Emma's Deliverance

by Susan Vance

  Howard sat down next to his wife and held her trembling hand.

  “Okay, yesterday at the grand opening I saw this man across the street, he was standing on the corner looking in at us. Then this morning he was at my front door pointing at my help wanted sign. Then this afternoon I saw him again standing across the street looking in. It was kind of creepy, somehow. Maybe it wasn’t the same man, but I think it was.”

  Marilyn stood up and took Emma in her arms.

  “Emma dear, if you see this man again I want you to call us, okay? This is probably nothing and I don’t want you to be concerned about it. It most likely wasn’t the same man each time, but someone who looks similar. Did you speak to him?”

  “No, well, yes, but only through the door. I told him it was too early for an interview and to come back later which he didn’t do.”

  Howard stood up and gave her a hug.

  “Don’t give it another thought,” he said. “I’m sure it’s nothing.”

  Emma wondered why Teri was making so much of this. She was a little perturbed that Teri said anything at all. She had asked her not too. What’s the big deal, she wondered.

  “I’m going home you guys. I’m tired and I still have Sam to deal with. He most likely won’t be speaking to me tonight. I love you all. Good night,” Emma said grabbing her car keys.

  “Okay, go on. Call when you get home,” her mother said.

  Emma looked at all of them as if they knew something she didn’t, but shrugged it off and headed for the door. My family can be so weird sometimes, she thought. She waved goodnight as she opened the door and walked over to her car.

  Howard went to the front door and watched until she was safely in her car and watched her drive away. He turned around and looked at his wife.

  “Howard, don’t worry so. It hasn’t happened in years. There is no reason to think this means anything.”

  “Marilyn, I pray you are right,” Howard sighed.

  Chapter Six

  It was a beautiful summer morning. August was unseasonably warm this year, but the morning air was cool. The end of July usually marked the turning of the weather, but the warm days seemed to linger on this year much to the delight of the Clayton County residents. Emma was no exception. It was Sunday and after church she was going swimming at the lake with Jody, Ryan, and little Louie. Jody was bringing fried chicken and potato salad. Emma was in charge of the drinks and dessert.

  Emma went to the market to pick up the sodas and an apple pie. The bakery was crowded so she went to get the sodas first. By the time she got back to the bakery there were only two people waiting so she took her place in line and started looking in the case at all the pies for sale. Several people ended up behind her, then she heard a voice that sounded a little familiar. She turned around to see Jason Scott standing in line behind her. He was with a woman in a wheel chair with an obvious broken leg. She presumed this had to be his mother. She looked up and Jason was staring at her.

  “Hi, Emma,” he said with such a dazzling smile that Emma almost lost eye contact with him. She smiled back. She was taken aback by his stature. He was taller than she remembered at the flower shop and his shoulders were much broader. His sandy brown hair was almost hidden under the baseball cap that he was wearing. His eyes were as deep brown as she remembered and his smile was overwhelming.

  She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “Hi.” Just hi, and nothing else, was all she could manage to say.

  Jason smiled at her. His mother seemed a bit amused.

  “How are you?” Emma asked. For some reason she suddenly felt a bit less awkward.

  “Better, now that I ran into you,” he said pushing the wheelchair up a little closer to where Emma was standing.

  Emma blushed and Jason’s mother looked at her son with surprise. Her face softened and her smile was calming for Emma.

  “Emma, this is my mom, Brenda. Mom, this is Emma Taylor. She owns the flower shop where I bought your red carnations.”

  “It’s nice to meet you, Emma.”

  “Thank you. It’s nice to meet you as well. I certainly hope your leg is doing better. Sorry to see you’re still in a wheelchair though.”

  “Actually I was up on crutches until a few days ago, then I fell, so it’s the chair most of the time for right now. I can hobble around at home some, but if it wasn’t for Jason I would really be in trouble,” she said looking up and smiling at her son.

  Emma was impressed once again by this man. Not only was he oh so cute, he was a good son.

  “So, Emma,” Jason said, “what brings you to the bakery? Do you have a sweet tooth?”

  He was teasing her and she was enjoying the attention. “I’m going to the lake with my sister and her husband and I’m in charge of the dessert. I was thinking—Apple Pie.”

