Chapter 19
Chapter Nineteen
“ I ’m sure I would’ve loved the course,” Emily said with a smile. “They don’t have any other slots, huh?”
Amy shook her head. “No, I’m sorry. Maybe you could look into an online option.”
“And miss all the fun I’d have with you and William? Maybe I’ll catch you both during the next course.”
Amy’s face turned bright red as she pretended to look at something in her lap. She smoothed out her skirt, then sat back down and resisted the urge to pace. “He’s good company. I’m glad I’m not doing this alone.”
“I’m sure you are.”
Amy glanced up and met Emily’s gaze. “Don’t say it like that.”
“Like what?” Emily was trying but failing to maintain her innocent smile. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Yes, you do. You’re acting like William and I like each other as more than friends.”
“Don’t you?”
Amy glanced down at both sides of the empty hallway opposite the conference room. “I’m not even divorced yet.”
“But you will be soon enough, and you two are really getting along.”
Amy swung her gaze back to Emily and frowned. “I don’t think now is a good time. Even after I get the divorce, I think I need to be on my own for a while.”
And she really wanted to discover who she was outside of a relationship.
William was smart, funny, kind, and considerate, but other than a close friendship, she didn’t think pursuing anything with him was a good idea.
Not yet, at least.
But a small part of her did wonder what would happen if the timing was right.
Thinking about him outside the very same conference room where she and Eric were meant to end their lives together felt surreal. As did sitting in the same metal chairs as last time, waiting to see what mood her husband and his lawyer were in.
Emily stretched her legs out in front of her and sighed. “I understand what you mean. It’s like that for me too, with Jack.”
“You and Jack are young, and you’ve still got a lot more time ahead of you,” Amy argued, pausing to give Emily a knowing look. “And you deserve to be happy, so don’t get in your own way.”
Emily pursed her lips together and sat up straighter. “I don’t even know if I have time to date with everything else that’s happening. It’s actually probably better if I don’t. The bakery needs me.”
Amy tilted her head to the side and studied Emily. “What do you mean?”
Emily’s eyes shone with fear and apprehension as she lowered her gaze, and her voice fell. “In a few weeks, if I don’t come up with the money to pay back the loan, I’m probably going to lose the bakery.”
Shock and dismay slammed into Amy, making her sit up straighter. Her hand darted out to take Emily’s hands in hers, and she swallowed past the lump in her throat. “What happened?”
“Trevor had some bad debt,” Emily whispered, her voice catching toward the end. “He was a good man, and he had a good heart. A little too good, if I’m being honest, and I wanted to help. I thought I could handle it, but with the economy being what it is…”
Amy’s chest tightened. “But the bakery… Oh, Em. Oh, no. There must be a way to get the bank to reconsider. They’ll ruin Decadent Treats if they get their hands on it.”
And it would cease to be the bakery they all knew and loved.
Amy hadn’t known Emily for very long, but even she could see how much the bakery meant to her—how much love, sweat, and tears had gone into maintaining the place. The last thing she wanted was to see the bank take control of the bakery, leaving Emily with shattered dreams and disillusion.
There had to be something she could do.
Emily dashed away her tears and spoke in a low and measured voice. “I know, but I didn’t have a choice, and I’ve spent so long not being able to talk about it. I actually didn’t want to talk about it because people loved Trevor, and I didn’t want to ruin that image they had of him.”
Amy draped an arm over Emily’s shoulders and squeezed. “I’m sure no one would think less of him. We all make mistakes.”
Emily leaned into Amy’s embrace and blew out a deep, shaky breath. “I’ve thought about asking Trevor’s parents for help. They’re well off, and they’re sailing on a cruise boat around the world.”
Silence stretched between them.
Amy cleared her throat. “Why haven’t you?”
“Trevor was their only son,” Emily said, her voice barely above a whisper. “And they took his death pretty hard, and I know a part of them blamed me for it.”
Amy’s stomach fell. “Why would they?”
“Trev and I got into an argument the night he died. I don’t even remember what it was about. It was something stupid that snowballed into something bigger, and the next thing I knew, we were screaming at each other. And I told him he should spend the night at his parents’ place. If I hadn’t insisted he spend the night somewhere else, he wouldn’t have been driving that night. And maybe he wouldn’t have…he wouldn’t have…”
Amy’s mind raced and spun as she struggled to absorb all of the new information. A part of her wanted to throw her arms around Emily and hold her until the pain went away. But the other part of her knew the reprieve would only be temporary.
Emily’s problems weren’t going away anytime soon, but Amy desperately wished there was more she could do for her friend than hold her hand and comfort her.
Emily was far more resilient than Amy had given her credit for.
Having to build herself up after the death of her husband while carrying the guilt and shame around couldn’t have been easy.
Amy gave Emily’s shoulders another squeeze, her throat still tight with emotion. “You can’t blame yourself, Em. It’s not like you knew that car was going to hit him. I’m sure if you had known, you wouldn’t have kicked him out.”
“If I could take it all back, I would,” Emily murmured, the words pouring out of her in a rush. “You have no idea how many times I’ve played it back in my head or how often I’ve wished I could’ve done things differently. I’ll never stop missing Trevor or wishing things hadn’t turned out the way they did.”
Amy swallowed past the lump in her throat. “As long as he knew that, that’s all that matters. As for his parents… I doubt they actually blame you. They’re probably just upset and looking for someone to blame. In situations like this, it’s easier to have a physical, tangible thing to take your anger out on, even if it’s a person who hasn’t done anything wrong.”
