Chapter 36
Nathan hadn't answered yet when his assistant suddenly looked down at his phone.
"Mr. Grant."
Nathan glanced over.
"Emma's in a tree."
That earned a pause.
Nathan held out his hand, and his assistant passed him the phone.
On the screen, Emma was halfway up a tree in the park below the medical center, still wearing the black dress and heels she'd arrived in.
"Wait there, Helen!" she called down. "I'm almost there."
Nathan looked at his assistant.
"What happened?"
"Mrs. Grant found a bird's nest and wanted to know if there were any chicks inside. Ms. Carter looked around, didn't see anyone nearby, and apparently decided the easiest solution was to check herself."
Nathan looked back at the screen.
Emma had one arm around the trunk and was carefully searching for her next foothold.
A smile crept into his eyes.
"She has a lot of energy."
Climbing a tree in a dress was already unusual enough. Doing it in heels was something else entirely.
"Make sure she doesn't fall."
His assistant glanced at the screen. "It's not very high. She should be fine."
A second later, Emma's foot slipped.
"Ah!"
She slid down the trunk and landed hard on the grass.
There was a brief silence.
Nathan laughed under his breath.
His assistant cleared his throat. "I may have said that too soon."
On the screen, Helen hurried over in alarm.
"Emma! Are you okay? Did that hurt? Forget it, forget it. I don't need to see the nest anymore."
Emma got to her feet and brushed dirt off the back of her dress.
Then she looked up at the tree.
Nathan's assistant recognized the expression immediately.
"Oh, she's going back up."
Sure enough, Emma reached for the trunk again.
Helen stared at her. "Emma?"
"I refuse to lose to a tree."
Nathan's smile deepened.
This time Emma took it slowly, testing each branch before putting her weight on it. A minute later, she made it to the spot she'd been trying to reach.
She looked down, pleased with herself.
"I made it!"
Helen clapped enthusiastically.
"You did it! Emma, you're amazing!"
Emma lifted her chin, looking far too proud of an achievement that consisted entirely of climbing the same tree twice.
Nathan shook his head.
"Competitive."
His assistant laughed. "Very."
Most of his days were spent around people who treated every conversation like a negotiation. Watching two grown women turn a bird's nest into the highlight of their morning was strangely relaxing.
Nathan seemed to feel the same way.
His expression had softened without him noticing.
Emma leaned toward the nest and carefully peered inside.
A moment later, she looked disappointed.
"No baby birds."
Helen's face fell too. "Oh."
Emma checked again.
"But there are eggs."
Helen immediately brightened.
"Really? Let me see!"
Emma shifted slightly so Helen could get a better view from below.
"There."
Helen stretched her neck.
"Can you bring them down? I want to hold them."
"No."
The answer came so quickly that Helen blinked.
"Why?"
"Because they're not ours." Emma pointed at the nest. "If the mama bird comes back and finds her eggs missing, she'll be upset."
Helen considered this seriously.
"Oh."
"Exactly."
"Then don't take them."
"I wasn't planning to."
"You can put them back now."
Emma laughed. "Yes, Helen."
Nathan watched the exchange quietly.
That was one of the things Emma did differently.
People around his mother tended to agree with her because it was easier. They worried that saying no might upset her.
Emma had never treated her that way.
She indulged Helen when it was harmless, but if Helen wanted something she shouldn't have, Emma simply told her no and explained why.
More often than not, Helen listened.
Nathan looked at the woman sitting beside him.
His mother's condition had been stable for months now.
Did they really need to renew the contract?
Probably not.
He couldn't pay Emma indefinitely to pretend to be his girlfriend simply because his mother liked having her around.
And Emma herself had never shown the slightest interest in turning their arrangement into anything else.
He'd be lying if he said that hadn't touched his ego at all.
Nathan was used to people wanting something from him.
Emma wanted something too, of course.
Six hundred thousand dollars.
Beyond that, she seemed perfectly content to leave him alone.
He found it both refreshing and, occasionally, a little insulting.
Before he could think much further, a voice came from the phone.
"Hey! Who's up there? Get down from there!"
A security guard had spotted Emma.
She froze.
Then, with remarkable efficiency, she made sure the eggs were safely back in the nest and started climbing down.
The second her feet touched the ground, she grabbed Helen's hand.
"Run."
Helen didn't ask why.
She ran.
Nathan stared at the screen for a moment.
His assistant started laughing.