  “Apple Pie is good, but how about fresh strawberries and whipped cream?” He smiled and raised an eyebrow.

  Emma blushed again and then she heard his mother clear her throat slightly as if to say to, Jason, knock it off.

  “Um. . . well. . . they really like pie. It’s easy to take and I don’t have to put it in the cooler.” Emma smiled at him with a look she hoped his mother didn’t see. “I do like strawberries though.”

  She thought he wasn’t going to push the issue with his mother right there, but she was wrong. Boy was she wrong.

  “I still think strawberries are best for desert,” he said. “I’ll have to cook for you sometime and we can have strawberries and whipped cream afterwards.”

  Emma felt flushed. She was so surprised she lost her footing. Jason reached out for her, but she grabbed her shopping cart. By now her face was beet red. She could feel the steam rising from her collar and she actually felt dizzy for a moment.

  “Emma, you must not pay any attention to my son. He thinks he’s the up most authority on cooking and making desserts. My son, the fireman. He cooks low fat meals for the other firemen and insists they have fruit for dessert. They get mad because they want steak and potatoes with ice cream or cake for dessert, but that doesn’t stop him. When it is their turn to cook they feed him high fat foods and chocolate cake. Turn around is fair play they tell him.”

  “Good for them.” Emma liked Brenda and hoped she’d get to see her again. She turned to Jason. “So, you’re a fireman?”

  “Yes, didn’t I tell you that at your flower shop?”

  “No, we didn’t discuss your occupation. You just said you liked my store and that you would be back. I guess you don’t buy many flowers though.” She was teasing him now and he seemed delighted.

  “Miss, can I help you?” said the lady behind the counter.

  Emma was still looking into Jason’s eyes and didn’t hear her.

  “Miss,” the saleslady said quite a bit louder. “What can I get for you?”

  Jason motioned towards the clerk. Startled, Emma turned to see what the commotion was all about. Seeing that it was her turn to order, she blushed again. She was a little embarrassed and tried to regain her composure.

  Brenda smiled and shook her head looking up at her son who was obviously amused.

  “Oh, I’m sorry, I’d like that apple pie,” Emma said pointing to the one on the second shelf. As her pie was being put into a box Emma turned around and looked at Jason’s mother. She liked the way Brenda looked. Her dark brown hair was cut into a short bob with wispy bangs. It looked very stylish. Emma thought her make-up looked good, too. She couldn’t tell about her size since she was sitting down in the wheelchair, but it looked like she was fairly tall with a slender build.

  “It was nice to meet you, Brenda,” Emma said. She looked up at Jason who was still smiling. “And it was nice to see you again, Jason.” She wasn’t sure what to do next, so she said good-by and reached for her pie box. She smiled and turned to leave wishing she could stay and talk a little while longer.

  “What about our dinner? Don’t leave without giving me your phone number.”

  “What dinner?” she as
ked, knowing exactly what he meant.

  “The dinner I’m going to make for you. That’s what dinner. How about tonight? I’m off for another two days so tonight would be a good time for me. How about it? Would this be a good time for you?” he smiled raising that eyebrow of his.

  Emma wasn’t sure what to say. She had never been asked out in front of someone’s mother before. It felt awkward, but in another way it felt safe. She would never go to a man’s house on the first date. She thought quickly and decided that even though he’d asked her right in front of his mother, she wasn’t going to accept the invitation to go to his house. She wanted to go out with him. She wanted to get to know him, but not at his house.

  “Okay, I’ll have dinner with you tonight, but at a restaurant,” she said with her best smile.

  Brenda chimed in. “Good for you. Make him take you out. After all, you hardly know him, right?” She turned to her son and raised an eyebrow. Emma noticed and then it made sense to her why Jason did it so often. Wherever it came from, Emma liked it.

  “Take her someplace nice, Son.” Brenda seemed to be teasing, but her point must have been well taken.

  “Cool,” he said, “can I pick you up?”

  “Of course you can.” Emma smiled as she took out a business card and on the back she wrote down her phone number and address. Her heart was beating faster as she handed him the card. Jason reached for the card and touched her hand with his fingers. Emma felt a shiver throughout her body. She closed her eyes for half a second as she relinquished the card. His fingers remained against her hand for a second longer. She liked his touch. It felt right to her. He was a stranger, but seeing him here with his mom and knowing his mother seemed to approve of her right away seemed almost like a sign. Silly, she felt, but a sign never the less.

