovering on the edge of his lips. He pushed himself off and made a beeline for them, stopping when he reached Emma.
Marley murmured something under her breath and unwound her arm.
Jules and Kyle walked right past them, and everyone gathered in a half-circle around the tombstone. The eclipse had almost covered the sun in its entirety, leaving them minutes away from the big reveal. Emma tilted her head back to look up into Jack’s handsome face, and her mind went blank.
“Penny for your thoughts?”
Emma’s lips lifted into a half-smile. “They’re worth a lot more than that.”
Jack chuckled. “How about a dollar then?”
“They’re not worth that much.”
Jack’s smile vanished as he took a step closer. He towered over her, the smell of him overwhelming her senses.
It reminded her of nights curled up by the fire and lazy summer days at the park, with her head in his lap and his fingers in her hair.
Emma didn’t know if she could ever go back to that.
Staying didn’t mean turning back the clock or rewriting their history.
But leaving…
She wasn’t surprised to realize she couldn’t bear the thought of going back to her spacious apartment with its too-large windows, airy feel, and the faint ringing of traffic far below. The thought of crawling into her king-sized bed after a long day didn’t hold the same appeal it used to, nor did the thought of putting on her finest suit on a Monday morning and striding through the glass doors of the sleek office building, expensive Manolo pumps clicking against the hardwood floors.
Why didn’t it excite her like it used to?
Where was the rush she had lived off of the past few years?
A city life without her family didn’t hold the same meaning it once did.
What had happened to its chokehold on her?
“I know there’s a lot going on right now, but we should talk about what happened,” Jack whispered, his eyes softening slightly. “Once all of this settles and dies down.”
Emma let her eyes sweep over his face, taking in the sharp jaw, the wide-set eyes, and the long lashes casting shadows on his cheeks. Then, she followed the slope of his small nose and stopped at his full lips, a strange stirring brewing inside of her again.
She had no idea what she wanted her future to look like, but she did know one thing.
Emma wanted Jack to kiss her again as if his life depended on it.
Like both of their lives did.
She wasn’t sure they didn’t.
With one kiss, he knew how to silence her demons and banish her insecurities.
It both terrified and exhilarated her.
Emma took an uncertain step back and nodded. “Yes, we should definitely talk.”
Jack brushed his hand against hers, his face giving nothing away. Together, they walked over to where everyone else stood and waited.
Minutes ticked by, and nothing happened.
“It won’t be long now,” Henry whispered, his expression turning grave as he glanced around. His eyes settled on Emma as he sat up straighter and squared his shoulders. “There’s something I need to say before the eclipse overshadows everything else.”
Emma held her breath and waited.
What other secrets was she about to uncover?
And what if she wasn’t ready?