Chapter Seven
AIDEN
ELKS AND WOMEN
Pulling up behind a group of people parked on the side of the road, I jumped out of my truck. “You’re too close, folks. I need you to back up. Please, let’s remember these are wild animals.”
The two guys halfway down into the meadow started walking back my way.
I smiled, but what I really wanted to do was knock the hell out of them.
No matter how many times we told people not to approach the wildlife, they did it anyway.
Even after hearing stories of other people being attacked by animals, they risked it all for the possibility of a viral video or photo.
No thought for their own safety or that of the animals.
“Just trying to get a better picture,” the one man said.
“The posted signs are clear. After four in the afternoon, all meadows are closed. You can get your picture just fine back here, or up at the observation area.”
“Ain’t nowhere to park there,” the other guy said with a smirk.
I shrugged. “Well, if you walk into the meadow again, I’m going to ticket you. We clear?”
They both nodded, grumbling as they made their way back to their Jeep.
Sometimes I wondered why in the hell I did this job.
Each year, the number of tourists grew, and we dealt with more and more stupidity.
People thought they could ignore the rules, or that they obviously weren’t meant for them.
It was exhausting. Those two guys were exactly the type who would sneak back in here and try to hunt.
After they pulled away, I climbed back into my truck and made my way to the station. I didn’t sleep hardly at all last night.
When I got home and saw Emma giving Hadley a bath, I nearly fell to my knees.
She was the only woman besides my mother whom Hadley had let in since Lisa’s death—and with Emma, their connection had been instant.
From the moment she saw the woman, Hadley was taken with her.
Then again this morning, watching them make breakfast together nearly gutted me. It was too much.
I was tempted to tell Emma to leave. That Hadley and I could do it on our own, and we didn’t need her strawberry-filled pancakes or her packed lunches—with a damn note included in said lunch, telling me to have a great day.
My head dropped back against my chair. I didn’t move when I heard the tap on my door and Dalton’s accompanying voice.
“You okay?”
“No.”
“Rough day?”
“Rough night, rough day. Tourists who don’t want to listen. A nanny who puts notes in my lunch, wishing me a good day. I don’t think I can do this, Dalton.”
Lifting my head, I watched my best friend shut the office door before sitting down on the opposite side of my desk.
When we were younger, we had both wanted to be cops.
In the end, I went in that direction, and Dalton went in another and became a biologist. We did make our dream of working for the national park a reality.
It didn’t matter that I was his boss; we were best friends, and he’d been there for me always.
From Lisa getting pregnant and her parents guilting us into getting married, to Lisa losing the baby, to later having Hadley.
He stood by me as I fought to keep my marriage going, when I decided it was time to let it go, and through all my conflicted feelings when I lost Lisa to cancer.
Now he was here for me again.
“Aiden, let me ask you something, and I want you to answer me honestly. You said last night that when you first saw Emma, something happened. What did you mean? You never finished explaining.”
I stared at him. Last night, I had almost admitted to being attracted to Emma from the moment I saw her.
When she called me Ryan and scrunched up her nose in a freaking adorable way and asked for a do-over on the introductions.
But something else had happened. I’d felt something in my chest I hadn’t felt in years, and honestly never thought I’d feel again.
The feeling was different than what I’d felt the first time I saw Lisa. More intense.
It was a complete and utter shock. Even the two one-night stands I’d indulged in since Lisa’s death hadn’t made me feel anything. That was just sex. A way to rid myself of some stress and anxiety. Neither time had meant anything.
But one look at Emma Middleton two days ago, and I couldn’t get her out of my head.
“Nothing,” I lied. “I mean, it’s just a strange feeling, knowing she’s living in my house.” Guilt swamped me. I never lied to Dalton.
He nodded. “Is that why you were in a bad mood when you showed up this morning?”
“I guess. Seeing her in the kitchen making breakfast, and Hadley so taken by her. I mean, she bonded with Emma almost instantly. I just don’t want her to forget her mom.”
Dalton leaned forward. “She won’t forget her mom because you won’t let that happen. But Aiden, this is what you wanted. A female figure in Hadley’s life. Tammy met with Emma this morning for coffee, and she said she really liked her.”
“Yeah, Emma asked me if she could have coffee with Tammy. She also asked me what I wanted her to do while Hadley was in school. I had no freaking clue what to tell her. And why would she ask me if she could meet someone for coffee? I don’t own her just because she works for me.”
Dalton laughed. “You’ll figure it all out. Just try to relax and know what you’re doing is good for both you and Hadley.”
I let out a gruff laugh. “How is it good for me?”
“Hadley isn’t the only person needing a female in the house.”
I shot him a dirty look.
Dalton held up his hands. “That’s not what I meant, dude. I only meant it will be nice for you to have some home-cooked meals. Another adult to talk to.”
“We’re not playing house, and I’m not going to pretend like she’s something other than my employee.”
Pulling his brows together, Dalton stared at me intently. After a minute or so, he stood up.