  “I’ll pick you up at six o’clock, okay?”

  “That’ll be fine. You’re not allergic to cats, are you?”

  “I love cats,” he boasted.

  “Jason?” Brenda said softly, raising that now famous eyebrow.

  * * *

  Emma was looking through the crowd trying to find Jody when she heard her call out.

  “Emma, hey, we’re over here.” Jody was waving her arms. Ryan stood up and went to help Emma with her bags.

  “Hi Ryan. Here, take the sodas. I’ll carry the pie.”

  Emma liked Ryan. He and Jody fit like a pair of gloves. He was kind and from what Emma could tell he was a good husband and father. As an attorney he made a good living and really wanted Jody to stay at home with little Louie which pleased Jody. He was Italian and loved his mother’s cooking. Jody had said she loved his olive skin and dark brown hair. She would say, teasingly, he came with cooking instructions. Ryan’s mother took to Jody right away and before long had her in the kitchen learning to cook all the family favorites. Emma thought Jody was a lucky woman, but then knew in her heart Ryan was the lucky one.

  Ryan peeked into the bag. “What kind of pie did you get? Jody said it would be apple, but I was thinking peach.”

  “Sorry, Ryan, Jody knows her sister too well. It’s apple. Next time I’ll get peach, okay?” Emma said, apologetically.

  “Apple is fine,” he said as they made their way to Jody.

  The lake was crowded, but there was plenty of room and even some tables left. Despite the lingering warm temperatures, the lake water was already cooling down. To Emma’s disappointment it was too cold to take the swim she had her heart set on. At least it wasn’t so cold that you couldn’t take off your shoes and walk around the edge of the bank. There were children brave enough to take a dip and a few teenagers playing in the water, but not a single adult was getting wet. After lunch Jody and Emma took Louie to get a closer look at the water. They took off their sandals and let the cool water caress their toes. It felt good and Emma walked a little further into the lake until she was ankle deep in the water. Jody was right behind her keeping Louie high enough so he wouldn’t get splashed and get frightened. He was squealing with delight watching the children play in the sand and running back and forth in the water.

  “Next year, little man, I’ll take you swimming with me, okay?” Emma said, touching little Louie on the chin with her hand.

  “Emma, Louie will only be fourteen months old. Let’s give him some time to get some lessons first. Oh, by the way, Ryan and I want to go out to dinner tonight. Will you watch Louie for a few hours?”

  Emma wasn’t planning on telling Jody about her date tonight. She didn’t want to make a big deal about it and she knew Jody would do just that. She thought for a second and decided she had no choice but to tell her sister she had a previous engagement for the evening.

  “Gee, Jody, I can’t. I’m sorry but I have plans for tonight.”

  “Really? What kind of plans?”

  “Okay, okay, before you get all excited it’s just a date.”

  “What do you mean, just a date?”

  “Okay, it’s just a date with the most handsome man I have ever seen.” Emma was blushing and smiling. She was more excited than she had realized. She was going on a date and it felt wonderful. She could see the expression on Jody’s face. She could tell Jody was happy for her.

  Emma flashed back to a conversation she and Jody had a few years earlier. She remembered something Jody had said to her on that day. “Emma, when are you going to find a boyfriend? Then we could double date. I swear you’re so pretty I’d think that you’d have lots of dates.”

  “It isn’t that guys don’t ask, Jody, I just haven’t met anyone I feel like spending time with. I’ll know him when I meet him. He just hasn’t surfaced yet. Besides, I love spending my time with the family. I know it would be fun to double date with you and Ryan, but I like hanging around with the family. It feels comfortable and safe.”

  “What do you mean safe? You say the strangest things sometimes. Having a boyfriend has nothing to do with being safe unless he’s been in prison or something. Watch out for the guys with tattoos of snakes and spider webs on their elbows. Oh, don’t forget the tear tattoo under the eye. I think that means they’ve killed someone,” she had said.

  Jody had only been teasing her that day, but in a way, there was a bit of truth to it. Emma didn’t seem to be interested in dating at all. She did have a few casual dates, but it was usually Emma’s idea to stop seeing them. Jason was different. Emma felt comfortable with him right away. He made her nervous, but it had nothing to do with fear. It was a pleasant nervousness she felt. She wanted to be near him. He excited her in a way that she had not experienced before.

