His Unexpected Family

by Patricia Johns

  Dialing his number, she took a deep breath, willing herself to calm down.

  “Hello, Shaw residence.” It was Sara. Just great. Emily was probably the last person Sara wanted to chat with, and she knew it. Emily sighed.

  “Hi, Sara, how are you?”

  “Emily?”

  “Yes, it’s me. How are you doing?”

  “We’re all fine. We’re just having family worship.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry to interrupt. I can call back later.”

  There was some muffled talking on the other end of the line, and then Sara said sweetly, “No, no, Steve is right here. I’ll continue with the children.”

  There was something so irritating about Sara’s carefully controlled sweetness. She said things like “the Lord willing” and “the children” in a breathy voice that sounded more like bad acting than anything else. Now was not the time to quibble, though, so Emily said a quick “Thanks, Sara” and listened while the phone was passed over.

  “Emily?” Steve sounded eager. “Hi.”

  “Hi, Steve.” Emily felt suddenly tired. “I had a bit of a...I guess a scare today. Someone followed me.”

  “What?” He didn’t sound as if he believed her. “Are you sure? Should I come get Cora?”

  “Yes, I’m sure, and no, you shouldn’t.” She sighed. This wasn’t going to be a pleasant chat, she could already tell.

  “You’re under a lot of stress,” Steve said. “Maybe a few days off from taking care of her would help.”

  “Steve, I’m not paranoid. I was followed.”

  “How do you know?”

  “The police believed me, for one,” she said. “And the guy called me Jessica.”

  There was silence on the other end. “But she’s dead.”

  “I realize that. Hence it being really, really creepy.” Emily couldn’t help the irritation from entering her voice. “Sorry. I know that was a bit of a shock. It upset me, too. Look, some guy followed me from my home to the mall and confronted me there. He thought I was Jessica, that much was obvious.”

  “Why? What did he want?”

  “Beats me. I was hoping you knew something.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like who this creep is! Do you know anything from Jessica’s life that might explain this? I look nothing like her, but...”

  “The baby.” His voice was low.

  “It occurred to me. So what do you know?”

  Steve was silent again. Emily could hear some little voices singing “Jesus Loves Me” in the background.

  “Steve?”

  “Emily, it sounds to me like Cora is in danger. Let me come get her.”

  “I have police protection, Steve. This guy isn’t going to get to me again. Besides, there’s something you haven’t considered yet.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Cora has a father, Steve. And whoever that father is has a bigger claim to Cora than either of us.”

  There was silence on the other end again, and Emily could hear Sara’s voice reading a Bible story.

  “Well.” Steve sighed. “It doesn’t change anything right now, does it?”

  “For Cora’s safety,” Emily said on a sigh, “call Greg at the station if you remember anything.”

  “Greg? You’re on a first-name basis with the chief of police now?”

  So are you, Steve, she thought to herself in irritation, but arguing about this wasn’t going to help anything tonight.

  “Can’t we work together to figure this out?” Emily asked, exasperated.

  “Of course. I’ll call if I can think of anything.”

  As Emily hung up the phone, she deeply doubted her cousin’s good intentions. Her lawyer would be very irritated with her for this call, she knew already, but at least she’d given it a shot. They were supposed to be a family, after all, and if at the end of all of this Cora didn’t have a family left to rely on, she would have lost more than she’d ever know.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Sunday dawned bright and sunny, the kind of summer day where it felt impossible to complain. As Emily buckled Cora into her car seat in the back of Greg’s car, she smiled to herself. Cora was about as cute as she could get in her little green sundress with a matching green headband. She wore the tiniest white sandals that Emily had been able to find, although they were still a little big, and Emily felt a swell of pride.

  “You look really nice.”

  Emily glanced up at Greg, who stood by the open driver’s-side door, leaning against the roof. He was dressed casually in gray dress pants and a white linen button-up shirt, open at the neck. A gun holster came over his shoulders, and he eased a sport coat over the weapon. He gave her a smile, and she squinted at him quizzically.

  “Do you need to be armed?”

  “I’m a cop, Emily.” He met her gaze evenly. “I’m here to protect you today. I won’t pull out my gun unless absolutely necessary, but I need to be prepared, okay?”

  She nodded.

  “You look nice, by the way,” he said.

  “Thanks.” She’d worn the most conservative sundress she owned, a navy ship-christening’s dress with an A-line skirt and double-breasted buttons running down the front. She’d left her glossy hair down, and she tucked it behind her ear as she looked up at him. “Beth would be proud. She’s always trying to get me to visit other churches.”

  “Why?”

  “To meet eligible men.” Emily rolled her eyes.

  Greg laughed. “You don’t strike me as the type to be easily pawned off on some unsuspecting guy.”

