Chapter 51 Emily
EMILY
This was fine. Totally fine.
I’d met the Rockfords before. They were lovely people. The way they all showed up to my art show was amazing. All I was doing now was returning the favor by showing up to their Sunday barbecue. No big deal.
I mean, maybe Cam had tried to keep it casual when he let me know his mom had invited me. And maybe there was a certain something in his gaze when I’d said yes, of course, that would be lovely.
Obviously, I should have asked if this meant something, but I was too chicken shit for that.
So now my heart was doing this weird fluttery thing and I was hyperaware of Cam in the driver’s seat. He’d glanced at me twice in the last five minutes like he wanted to say something but then changed his mind.
“Grandma’s gonna have cookies,” Alice announced from the backseat.
“She always has cookies,” Audrey added.
I twisted in my seat to smile at them, grateful for the distraction. “What kind?”
“Chocolate chip. And sometimes she makes the ones with the M&Ms.”
“Those sound amazing.”
They launched into a debate about which cookies were better while I turned back around and tried to ignore the fact that my palms were sweating.
Tried to convince myself, again, that this wasn’t a formal introduction to Cam’s family. It didn’t have to be this massive thing I was building it up to be in my head.
Except it felt massive. Everything with Cam felt massive now, especially after New York. It was like I was standing on the edge of something I couldn’t see the bottom of, windmilling my arms, terrified of the fall.
“You okay?” His voice was quiet, meant just for me.
“Yeah. Fine.” I plastered on my brightest smile. “Just hungry.”
He didn’t look convinced but didn’t push. Before I could spiral any further, he turned into white painted gates and drove down a long, tree lined drive.
He’d barely pulled to a stop before the girls undid their seatbelts and clambered from the car.
“Hold on,” he called after them, but they were already racing toward the front door.
“I guess they’re excited.” I unbuckled my own seatbelt, trying to match their energy. Trying to feel excited instead of this low-grade uncertainty that had been humming under my skin all morning.
He came around to my side as I climbed out. “Fair warning, it’s going to get loud.”
“I can handle loud.” Well, at least I sounded confident and calm.
He lay his hand on the small of my back as we walked toward the house. It was heavy and warm, making me feel instantly more comfortable.
The front door was already open, the girls having burst through ahead of us. I could hear voices, laughter, the sound of children playing somewhere in the back.
We stepped inside and the smell hit me first. Grilled meat and something sweet, maybe pie. The hallway opened into a large living area with windows that looked out onto the backyard. Comfortable furniture, family photos on the walls, that lived-in feeling that made a house a home.
And then I saw it.
I froze mid stride as all the oxygen whooshed from my lungs.
On the wall across from the windows, positioned where anyone walking through would see it immediately, hung a painting. My painting. The one from the gallery show.
It was just.. there. Hanging on their wall like it belonged. Like it had always been there.
Cam stopped beside me. I felt his hand fall away from my back as he followed my gaze.
“That’s...” His voice trailed off.
My brain stuttered, trying to process what I was seeing. That’s mine. That’s my art. On their wall. In their home.
“Emily!” Audrey’s voice came from somewhere ahead. “Come on!”
But I couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. The room seemed to tilt on its axis, the sounds of the house fading into a dull buzz behind the drumming of my own pulse.
They bought it. Janice and Dale Rockford bought my painting. The thought crashed over me like a lightning storm.
I somehow managed to drag my eyes from the painting to Cam, who was looking just as shocked.
“Oh!” That was Janice’s voice, warm and delighted. She stood there with a dishtowel in her hands, smiling at me like I was her favorite person. Emily, sweetheart, I was hoping you’d notice it right away.”
I opened my mouth but nothing came out. My vision was going blurry at the edges and I blinked hard, trying to clear it.
“I couldn’t resist.” She came closer, her eyes on the painting. “I kept thinking about it after we left the show and I wouldn’t shut up about it on the drive home. Dale said if I loved it that much, I should do something about it. So I rang the lady, what was her name?”
“Diana,” I supplied weakly.
“That’s the one! Anyway, she was just lovely and we got it all sorted out in no time. And now I can’t stop looking at it.” She sighed. “There’s something about it that just stays with you, you know? I wanted it somewhere we’d see it every day.”
Every day.
She wanted to see my art every day.
“It’s beautiful work, honey.” She turned to me then, her expression so genuine it hurt. “You have a real gift.”
The words hit me square in the chest. A real gift.
“I don’t know what to say.” My voice was shaky as fuck, but there was nothing I could do about that.
Janice’s expression shifted, concern flickering across her face.
She stepped closer, speaking softly, her hand on my arm.
“Oh honey, if this doesn’t feel right to you, we can absolutely put it away.
I should have asked first. I just got so excited and didn’t think about how it might feel for you to see your work displayed without warning. ”
Oh fuck, she thought she’d done something wrong. She thought I was upset, when really, I was just trying not to dissolve. “No.” The word came out too fast, too desperate. I cleared my throat, tried again. “No, it’s not that. It’s just... I’m surprised. In a good way.”
“You’re sure?” Her hand was still on my arm, warm and steadying. “Because we want you to be comfortable. This is your art, your heart. If it’s too personal to have hanging in someone else’s home, I completely understand. We’re just honored to have it.”
Honored.
I was going to cry. Right there in their living room, I was going to completely fall apart.
“No, please.” I forced the words past the tightness in my throat. “It’s me that’s honored. I was just surprised, is all. But it would mean a lot to me if you keep it.”
Janice’s face softened, relief and warmth flooding her expression. “That’s settled, then. Thank you.”
“No, thank you,” I managed.
“You’re more than welcome. I’ll be out back. You just come through when you’re ready.”
She squeezed my arm one more time before heading back toward what I assumed was the kitchen, leaving Cam and me standing there in the sudden quiet.
“Emily.” He spoke hesitantly, like he was afraid I was about to fall to pieces.
“I’m fine.” I clearly was not. I was touched, overwhelmed, honored, confused and a thousand other things I didn’t have words for.
“Is that so?”
A shaky laugh was all I could muster in reply.
Then his arms were around me, pulling me against him. I went willingly, gratefully, burying my face against him and breathing him in.
His hand rubbed slow circles on my back, grounding me, keeping me from floating away into the overwhelming mess of feelings threatening to pull me under.
“I think I love your mom,” I mumbled into his shirt.
He chuckled, the sound rumbling through his chest. “Yeah, she has that effect on people.”
I stood there for another moment, letting myself have this. Then I pulled back just enough to look up at him. “I can’t believe she hung it where everyone can see it.”
“That’s Mom. When she loves something, she wants to share it.”
The way he was looking at me made my breath catch.
“Emily! Daddy!” Audrey appeared in the doorway. “Come on! Grandpa’s starting the grill!”
“Coming,” Cam called back.
But neither of us moved.
He leaned down and kissed me, soft and quick, the kind of kiss that said I see you without needing words.
When he pulled back, his eyes searched my face. “You good?”
“Yeah.” I nodded, meaning it.
“You sure?”
I smiled, real this time. “Yes.”
“Okay.” He took my hand, pressing a quick kiss to my palm. “Let’s go before they send a search party.”
I followed him outside, into the chaos of voices and laughter, the smell of charcoal and lighter fluid, the sound of children shrieking with joy.
Dale was at the grill doing something with a spatula that involved far too much flourish.
Travis and his wife were setting up a table.
Erica sat in a chair with her hand on her belly, watching her son chase Audrey and Alice around the yard.
I dragged in another breath and let myself sink into it.