  “So, where did you meet him? Who is he?”

  “He was my very first customer at the shop. I hadn’t seen him again until today after church when I went to the market to get the pie and sodas. He was in line with his mother and he said hello to me. The next thing I know he’s asking me to dinner tonight and I said yes. Wow, huh?”

  Jody had the most peculiar look on her face.

  “He was shopping with his mother? Doesn’t that seem a little odd to you?”

  Emma began to laugh. She laughed so hard that Jody started laughing too. Emma had tears running down her cheeks imagining Jason as a momma’s boy.

  “What’s so funny? All I asked is that, don’t you think it was odd he was shopping with his mother?”

  “I know, but I guess I should explain that this isn’t a momma’s boy were talking about. He’s a big strapping fireman. His mother broke her leg and he was pushing her in a wheelchair. Oh God, Jody, a momma’s boy?” Emma said, almost losing it again. “He’s gorgeous, too. He’s about six feet tall, maybe six-one. I’m telling you Jody, I felt the strangest feeling the first time I met him. He came in the shop last month and bought some flowers for his mom. She was in the hospital. I’m so glad she broke her leg.”

  “Emma!”

  “You know what I mean. If she hadn’t broken her leg Jason wouldn’t have come in to my shop and I would have never met him.”

  “So, he’s a fireman
? Cool. I’ll bet he has a mustache, right? All firemen have mustaches,” Jody said waiting to hear more.

  “Actually, he doesn’t.”

  “Where’s he taking you?”

  “He wanted to cook for me at his house, but I suggested we go to a restaurant.”

  “Good idea. I’m happy you’re going out, but the first date really should be in public, don’t you think?”

  Emma smiled. Jody was always looking out for her like a sister should. When they were small and Emma would have her terrifying nightmares it was always Jody that would comfort her until Marilyn came in. Sometimes Jody would crawl into bed with Emma and sleep with her for the rest of the night. Emma’s nightmares would wake up the whole house as she would be screaming and crying, sometimes for hours on end. Emma never spoke about the nightmares to anyone outside the family. While in therapy, she would refuse to acknowledge this terror even existed. Eventually the torment subsided, surfacing only occasionally.

  “I think you’re right. When Jason said he wanted to cook dinner for me even his mother raised an eyebrow. It was rather sudden, but really, I feel comfortable with him. Anyway, this has been a great day. I had fun. Let’s do it again before the weather turns too cold, okay?” She reached for her nephew, squeezed him tight while giving him a kiss, then she said good-bye to Ryan.

  “Have a great time tonight, Jody said. “I want details tomorrow.”

  Emma turned back and put her finger to her lips. She had hoped Jody wouldn’t call their mom with the news yet. Emma didn’t know where or even if this was going anywhere, but she was would prefer to go on at least one date before letting everyone know about Jason.

  Chapter Seven

  It was a few minutes before six o’clock. Emma took one last look in the mirror checking her hair and make-up. At six-fifteen she wondered why Jason was late. By six fifty-five she was devastated. She kicked off her shoes and sank down in the sofa. She felt as if she would cry. Her emotions went everywhere. Where is he? Why would Jason stand me up like this? Emma was upset. She felt confused. She truly thought he was someone special. Was she wrong? She thought she was a fairly good judge of character, but maybe she had been wrong about him. Would he ask her for a date right in front of his mother and then stand her up? Was he just a tease without regard for her feelings? This just didn’t feel right to her. She wondered if perhaps he’d had an accident. How would she know? She didn’t have a number to reach him. She stood up and looked in the mirror again. Seeing herself all made up to go out made her cry. She looked down at Sam then picked him up. He squirmed and tried to get away. This made Emma cry even harder. This was torture, pure torture. Should she put her sweats on and fix something to eat or sit there in a stupor, crying? She blew her nose and tried to stop crying. Why did I have to tell Jody? She probably already called Mom, now I’ll have to tell them he stood me up. “Oh, Sam, come here, please,” she begged him to no avail. It wasn’t long after that the phone rang. Emma blew hard into her tissue then ran to the phone hoping to hear Jason’s voice.