Chapter Six

 

An hour later, Jake and Emma came through the inn's back door into the kitchen. She sniffed the air taking in the smells of garlic and lamb. She was too hungry to wait two hours until the inn’s dinnertime, but the delicious fragrances almost did her in, and her stomach growl was epic.

Jake’s eyes widened, and then his usual smirk. “Some things never change. Mrs. Pennebeck probably heard that all the way into the front parlor.”

“Funny.” She scowled at him. “I’ll get some Cokes,” she said, pointing toward a memo pad and pen on the island. “Will you leave a note for Mrs. Pennebeck letting her know we won’t be here for dinner?”

While he did as she asked, she found plastic cups, napkins, cutlery, and plates. “All set?” she asked before she clambered up the stairs to the third floor with Jake behind her.

When they arrived in the third-floor hall, he asked, “Your room or mine?”

“I have a fireplace,” she replied without thinking. Not your smartest idea, Emma. The more intelligent move would have been to go to his room. It would have been easier for her to call it a night and leave, as opposed to kicking a six-foot, three-inch hunk of man out of hers.

“Yours then.” He toed his boots off in the hall. Theirs were the only rooms on the third floor.

She unlocked the door and stepped back, giving him access. He carried the pizza inside and put it on the foot of the bed while she turned on the fireplace and the Christmas tree.

“Where would you like to sit?” The only options were the velvet chaise lounge and the chintz bench at the skirted dressing table. She couldn’t imagine him on either. “Floor or bed?”

“I’m a guy. I can’t believe you’d even ask.” Jake slid the pizza and plates to the middle of the bed. Before climbing on, he shucked his jacket.

Probably not her most brilliant move, letting him close to her bed. Maddie would totally freak if she knew what was happening in Emma’s hotel room. Nothing. They were two old friends sharing dinner. No big deal. He was part of her past, where she meant to keep him. They could still be friends. After all, they’d been friends since she was six.

After filling each cup with ice, she passed one to Jake along with a Coke, then flipped open the pizza box. They both served themselves, eating the first slice in silence. A few things about Jake gnawed at her.

Reaching for another slice of pizza, he paused, gaze fixed on her. “What’s on your mind?”

For a second, she thought he must be reading her thoughts. “Why’d you come back, Jake? Didn’t it turn out like you hoped it would?”

Instead of taking a bite, he dropped the slice to his plate. His expression was thoughtful. “Actually, it did. After med school, I did a four-year residency at Presbyterian and a fellowship at St. Luke’s. Dr. William Coblenz, one of the top ortho surgeons specializing in knees, was my mentor. After my fellowship ended, I got a few offers in LA and San Francisco. I took a hard look at my life and what I had to show for it. While I’d achieved what I set out to do in my medical career, I didn’t feel the satisfaction I imagined.”

She pushed her plate aside. “I don’t understand. Why not?”

“LA is another world. There’s so much pretense. Where you live, the import car you drive, frequenting the right hot spots and belonging to one club over another. Which sports stars did you put under the knife? I found myself obsessing over things I thought I wanted, which turned out to be things I realized I didn’t need. I was spiritually bankrupt.”

Spiritually bankrupt? What an un-Jake-like thing to say. As long as she’d known him, he was always clear about what he wanted, never wavered on his self-directed path to get to it. “Do you mean a shift in values…or?”

“No.” He laughed mirthlessly and stared into her eyes. “More of an awareness I wasn’t on the right path.” His broad chest rose as he sucked in a deep breath. “My dad was hit with a stroke a week before Christmas two years ago and passed away a week later.” His gaze slid away from hers as if he didn’t want her to see what he was feeling.

This was an anniversary for Jake too. Regret that she hadn’t known and wishing she had been able to reach out to him made her realize they both shared the same rite of passage. “I’m so sorry about your dad. I hadn’t heard.”

She wanted to tell him she understood what it was like to lose a parent, especially when you were an only child. Grief, thick and impenetrable, bottled up her throat, and her eyes stung with unshed tears. She didn’t trust herself to speak and simply touched his arm.

Finally, she found her voice. “Your father was such a kind man. When we were young, I remember he gave us money to go to Hopewell Dairy for ice cream. He’d drop us off in his red truck. We’d walk home eating melting ice cream. If I’d known, I would have gone to the funeral.” She and Jake might have ended their romantic relationship years ago, yet some things in life, especially the death of a parent or sibling, transcended their history.

