Page 88 of The Vet's Unconditional Love
"I was, but I shouldn't.I didn't mean to intrude."
"It's not an intrusion.It's not that I don't want you to know about her.It's just that I don't want to be the guy who's always talking about his dead wife."He met her gaze and held it."Especially not to the first woman who's caught his eye since Emily died."
His pulse was thudding when he finished, and it occurred to him that he rarely spoke about Emily to people who hadn't known her.With his friends and the girls — pretty much the entire community here in the valley — it was easy; they had their own memories of her.
Harper set her blondie down on her plate and tilted her head to the side."I'd love to know more about her.Anything that you want to share.I know she must have been an amazing lady."She smiled."And no, I'm not blowing smoke.You chose her.She mothered the girls, and everyone around here speaks highly of her.I'm… sorry, Emmett."She let out a short laugh."I don't want to say I'm sorry that you lost her, because that makes it sound like she's some possession that you misplaced somehow."
A chuckle bubbled up from his chest."Thank you.I always hate that saying myself.It's such a strange one.I can't bring myself to say it.I lost my wifesounds too much likeI lost my keys—and maybe if…" He gave her an apologetic smile."Sorry."
"Don't be.I've thought the same thing myself about my parents.I lost them—okay, so where did you last see them?And maybe if you retrace your steps…" She shrugged."But I took us off on a tangent.I'd like to hear about her.If you want to share."
He lifted his shoulder."I do.It's not that I don't.But… now I feel like I'm on the spot and I don't know where to start."
She smiled."Then don't.Let's talk about other stuff.But I'm glad we got this far.Now you know that you're safe to talk.And I know that I'm okay to ask."
~ ~ ~
Harper took a sip of her wine and stared up at the big sky, dotted with fluffy clouds that were fast fading from pink to gray.She'd said they could talk about other stuff, but she felt the same way as Emmett — as though she were on the spot to come up with something, and she didn't know what.She could chatter about a hundred things, she always could, but having mentioned Emily, it didn't seem right to move right on to something inconsequential.
She set her glass down and turned to him."Want to hear the real story about why I'm so afraid of guns?"
His spoon hovered halfway to his mouth."You were mugged at gunpoint; you told us that."
"True, but that only made things worse, it wasn’t where it started."
"If you want to tell me, I want to hear it."
"Want isn't the word I'd use, but I said I'd share some."She stared down at her hands, which had linked themselves together, her fingers tapping against each other.She took in one big, deep breath, then spoke hurriedly, as she always did when she had to say the words."My parents were shot and killed when I was nine."
"Damn, Harper."
She shrugged and smiled."I know, it's kind of horrific when you face the truth of it.But I suppose over the years, the truth has become more distant."She let out a short laugh."And it has been a lot of years now."
"Maybe so.But..."He shook his head."What happened to you?Did you have family?Who took you in?"
"No such luck, I'm afraid.What you see sitting before you is a product of the foster care system."
He shook his head."I can't say I know much about the system.But from the little that I do know, which is mostly from Nat and Hunter's situation, I'm not impressed.Please tell me you had a better experience than they did."
She reached for her glass again, mostly to give her hand something to do."I'll tell you that if you want to hear it."
"Shit."
She gave him a wry smile."Yeah, that about describes it."
"And you didn't get out of foster care?You were never adopted or anything?"
"No.I was lucky that I didn't spend much time in group homes.Not until I was sixteen, anyway.I spent the last two years in a center for girls in the city—I mean, New York City.But the rest of the time, I kept moving from one family to another.The longest I ever spent anywhere was eighteen months."She gave an involuntary shudder before sitting up a little straighter."Yeah, it wasn't fun."
"I'm sorry."
"Hey, it is what it is, and it's all behind me now."
Emmett nodded slowly."That's why you envy me, right?"He looked down at the last of his cheesecake."I must sound like an ungrateful bastard."
"No, not at all.Don't do that.I meant what I said.I envy you your group of friends, your history, the big family you're a part of.I mean, I know — or at least I think I do — that none of you, other than the MacFarlands, are related.But there's no denying that you guys are all family."
"And I'd never deny it," Emmett agreed, "not even to soften things for you.The guys are my brothers."He glanced at the cheesecake again."Libby's like a sister.I know how lucky I am."
