Chapter 28
Emerson~
R amsey really was a dick most of the time, so I shouldn’t be surprised by any of this. In fact, his attitude towards life was one of the reasons that we made such a formidable couple. Though there was no danger of it ever happening, Ramsey always made sure that I never became a victim of the hard times. While I was allowed to have my moments, self-pity wasn’t something that we did in our household.
“Baby, I need you to remember who you’re mad at, because it’s not me,” he stated evenly, though his dark gaze was watching me intently. “At least, it’s not me right now.”
I let out a steady breath, reining in my temper, because he was right. While I was still upset with him for all the bullshit that he’d caused with this situation, it wasn’t him that I was mad at right now. I was mad at myself for how I’d been played for a fool, and I was angry about Adrian in general. Nothing was worse than a monster that preyed on children, and it wasn’t enough for me that they’d all burn in Hell eventually. I wanted them to pay for their sins now, not when there’d be no tangible satisfaction for their victims. Karma was all good and well when you chose to take the high road, but I wasn’t a fan of the high road; I wasn’t that gracious.
“Look, I just came to apologize,” I repeated. “You can accept it or not, but I’m done here.”
I turned to leave, but then I immediately felt Ramsey’s hand wrapped around my arm, pulling me back. That was also something else that I should have been expecting. Ramsey hated whenever I tried to walk away from him during an argument, but in all fairness, we weren’t in the privacy of our own home, so it’d probably be best if I left.
“The fuck you are,” he bit out as he swung me around to face him. “We are done fighting about this shit, Emerson.”
“That’s what the apology was for,” I snapped back.
Ramsey pulled at me until we were pressed up against each other. “An apology that I don’t need?” he practically sneered. “You have nothing to be sorry for, so your apology is pretty pointless, don’t you think?”
“Ramsey-”
His hands immediately cupped my face. “Baby, I don’t need apologies from you,” he repeated. “I need you to be happy. That’s what I need from you.” His eyes were burning with enough love to make me feel it everywhere. “When you’re unhappy, every breath that you take pierces my heart and destroys my soul, Emerson. I live for you, and even as unhealthy as that is, I wouldn’t have it any other way.” I could feel that familiar stinging behind my eyes, and I knew that I needed to stop feeling guilty for how much Ramsey loved me. “So, I need you to stop this shit. I need you to forget Cossacks, forget that bullshit about me being unhappy, and whatever else you’ve managed to drum up in that beautiful head of yours.”
I let out a heavy sigh as I looked up into those chocolate-colored eyes of his. “I just want us to both be happy, Ramsey.”
Before he could say anything to that, the door to his office opened, and as soon as we saw who was walking in, we put everything on hold.
“Mamam Emmy!”
Ramsey stepped back just in time for me to drop down to catch Lake in my arms. With her wrapped up safely in one arm, my other one automatically reached out to pull Aaron in with us, and as I hugged these two angels, I could hear the regret in Deke’s voice.
“Sorry, man. I didn’t know that Emerson was here.”
“It’s okay,” Ramsey replied easily.
As I pulled back to look at the kids, Lake was grinning at me while Aaron was looking way too serious for his tender age. “Aaron got me new snacks.”
“Well, that was nice of him,” I cooed. “And do you like your new snacks?”
She nodded. “Yes.”
I looked over at Aaron. “That was very nice of you, Aaron.”
“If she doesn’t have snacks, she’ll starve,” he replied seriously, and it took everything in me not to laugh.
“Well…then we better make sure that she always has snacks,” I said, then made a mental note to check the snack closet to make sure they had at least a few healthy things in there.
“We were going to go to lunch with Grandpa, but can we go with you instead?” Aaron asked, and it was so hard to say no to those big green eyes of his.
“Mamam Emmy has to go back to work, Aaron,” Deke told him before I could answer. “So, you’re stuck with me, bud.”
His little face scrunched up in thought. “Well, I guess that’s okay.”
“Gee, thanks,” Deke deadpanned.
With my knees not being as young as they used to be, I stood up, but as soon as I did, Lake reached up to grab the hem of my skirt. Not sure where it had come from, but Aaron had taught her to always hold onto an adult or him whenever they were out in public. It was like he was terrified of her getting kidnapped by a stranger, and maybe he was.
I didn’t laugh as Deke walked over, then reached down to pick up his granddaughter. As she easily went into his arms, it was a sight to behold. When I’d first met Ramsey, Deke, and Liam, I never would have guessed that they’d become puddles of mush at the sight of their grandchildren, but that’s exactly what happened whenever any of the babies were nearby.
“Say goodbye,” Deke instructed, and while Lake just waved at us, Aaron wrapped his little arms around our legs to give us a proper hug goodbye.
As soon as they were gone, I turned back towards my husband. “I need to get back.”
Ramsey gave me a simple nod. “Okay.”
“But I want to finish this conversation tonight,” I informed him. “I don’t want another day to go by where this situation isn’t resolved.”
“I couldn’t agree more.”
I eyed him for a few seconds before saying, “Even if you don’t want them, you deserve an apology when I’m wrong, Ramsey. While it might not make either of us feel better, it’s still the right thing to do. I want you to know when I know that I’m in the wrong.”
“While I’d normally agree, I still feel like you don’t have anything to apologize for in this situation,” he replied graciously.
“I think we’re going to have to agree to disagree on this one,” I said with a humorless chuckle.
“Do you really have to get back to work?”
“Mr. Hope asked me to be a team player and take up two projects that Adrian had been working on before they fired him,” I answered. “Well, I’m guessing that they fired him. No one has said anything definitive yet. While he’s been wiped from all the directories and wasn’t in the office today, the powers-that-be have yet to make an official announcement regarding his employment status.”
“Does that mean that you’ll be working late today?”
I immediately shook my head. “No,” I answered. “I have a date with my husband tonight, so the projects are going to have to wait.”
Ramsey smirked. “And what time is this date?”
“Six?”
“Then I’ll be home at six,” he replied, that smirk still playing on his lips.
I gave him a quick nod before turning to leave, but as soon as I started heading to the door, I stopped. Turning back around to face him, I said, “I think that you and I need to go somewhere this weekend, just the two of us.”
Ramsey slid his hands in his pockets, straightening to his full height as he let out a low breath, the relief radiating off him in waves. “I think you’re right.”
“I love you, Ramsey.”
“I love you more, Emerson.”
I smirked before shaking my head, turning again to leave his office. When I shut the door behind me, I felt better as I made my way past Mariah and towards the elevators. While I’d never really doubted it, Ramsey and I were going to be okay, and even though we still had a lot to talk about, this would be the last time that I’d ever question what my marriage was made of. If I was asking Ramsey to trust what I felt for him, then I needed to extend that same courtesy.
Just as I reached the lobby, I stepped out of the elevator to see Maddox making his way through the front doors of RMM, and he looked every bit as serious as Ramsey and R.J. did, and I wasn’t used to that look on his face. Out of the three Reed men in my life, Maddox was the most easygoing.
“Everything okay?”
“That depends,” he automatically answered. “Are you and Dad still fighting?”
“Your Dad and I are fine, Maddox,” I replied, feeling like it was the absolute truth this time.
“Well…then everything’s great, Mom,” he grinned, making me laugh, and it felt good.