“Thanks, Emmie. Funny how things work out. A few days after dad’s funeral, Amber’s dad, Dr. Waite, asked me to assist in a challenging surgery on a local college kid who played basketball at Northwestern. A lot was at stake, and this was the second time he’d ruptured his left ACL. I used a procedure I’d assisted with Dr. Coblenz in LA several times. The outcome was a good one. Dr. Waite offered me a partnership. For two days, I debated and did some soul-searching. Finally, I accepted.”

“And the boy,” she asked. “What happened to him?”

“Two years later, he was drafted by the Chicago Bulls.”

“Awesome.” What an incredible story with a perfect ending. “Must have been extremely satisfying.”

“Knowing I played a part in helping the kid play in the NBA was amazing.” His grin conveyed his obvious pride. “Besides that, I didn’t have to make an hour and a half commute to do it. I might miss the sunshine and the ocean.” He tipped his dark head towards the window framing the steady snowfall. “Honestly, after the first three years in LA, I probably went to the beach twice. The California good life?” Satisfaction shone in his wide smile. “Right here in Haley, I have almost everything I need.”

“Sounds like you had an epiphany of sorts. I get it. You’re lucky to figure out what you need. Some people live their whole lives without ever finding it.” She imagined after Jake’s father died, he needed a sense of belonging, of being part of a caring community.

He had emerged from a full of himself twenty-something to a thoughtful, caring doctor. Impressive. Still, it didn’t mean he wasn’t a manipulating control freak. She’d best not forget it.

“After spending time at the hospital this afternoon, I can tell people admire and respect you here.” She pushed several strands of hair out of her face. “Doing something you love makes the sacrifices along the way worthwhile. My work with the kids in the city is rewarding. Most days, I believe I’m making a difference in the lives of our kids and their parents.”

“If you don’t get funding, what will you do?”

Without thinking, she said, “Honestly, I don’t know.” Even saying it out loud, her voice lacked any degree of hope.

“There are a lot of people here who care about you.” His silver-gray eyes held hers. “You know…” He started to add something, then stopped.

She wondered if Jake was on the verge of launching into a “life is better in Haley” sales pitch. Hopefully not.

“I spent wonderful summer vacations here, almost every one of my Christmases. New York City has always been my home. I live there. I don’t want to go anywhere else.” The flashing light on her phone caught her eye. She looked at the display.

Call me. It was her co-worker, Kelly Tolson. In the three years Emma worked at the hospital, Kelly never contacted Emma outside of work. An ominous dread seeped into her belly. Her mouth became as dry as sandpaper.

“Jake,” her voice wavered, “do you mind if we call it a night? One of my colleagues from work tried to reach me. I really need to talk with her.”

“No problem.” He stood; his tall, wide shoulders seemed to fill the room. “Tomorrow, my first surgery is at seven AM. I need to get going, anyway.” Heading toward the door, he paused and then turned back. “I enjoyed tonight.” His steady gaze held hers. “It really is good to see you.” Hesitating for a moment, he gave her a curious look before walking out the door.

“Goodnight, Jake.” She waited until he closed the door to make her call.

Maybe she was being too pessimistic. Perhaps the new grant proposal requesting an increase in funds was approved earlier than expected, and she would finally be full-time. She dialed Kelly.

“Hi, Emma. Are you in Vermont now? I debated whether to call you since you were on vacation. I would want to know something like this regardless of where I was or what I was doing. You will understand why I’m calling.”

Kelly was a person who took twice as much time to go from point A to point B than any other normal human being. “What’s up?” Emma held her breath.

“We didn’t get funded for next year. The program is finished. Effective December thirty-first, we don’t have jobs.”

In the space of four mundane words, the program is finished; every inch of Emma froze from the outside in—skin first, then blood, bone, and muscle. No job. Unemployed. The one outcome she’d never considered. What was she going to do?

“What’s going to happen to our clients…the kids…their families?” Her teeth chattered.

“I don’t know,” Kelly answered. “Look, I’m sorry to give you such sucky news now. The last thing I wanted was for you to return to a locked office and not know what was going on.”

“Thanks, Kelly. I appreciate you letting me know.”

The phone slipped out of Emma’s grasp. She fell back onto her bed, tugging the thick comforter up to her chin. Then, rolling to her side, she scrunched her knees to her chest, making herself the tiniest target possible.