“They have every right to hold me accountable. I hold myself responsible, and it took going to support group to even acknowledge it.”
“Have you told anyone else?”
Emily shook her head, slowly at first, then faster and faster. “Oh, God, no. Can you imagine how the rest of the family would look at me if I did? Their strong and perfect little Emily… It would be just as bad as if I told them the truth about Trevor. I can’t bear the thought of disappointing them like that.”
Amy’s mind was still spinning as she sifted through her thoughts, choosing her words carefully. “I haven’t known your family that long, even though Lily has been telling me about everyone for a while. I feel like I know you all already… Anyway, my point is, from what I do know, I don’t think they’re going to judge or ostracize you. If anything, having all of this out in the open is going to be very therapeutic for you.”
Emily lifted tear-stained eyes up to Amy’s and searched her face. “Like walking away from Eric was therapeutic for you?”
Amy hesitated and then nodded. “In a way, it was. Lucas, Sylvie, and I are nowhere near where we should be, but we’re getting there.”
And she was going to keep putting in the effort to make sure they made it to the other side stronger and better than ever.
All she needed was time and a whole lot of patience.
Emily took both of Amy’s hands in hers and squeezed. “I really appreciate you saying all of those things. You’re so brave, Amy, and I think what you’re doing is amazing. I don’t know if I’ve told you this, but seeing you do all of this… It’s been inspiring.”
A kernel of gratitude and pride blossomed in the center of Amy’s stomach. “It has?”
Her stomach was fluttering, and a flush was climbing up her neck and cheeks.
Emily nodded emphatically. “Oh, absolutely. You have no idea how encouraging it’s been to watch you go through all of this and still maintain a positive outlook.”
Amy smiled. “It helps to have a good support group.”
“I’m glad you walked into my bakery a few weeks ago,” Emily told her with a watery smile. “I really am.”
Behind them, the elevator doors pinged open, and two sets of footsteps moved across the tile floors. Amy withdrew her hands and twisted to see Eric stop outside of the door to the conference room with his lawyer by his side. His dark and fathomless eyes settled on Emily and tightened. A heartbeat later, he looked back at Amy and scoffed.
When he ducked inside, some of Amy’s earlier good mood dissipated.
But she wasn’t surprised.
Eric did have a habit of sucking up all of the oxygen and joy out of the room.
The longer she was away from him, the more she began to wonder how she survived any of it.
“You okay?”
Amy blinked and stood. “Yeah, I am. I’m grateful I walked into your bakery too, by the way. I had no idea how much I needed a friend until I met you.”
Emily rose to her feet and drew Amy in for a hug. “Now we’re both going to be teary and emotional messes.”
Amy patted her back. “I think that’s fine.”
Emily was blinking away tears when she drew back to look at her. “You’ve got this. You can handle anything Eric throws at you. I’ll be right here when you come out.”
“You don’t have to wait for me. You can go and walk around or something.”
Emily shook her head. “I’ll be right here, and I’ll take you out to lunch afterward.”
Amy gave Emily another hug and lingered.
When Kate stepped off the elevator and cleared her throat, Amy reluctantly released Emily and stood up straighter. She felt the younger woman’s gaze on her back as she walked away, gaining confidence and courage with each step. As soon as Kate pushed the door open and Amy moved closer to Eric, she faltered and lost her footing.
Hastily, she stumbled into the nearest chair and tucked her hands under the table to hide the tremor. Kate took a seat next to her in her usual black five-inch heels, with a dark blouse tucked into her pencil skirt.
She paused to swat away a lock of hair and squared her shoulders. “Mr. Michaelson, I don’t have the patience for your client today, so if this is another meeting to waste our time—”
“My client wants to renegotiate the contract,” Tyler interrupted with a quick look in Eric’s direction. “He’s prepared to offer your client one of the properties in exchange for her silence.”
Kate was trying to keep the surprise out of her voice. “Her silence?”
But Amy knew she was thinking the same thing.
What happened to make Eric change his mind so quickly?
What made him feel threatened enough to completely backtrack and offer Amy compensation?
“My client is a well-known and respected lawyer,” Tyler continued, pausing to sit up straighter and adopt a self-important smile. “And he is a respected member of his community. In exchange for a divorce and a property of Ms. Gruntle’s choice, all my client wants in return is her discretion.”
Kate raised an eyebrow. “You want my client to sign an NDA?”
Tyler snapped open a briefcase and took out a stack of papers. He slid two papers across the conference table and stood. “We’ll wait for your phone call once you’ve had a chance to review the new terms.”
Without waiting for a response, Tyler left the room first, with Eric following in his wake. Amy twisted to watch them leave, heart thudding uncomfortably until they got on the elevator and the doors pinged shut behind them.
As soon as they did, she sagged in her seat and blew out a breath. “I don’t understand why they asked for an in-person meeting for this.”
Kate was chewing on her bottom lip as she reviewed the paper. “It’s a power move. They’re trying to pretend like they still have some kind of control, but do you know what this means?”
Amy pushed her chair back and stood. “No, what does it mean?”
Kate reached for her own briefcase and snapped it open. “It means they know we can’t be intimidated, and Eric is beginning to realize he’s going to lose. He’s trying to save face now. We have them right where we want them.”