“You may not want to believe this, Aiden, but you’re allowed to be happy.
Listen, I know things between you and Lisa were bad before the cancer.
Things were said, decisions made, but you still took care of her, and I know she loved you for it.
Maybe not the kind of love that you both thought you should have for one another, but love, nonetheless.
Lisa would have wanted you to be happy. She wouldn’t want you feeling guilty because of what happened between you.
“You loved her and never left her side, but dude, at some point you’re going to have to forgive yourself and move on. I’m not telling you to go have sex with the nanny. I’m just saying open up your mind to the idea of letting someone in who just might turn out to be a good friend. That’s all.”
With that, he turned and walked out the door.
I dragged my hands down my face. I knew he was right.
Emma was a good thing for Hadley, and that was what I needed to remember.
Not how she’d made me laugh for the first time in a year, or how her smile made my knees feel a bit weak, and for sure not how much my daughter was falling head over heels for her after one day.
Emma was a surprise. The first woman to really make my breath catch in my throat since high school, when I’d first caught a glimpse of Lisa. But that feeling with Emma? It was different. Stronger. And that scared me.
She was a beautiful woman, and it would be futile if I tried to ignore that fact. But what I couldn’t let myself do was think anything could ever happen between us. A difficult task for a man who hadn’t held a woman in his arms for far too long.
My phone beeped on my desk with a text from Emma. Speak of the devil.
I picked it up to see a picture of Hadley holding up a drawing. It was of her and me in the woods. The corner of the drawing said, “Me and my daddy. Ranger Aiden Bishop.”
Smiling, I replied back.
Me: I love it. Ask Emma to hang it up on the corkboard in the breakfast area.
My phone beeped back with a reply.
Emma: ieodn98h3dldkjyepwnfhvp.daddy
Emma: That was Hadley’s reply to you I’ll hang it up right now. See you soon.
I stood to gather my things, laughing yet again.
Dalton was right. Hiring Emma was going to be good for both Hadley and me.
A little bit of desperately needed lightness in our lives, nothing more.
My initial reaction to the woman was simply a one-time thing.
She was beautiful, I noticed, the end. Now I’d let that go and concentrate on what was best for Hadley. She was all that mattered in my world.
* * *
Laughter filtered out from the kitchen as I made my way into the house.
“Do it again!” Hadley cried out.
“Okay, ready?”
“Ready!”
I peeked around the corner and saw Emma with pizza dough in her hand. She threw it up in the air and barely caught it, making Hadley fall over in a fit of laughter.
Emma laughed too. “I almost dropped it that time!”
“Do it again!”
“I think we better put the ingredients on it before our pizza crust ends up on the floor.”
“I want ronis on it!”
“Ronis?” Emma asked as she laid the dough on the pizza pan.
“Pepperonis,” I said as I walked in. Hadley let out a squeal and ran toward me. I gave her a kiss and hugged her. Emma looked on with a smile on her face. “They’re her favorite,” I added.
“Good thing I sliced up a lot then. I have everything here for y’all.”
Every now and then, the Texas accent would come out when Emma spoke. I could tell she tried hard to keep it buried.
“Veggies, sauce, and cheese. And plenty of ronis,” she said with a grin. “You just need to put it in the oven for about eight minutes.”
My eyes scanned the island. Emma had cut up onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, bell peppers, olives…and was that zucchini? On another board was the pepperoni and two different types of cheese. The bowl on the side held pizza sauce and next to that was fresh garlic.
“Did you make the sauce?” I asked, looking at everything.
Her cheeks flushed pink. “I did. I had free time this afternoon and used a recipe I found online. It tastes pretty good. As for the rest, I wasn’t sure what you guys liked on your pizza, so I tried to think of everything.”
I shook my head in amazement. “Emma, this is amazing. You even made the dough?”
She shrugged. “Yep. This smaller pie is for Hadley and yours is the big one. I’ll let y’all get to your pizza making.”
Each time she said y’all in that slight accent, it made my stomach drop like I was on a roller coaster. As I watched, Emma took off the apron she’d been wearing and started to head out of the kitchen.
“You’re not joining us?” I asked.
She glanced back at me. “I figured you’d want to eat alone with Hadley. I’ll be back to clean up.”
I wanted to tell her to stay. Instead, I nodded and replied, “Thank you for doing all of this. I’ll clean up though, you’ve done so much already. Hadley and I will have fun making our own pizzas.”
Emma smiled. “That was the plan.”
She winked at me. Again. She’d done it this morning and here she was, doing it again. One friendly wink that went through me like a bolt of lightning.
As Emma headed out of the kitchen, Hadley pulled me over to the island to make our pizzas.
While we decided what toppings to use, I took in the sound of my daughter’s laughter.
My heart felt like it would explode with happiness for the first time in months…
and it was all due to one woman taking the time to cut up toppings so my daughter and I could bond over pizza.
Emma was indeed going to be a good thing. And that worried me more than I wanted to admit.