His eyes widened in surprise, but he didn’t say anything.
“Anyway,” she said, “tell me more about you. What was your life like back in Soso, Mississippi?”
Andrew regarded her for a moment before speaking. “You already know that I’m close to my parents, sister, and niece. But I also have a lot of family members nearby. My grandparents and a variety of aunts, uncles, and cousins.” He smiled. “Every Sunday after church, we all go to my grandparents’ house for lunch. Sometimes there are more than thirty of us, all crammed into their small house. But those are good times.”
Emily nodded. It sounded absolutely idyllic. “That sounds amazing. I grew up in much the same way. But things aren’t the same now. With Holly gone and then my grandpa passed away a few years ago. . .I guess it’s just too sad to go home much anymore.”
“But what about all the people left behind?” Andrew asked. “Don’t you want to spend as much time with them as possible in light of all that’s happened?”
She narrowed her eyes. Maybe he didn’t understand her after all. “It’s better this way.” She shifted in the booth. “So school starts next week? Are you nervous?”
He gave her a small smile. “Not really. Most of my coworkers are great. I’m excited to meet the students.”
“Mary Kate told me that even though you went to China to teach English, you normally teach history. Is that right?”
He nodded. “Yep. The China program was more for conversational English, so I didn’t need to be an English teacher to do it. It was something I’ve always wanted to do. But I teach American and world history normally, and that’s what my job is now. I’ve always enjoyed learning about the past, even as a kid.” He chuckled. “That was one way Sarah and I were totally opposite. Mom and Dad would take us to historic places, like battlefields or museums. Sarah hated those trips and I couldn’t wait until the next one.” He grinned. “I guess those differences in people are what makes the world go round though, right?”
She dipped a french fry into her honey mustard sauce. “I suppose so.”
The rest of the night passed in a blur. Emily found herself smiling more than she normally did. She knew if Suzanne and Jade could see her, they’d accuse her of having her flirt face on. But Andrew brought out a lightheartedness she’d forgotten she had.
And when he reached over and took her hand as they walked to the trolley, it seemed like the most natural thing in the world.
Chapter Nine
“I’ve missed you so much,” Mary Kate said. She knelt down on the living room floor at Andrew’s house and hugged Ruby.
“She’s missed you, too.” Andrew sat down on the couch and watched his niece and her dog. “She hasn’t looked this happy since she got here.”
Sarah laughed. “Both of my girls back together and the world seems right again.” She glanced over at Andrew. “So how’s it going? Is work okay?”
He nodded. “Classes have been going well. I like my students a lot.” He grinned. “Teaching junior high will either keep me young or turn my hair gray early. I’m not sure which.”
“So you don’t regret the move?” she pressed. “I know the city isn’t your thing.”
Andrew had been trying to let go of some of his paranoia about the city, but he still cringed when he found himself in a parking lot after dark or heard a noise out back. “I don’t regret it. I want to be nearby so I can see y’all as often as possible.” Over the past weeks, Mary Kate’s treatment had been going really well. Andrew had visited several times each week.
“I talked to Emily yesterday,” Sarah said. “She mentioned that y’all had gone out to dinner.”
He’d not mentioned their date to his sister, not because he wanted to hide it, but because he needed to sort out his feelings. “We had a nice time.”
“Do you like Emily?” Mary Kate piped up. “Because I do. She is so funny and whenever she has to stick me with a needle, it doesn’t hurt.” She smiled. “She’s my favorite.”
Andrew laughed. “We have a fun time together.”
“Mary Kate, do you want to go get Ruby a treat?” Sarah asked. “I put some bones in a bag on the kitchen counter.”
Mary Kate nodded. “Come on, Rubes. Let’s go get a treat.” She got up and walked to the kitchen, the big dog at her heels.
“Smooth.” Andrew shook his head at his sister.
Sarah smiled. “You can’t tell me the truth about you and Emily in front of her. She adores Emily, plus she tends to get chatty during long hours at the hospital.” She patted him on the knee. “Now tell me what’s going on.”
He shrugged. “I’ve been trying to figure that out myself. You know I haven’t dated much over the past few years. I think I’m ready, but at the same time, I worry that I’m not. I don’t want to lead her on. She’s been through too much for that.”
Sarah wrinkled her forehead. “You like this girl, right?”
He nodded. “Yeah. We had a really nice time at dinner the other night. I’d like to ask her out again, but I’m not sure if I should.”
“What gives? Are you going to beat yourself up for the rest of your life? What happened to Beth wasn’t your fault.”
“That’s easy for you to say.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “Besides. I’m telling you, Emily deserves someone who is one hundred percent certain he is ready for a real relationship. I’m not totally sure I’ll ever be.”
“Is it commitment that scares you?”
He shook his head. “No. It’s just that I’m not sure if I can move on yet. I still have nightmares about Beth. There are nights that I still sleep with the light on. And the more I get to know Emily, the more I realize that she’s been hurt more times than anyone deserves. What if I end up hurting her, too?”
“You’ve only had a couple of dates. Don’t you think you should get to know her a little more before you write it off? I never thought you’d allow fear to rule your life.”