After escaping the scene of their crime, the two of them found less dangerous entertainment. They watched ants carrying crumbs across the pavement, examined a beetle, and spent several minutes disagreeing over whether it was cute.
By the time they returned upstairs, it was almost noon.
Nathan's assistant slipped his phone into his pocket before they approached.
"Have fun?" he asked.
Emma smiled. "We went to the park downstairs—"
"Shh!"
Helen grabbed her arm.
"Don't tell Nathan. It's our secret."
Emma immediately covered her mouth.
"Right."
She gave Helen a conspiratorial wink.
"Secret."
Nathan said nothing.
Apparently, the bird's nest, the fall, and their escape from security were all classified information now.
A staff member approached.
"Mr. Grant, would you like lunch served?"
Nathan nodded.
Then he noticed something on Emma's arm.
"Emma."
She looked at him.
"Come here."
Emma walked over, slightly puzzled.
Nathan took her wrist and turned her arm gently.
"What happened?"
Emma followed his gaze.
There was a scrape near her elbow. The bleeding had already stopped, but the skin was raw and a bruise was beginning to darken around it.
She hadn't even noticed.
"Oh. That."
Helen gasped before Emma could say anything.
"You got that when you fell out of the tree!"
Emma slowly looked at her.
Helen's eyes widened.
Their secret had lasted approximately thirty seconds.
Nathan looked at Emma.
Emma gave him a perfectly straight face.
"Different tree."
His mouth twitched.
"Of course."
Helen was already calling for Aunt May.
"Emma's hurt! We need medicine!"
Aunt May had looked after Helen for years and had known Nathan since he was young. She came over with a first-aid kit, took one look at Emma's arm, and pulled out antiseptic and gauze.
Then both Helen and Nathan reached for them.
Aunt May paused.
Her gaze moved from Helen's hand to Nathan's.
She handed the supplies to Nathan.
Emma noticed the tiny smile on Aunt May's face and immediately knew she was in trouble.
Aunt May had never been told the truth about her arrangement with Nathan.
She hadn't been at the medical center when Emma first met Helen, and Nathan had never bothered to correct her afterward. Considering how often Aunt May had apparently nagged him about getting a girlfriend, Emma suspected he found the misunderstanding convenient.
"Come on, Mrs. Grant," Aunt May said, taking Helen gently by the arm. "Let's see what they're making for lunch."
Helen refused to move.
"But Emma's hurt."
Aunt May leaned closer and lowered her voice.
"Let Nathan take care of her. Give the two of them a minute."
Helen looked at Nathan.
Then at Emma.
"Oh."
Emma didn't like the sound of that.
"Come on."
Aunt May successfully led Helen away.
Nathan's assistant followed them.
Emma watched him go.
Traitor.
A moment later, she and Nathan were alone.
She looked at the first-aid supplies in his hand.
"I can do it myself."
She tried to pull her arm back, but Nathan kept a light hold on her wrist.
"Hold still."
His voice was calm.
"I've got it."
Emma considered arguing, then decided against it.
Technically, he was paying her.
Fine.
Client wins.
Nathan lowered his head and examined the scrape. Up close, he could see the bruising around it more clearly.
His brows drew together.
"Be careful next time."
"I was careful."
He looked at her.
Emma paused.
"The second time."
Nathan laughed softly.
He dabbed antiseptic against the scrape.
Emma immediately hissed and pulled back.
"Ow."
Nathan stopped.
"Sorry."
The apology came quickly enough that Emma looked up at him.
"I'll be gentler."
He tried again, this time with considerably more care.
Nathan had obviously never done this sort of thing before. He looked almost absurdly serious about cleaning a scraped elbow.
Emma let him get on with it.
She'd survived worse things for considerably less money.
Neither of them noticed the three heads peeking around the doorway.
Helen was in front.
Aunt May was directly behind her.
Nathan's assistant had somehow ended up third.
From where they stood, Nathan's body blocked most of Emma from view. He was bent slightly toward her, one hand holding her wrist while the other tended to her arm.
It looked much more intimate than it actually was.
Helen watched for several seconds.
Then Emma flinched again.
That was enough.
"Nathan!"
He looked toward the doorway.
Helen pointed urgently at Emma.
"Blow on it!"
Nathan went still.
Aunt May covered her mouth.
His assistant looked away.
Helen, completely serious, continued,
"Blow on it and it won't hurt anymore!"
Emma looked at Nathan.
Nathan looked at Emma.
For the first time since she'd met him, Emma saw Nathan Grant look like he genuinely had no idea what to do.