  “Thanks.” She paused. “I think.”

  “It’s a compliment.” He smiled at her, his blue eyes meeting hers, making the heat rise in her cheeks.

  Instead of answering him, she slid into the front seat of the car. As Greg settled in the driver’s seat next to her, she could smell the subtle scent of his cologne. She sank back in the seat, enjoying the convenience of being driven somewhere instead of doing the driving. Greg put his arm around the back of her seat as he backed out of her drive, and as he pulled it back to shift into first, his eye caught her watching him.

  “How are you feeling since the stalker?” he asked.

  “I’m installing a security system.”

  He laughed softly. “Good plan. In a place like Haggerston, we don’t like to think we need that kind of thing, but the truth is, we’re sitting ducks to every passing criminal if we aren’t ready.”

  Emily nodded, her mind moving back to her cousins. “Some things you don’t want to see. The truth can be hard to take, especially in your own family.”

  “Are you talking about Steve?”

  “He’s my cousin. I grew up with him. He drove me nuts, yes, but he’s...he’s Steve. I’m seeing this whole new side to him now, and I hate that. I just don’t want to see it.”

  Greg was silent, a frown puckering his brow. After a few moments, he said, “I gave him a call last night.”

  “Me, too,” she admitted.

  Greg looked over at her, eyebrows raised in surprise. “Oh?”

  “I got absolutely nothing out of him. And for that pleasure, my lawyer is going to be furious with me.”

  He chuckled. “That he will.”

  “Did you find out anything?”

  “Nothing directly, no.”

  “Anything indirectly?”

  “Just a few suspicions.”

  Emily nodded. He didn’t seem willing to open up any more than that, and she could respect it. He was a police officer, and she didn’t really expect him to tell her every detail. Instead, she looked out the window at the passing fields of yellow canola and the looping telephone wires as they headed toward town.

  “Nervous?” he asked.
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  “About what?” She looked back at him.

  “Coming to church with me.”

  “A bit.” She returned his grin.

  “Don’t worry—I’m the one who should be worried.”

  “Why?”

  “I’m about to walk into my home church with a beautiful woman and a new baby.” He gave her a comically arch expression. “Tongues will wag, my dear.”

  Emily blushed and laughed. “Well, I can’t help that. You brought this on yourself.”

  “Yeah, I did,” he replied. “This Sunday dinner will be the most exciting one they’ll have had in a while.”

  “For the gossip?”

  “Gossip is always better before you know the truth.” His gaze softened as he looked at her. “Besides, it’s worth it.”

  Emily looked over at him, feeling suddenly shy. The thought that Greg would brave the gossip and curiosity in order to keep an eye on her was strangely touching.

  “You’ve never brought a woman to church with you before, have you?” Emily asked.

  “Does my mom count?”

  Emily rolled her eyes and laughed out loud. “Oh, Greg, they’re going to eat you alive!”

  “You’re probably right.” He chuckled. “But most of that will happen behind my back, and the rest of it will wait until they run into me in town.”

  Small towns had that way about them. Everybody was somehow connected to everyone else, and gossip flew around town faster than a stomach bug.

  “You’re a lot shyer than you let on, aren’t you?” she asked.

  “I prefer to call it private.” He gave her a wink. “It’s manlier that way.”

  He pulled onto a tree-lined street with a white steepled church farther up the road. It was beautiful, the white of the old-fashioned church peeking through the lush green of the summer leaves. He pulled into a parking spot along the side of the road and turned off the car. He looked over at her, his blue eyes meeting hers for a moment, a smile twitching at the corners of his lips.

  “Well,” he said. “Shall we go in?”

  * * *

  As they walked up toward the church, Greg glanced over his shoulder, scanning the familiar street for anyone who might be following. Nothing that he could see, but blending into a street already lined with parked cars would be an easy enough feat. One of the cruisers slowed down as it passed the church, and he nodded to the officer in the vehicle.

  Emily carried the car seat in one hand, and he carried the diaper bag over his shoulder. He knew exactly how they looked, and he liked it. If anyone were following Emily, he wanted them to see her with a protector—even better if they knew him as chief of police. Emily was not alone in this, and that was the message he was sending loud and clear.

  Emily’s dark hair framed her face, and her calf-length sailor dress swirled around her calves like a forties movie star. She wore a simple black pair of heels, and he liked the sound they made against the sidewalk. She glanced up at him and gave him a shy smile.

  As they came up the walk, Greg could already hear the piano music pounding out traditional hymns, and he felt that familiar wave of peace come over him. Church was a place where he could step away from his job and his obligations and just give it up to God. Of course, God was with him through the week, as well, but there was something comforting about Sunday, a day where he gave himself permission to step away. He took a deep breath and let it out, then glanced down at Emily at his side. She was comfortably petite next to him, and he found himself wanting to put his arm around her and pull her close, but he didn’t dare.