He stood up and paced the length of the living room. “But what if it doesn’t work out?”
“Think about that little girl in your kitchen right now. There are no guarantees on anything. We don’t know what tomorrow holds. It seems to me that you’d want to hang on to something that obviously makes you happy, even if it’s scary.”
He grinned. “For a little sister, you sure are wise.”
Sarah stuck her tongue out at him. “It’s about time you figured that out.”
***
Emily pulled into a space at Sea Isle Park next to Suzanne’s white Pathfinder. She grabbed her iPhone and hopped out. “Sorry. I got caught in traffic on Poplar.”
Suzanne stood next to her SUV with her dog, Charlie. “It’s okay. But that’s twice recently that I’ve beaten you somewhere. What is going on?” She laughed.
Emily shook her head. “I wish I knew. I think I’m having some kind of identity crisis.” She laughed as she said it, but she’d been really thinking a lot lately about the person she’d become and who she wanted to be.
“You think we can actually manage to complete the half marathon this year? After last year’s failed attempt, I’m a little hesitant to even try.”
Emily smiled. “We have more motivation this year. The race is just a few weeks before your wedding and I’m going to be running in honor of my sister.” They made their way to the walking path that circled around the park.
Suzanne raised her eyebrows. “That’s awesome.”
After talking to Andrew about Holly, Emily had decided to stop holding her memories inside, especially with her closest friends. “She always wanted to run in a marathon, and even though this is only a half, it’s still something.”
“It sure is.” Suzanne held on to Charlie’s leash. “Although I’m not sure if Charlie is going to train with us the whole time.” She smiled. Her Boxer-mix was almost twelve and moving a little slower than he used to. “He was pretty excited to come with me today, but once we start on the longer training runs, I’ll probably leave him at
home.”
“Is he getting along okay with Presley?” Nick’s dog, Presley, was a lab mix and wasn’t quite a year old yet.
“They are two peas in a pod, believe it or not. Charlie gets annoyed sometimes because he doesn’t want to do all the chasing and wrestling that Presley does, but then later on, they curl up together and sleep. It’s adorable. They hate being apart, so I guess it’s a good thing Nick and I are getting married.” She grinned.
“I’ve thought about getting a pet, but I’m not sure.” Emily liked animals but hadn’t had one since she was a kid. “I mean, I’ve gone through two goldfish and neither have lasted more than a couple of months.”
Suzanne burst out laughing. “Having a goldfish and having a dog or cat isn’t really the same thing.”
“I know. But I thought I’d ease into pet ownership. Flossie and Flopsy both went belly up though. So maybe I’m not cut out for it.”
“Jade could probably use some help with her rescues. You could be like a foster dog mom.”
Emily grinned. “Maybe. But it seems like it would be an awful lot of trouble, especially where I live. There isn’t much green space around.”
“Yeah, that could be a problem.”
They walked in silence for a few minutes.
“So I have to ask you something. And let me preface it by saying it won’t hurt my feelings if the answer is no,” Suzanne said.
“What’s up?”
Suzanne stopped walking and turned to face Emily. “Will you be my maid of honor?”
“Of course!” Emily grinned and hugged her friend. “Why would you even think I’d say no to that?”
“I don’t want the wedding to be difficult for you. After everything with Matt. . .well I’d totally understand if you just wanted to attend as a guest and not be a part of the actual ceremony.”
They started down the path again.
“I’m thrilled for you. Really. And I’m honored to stand next to you as you marry Nick. Please don’t give it another thought. I am so much better off without Matt.”
Suzanne smiled. “I’m glad to hear it. I’ve been praying for you a lot lately. I know running into him and his wife like that was hard.”
“I actually may invite a guest to your wedding if that’s okay.”
Suzanne raised her eyebrows. “Andrew? Have you gone out again?”
“He called out of the blue yesterday. I was beginning to think maybe I wouldn’t hear from him again. But he called and said he’d been thinking about me and that he’d like to take me out again.”
“Sounds promising.”
Emily laughed. “I think his sister and niece must’ve known he was going to ask me, because when I saw them a couple of days ago they were both smiling like they knew a huge secret.” She shrugged. “He told me to dress up and that he’d see me on Saturday at six.”
“Dress up?” Suzanne asked. “That’s interesting. Where do you think he’s taking you?”
Emily shook her head. “He wouldn’t say. Just that he wanted to take me out to a nice place.”
“I love it!” Suzanne grinned. “I like this guy already. I can’t wait to meet him.”
Emily wrinkled her nose. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. I’m still not totally sure how I feel. I might not be ready for him to meet y’all just yet.”
Suzanne groaned. “That’s what dating is for. You don’t have to be sure right now. Not until he puts a ring on it.”
“That’s the thing. I’ve had the ring. And even so, it fell apart. So I guess I might not trust my judgment as much as I used to.”
“Yeah, but you know you’re better off without Matt.” Suzanne looked over at Emily.
Emily nodded. “That’s kind of the problem. Even though we weren’t really right for each other, I said yes to his proposal. And I’d be miserably married to him now if he hadn’t had sense enough to call it off. So you see? How do I learn to trust my judgment again after almost making such a huge mistake?”
