Page 134 of The Vet's Unconditional Love
"Oh.That'll be nice for you guys."
Even as she smiled at them, Harper couldn't help feeling a touch of disappointment.Yes, she loved hanging out with the girls as well as Emmett, but it seemed that tomorrow night would have been the first chance for her and Emmett to spend an evening alone.But she’d already made arrangements with her friends, and now that she thought about it, she imagined that Emmett would probably savor an evening in his own company.
When they arrived at the house, Harper was surprised to see Emmett's truck parked outside.
"Oh, yay, Papa Bear's home!"Tanya exclaimed."You get to see him, Mama Bear."
Harper couldn't keep the smile off her face, but she was still wary as she looked in the rearview mirror.Relief rushed through her when she saw the way Alana was smiling back at her.
"We should probably get homework done early, Tanya," she said."Give them some time to say hi."
"Okay, but I want to give Dad a hug first, and I want to ask if he got the—"
"Tanya," Alana interrupted sharply.
"Oh.Oops.Sorry.I— yeah."Tanya jumped out of the passenger seat as soon as Harper brought the truck to a stop.
"Is everything okay with her?"Harper asked.
"Yeah, she's good.She just asked Dad to get something for her while he was out today.It's all good.Let's go see him."Alana jumped out too, leaving Harper wondering what exactly was going on.
By the time she entered the house, she didn't get the chance to ask the girls.They were already on their way upstairs.
Emmett came to greet her, wrapping both arms around her waist and pressing a kiss to her lips."Hey.I managed to get home early."
"I hope you didn't do that because of me.I didn't mean to mess up your day."
"You didn't mess it up.It's all good.My day's been great because of you, and getting to see you makes it even better."
"Oh, that's sweet of you."
"It's just the truth.Can you stay for a while, or were you only planning to drop the girls off and leave again?"
"I'd love to hang around for a while.I was planning to."She smiled at him."You know, just hang around in the hope that you might be back soon."
He rested his forehead against hers and looked down into her eyes."Only one more week until you don't have to go back to the cottage."
She glanced up the stairs."I hope so, but if it turns out that Alana's not ready—"
He chuckled."She's ready.She's just as ready as Tanya is."His smile faded."I'm not saying that there won't be moments."
"No, I know that there will.And that's as it should be."
"I think we're going to be okay, you know—the four of us."
"I do too.But I still want you to remember my one condition."
He frowned."Remind me."
"You still have to tell me if the day comes when it's time for me to go."
"That day isn't going to come."
"I'm not saying I want it to.I hope it won't, but…"
"Do you think you can learn to trust me?"He shook his head."That's not right.I know you trust me.What I need you to do is learn to believe in us."
She reached up to touch his cheek."I want to, Emmett.I really do.I'm doing my best here.I'm not trying to be difficult."