Suzanne sighed. “You know what my advice is going to be. Not that you want to hear it.” She didn’t say anything until they reached the end of the path. “Pray about it, Emily. You might be surprised.”
Emily thought about her friend’s advice after she left the park and headed home. What was wrong with her? Prayer came easily to Suzanne. To Jade. Even to Andrew. So why was it that the few times she’d attempted to pray over the past few years, the words just didn’t come?
Chapter Ten
Emily stared at her reflection in the full-length hall mirror. She’d opted for the little black dress tonight. Classic, timeless, and always good for a dressy occasion. Her favorite black strappy heels and the pearls she’d gotten for her eighteenth birthday completed her look.
She leaned closer to the mirror. It was funny. All those years ago, she’d thought Holly was the only beauty in the family. But sometimes, she saw a resemblance to her sister in her own reflection.
She’d actually put her hair in hot rollers so that it was wavier than normal. It had been a long time since she’d had an occasion to get all dressed up, and she wanted to look her best.
The last time she and Andrew had gone out, he’d held her hand on the way home. No kiss at the end of the night, just a hug. But that was okay. She wanted to be sure of her feelings before things went to that level.
But she couldn’t help but wonder if tonight would be the night. It had been a long time since she’d had a first kiss from anyone.
The ringing doorbell startled her.
She glanced around, making sure everything was in its place and the guest door closed.
Once she was satisfied, she made her way over to the door and opened it.
“Did you check to make sure it was me?” Andrew asked with a grin on his face. “I’m hoping you looked through the peep hole before you opened the door.”
She rolled her eyes. “You caught me. I just figured who else would show up at my door at six on Saturday night?” She waved him inside.
Andrew turned to face her. “You look amazing,” he said with a grin.
She took in his dark suit, blue shirt, and striped tie. “You, too. We clean up really good, huh?”
He laughed. “I guess we do. So are you ready for a surprise?”
“Always.”
Andrew reached out and moved a stray hair from her face. “Just for the record, meeting you has been one of the best surprises I’ve ever had.”
She ducked her head, smiling. “You, too,” she said softly.
Once they were downstairs, Andrew took her hand. “I switched cars with Sarah for the night.” He grinned. “I know you don’t mind riding in an old pickup truck, but since we’re all dressed up and all. . .”
“You’re so silly. You know I wouldn’t have minded.” She waited while he opened the door on Sarah’s Honda Accord.
He got in the driver’s seat and buckled his seat belt. “I want the whole night to be special. And a clunky truck with barely functioning air-conditioning isn’t exactly the effect I’m going for.”
It was actually very sweet. She hadn’t been sure why he’d waited so long to call her, but it seemed like he’d put a lot of thought into tonight. “I appreciate it.”
Ten minutes later they pulled into a parking garage on Union Avenue.
“Are you going to tell me yet where we’re headed?” Emily asked.
Andrew maneuvered around a tight corner and pulled into an empty space. He turned off the engine and looked at her. “Have you ever been to Flight?”
Her eyes widened. “Once, last year. We were celebrating Suzanne’s new job. It’s a nice place.”
“We have reservations in ten minutes.” He winked. “Stay put.” Andrew walked around and opened her door, then offered his hand. “Let’s go.”
Emily could get used to being treated this well. He’d obviously done his homework on hip places to eat downtown, and even made reservations. “You’re getting major bonus points for planning ahead like this.”
He gripped her hand. “I wanted to take you out for a really nice evening.” They walked out of the parking garage and onto the sidewalk. “But next time we might stay in and order pizza.”
“Next time?”
He laughed. “Well, yeah. I mean, if you want there to be a next time.”
Emily grinned as he opened the door for her at Flight. “Definitely.”
Once they were seated and had placed their drink orders, Emily leaned over. “So the concept of this place is kind of cool. You can order regular sized entrees, or you can get what they call a ‘flight,’ which is smaller portions.”
“One of my coworkers mentioned something about that,” Andrew said. “What’s the deal?”
She opened the menu and pointed. “You can order a salad or you can get a flight of salad, which is three small salads. It’s that way for everything. Soup, entrees, and even dessert. I love the concept.”
“So I guess I don’t have to ask which you’re going to do?” he asked with a smile.
Emily shook her head. “Nope. Small portions where I get to try a lot of different things is my idea of the perfect meal.”
“I’m glad I made a good choice. It came highly recommended by one of my friends at work. He says it’s his wife’s very favorite restaurant.”
“She has good taste.”
The waiter came by and took their order.
“I went by to see Mary Kate yesterday at Target house. She was awfully interested in whether or not I was going to see you again soon. I hope she isn’t bugging you about it too much at work.”
Emily laughed. “Nope. She does talk you up though. According to her, you can do pretty much anything, from sports to crafts.”
He groaned. “What else did she tell you?”
“Apparently you’re quite the nail painter.” She watched as his face turned red.
Can't Help Falling in Love (Memphis Moments Book 2) Page 6