  “Good morning, Chief.” The reverend was a slender, older man with white hair and a ready smile. He shook Greg’s hand and turned his attention to Emily.

  “This is Emily Shaw.” Greg felt a bit of pride at introducing her.

  “Ms. Shaw, this is a pleasure,” the reverend said, taking her hand. “I’m glad to have you with us today. And who is this?”

  Greg saw a sudden look of uncertainty flash over Emily’s face, and he had the urge to rescue her from the moment, but she recovered quickly and flashed a brilliant smile.

  “This is Cora.”

  “She’s lovely.” The reverend’s glance swept over them together. “You make a beautiful family.”

  Greg had known the reverend for several years, and the old reverend knew Greg’s personal situation quite well. He chuckled to himself.

  Nothing like a little pastoral nudge in the matrimonial direction.

  He swallowed his laugh, but he met the reverend’s eyes with humor as they walked past. A beautiful family. Yes, they did look good together, and he did like this feeling of having them with him. If he were the parenting sort, he could see himself referring to them as his two favorite girls...but there was no point in letting his mind run that course.

  The foyer of the church was dim due to the old-fashioned architecture. This building had been a place of worship for the past seventy-five years at least. The swinging doors that led to the sanctuary were a heavy, polished walnut, and as Greg pushed a door open for Emily to walk through, he felt a mixture of peace and uncertain happiness.

  They’d all ask about her next week, he knew. And what would he say? That she was a friend? That this was about a case and nothing else? They would nod and make that good-humored face that said they knew exactly what kind of friend she was, and they thought it was high time for that sort of addition to his life. They’d ask for details. They’d bring her up for weeks to come. There would be no forgetting about this Sunday and packing it away into another box in his mind. That was the part that made him nervous. He was crossing a line here, allowing her into his personal life, and he knew that this would have ripples.

  They slid into a pew toward the back, just in case Emily needed to take Cora out to settle her, and as they sat down, the piano struck up the chords for “In the Sweet By and By.” The old piano, just slightly out of tune, plunked away as the voices of the congregation joined together in the familiar hymn. An old lady’s voice wavered in a shrill soprano near the front, just half a beat behind everyone else. The man leading the congregation up front was conducting in the air with a great amount of enthusiasm, and Greg let his eyes flow over everyone, scouting for someone who didn’t belong. This was part of why he’d suggested she come to his church.

  In one of the pews ahead of them, Richard Pike sat with his teenage son.

  Funny how life turns out.

  Richard had been the one to break Greg’s nose in the fifth grade. He’d returned the favor at the end of the school year, but that school year had been hell. It was years ago, and Richard was no longer a bullying brute of a kid. He was now the divorced dad of a teenage boy who was slender and quiet—the perfect target for the current bullies at the local high school. Greg had taken some time with the boy, talking to him about the bullying.

  “I appreciate this, Greg,” Richard had said in a private conversation. “Vince is sensitive, and it means a lot that you’d take him under your wing a bit. I’m not so good with the...with the feelings and all that. After how I treated you, I—” He’d cleared his throat. “Appreciate it, man.”

  It was as close to an apology as Greg would ever get.

  Cora made a little mewling sound, and he glanced over to see Emily gently taking her out of the car seat and settling her into her lap. They were a beautiful pair, these two, and he felt his heart soften just looking at them. She glanced up at him then leaned close, her faint perfume tickling his nose.

  “Could you get the bottle, Greg?”

  He pulled himself together and opened the diaper bag, entirely uncertain of what he’d find there. There were the expected diapers, some cloths, a few jars of ointments and creams, a couple changes of clothes for Cora and several bottles. He pulled one out and handed it to Emily, who popped the lid off with one fl
ick of her finger and popped the nipple into Cora’s hungry little mouth.

  Emily cradled Cora, who slurped the bottle hungrily, in the crook of her arm. Emily looked so alone just then, cuddling the baby and sitting on the pew in perfect silence and solitude. She had an air about her that could make her seem as if she was a million miles away, all on her own like a star in the sky. But he didn’t think she wanted to be so alone....

  Before he had the time to think better of it, Greg slid his arm around her shoulder and nudged her closer to him. She leaned toward him in response, and he could feel the warmth of her arm against his side. He suddenly felt a wave of nervousness, like a teenage boy making his first move, and he looked down at her, wondering what she was thinking.

  It felt good to hold her like this. It felt right, somehow, as if this was exactly where they belonged, side by side. He ran his hand down her bare arm and felt goose bumps. She was cold.

  Cora started to fuss a little, and Emily made some soft shushing noises, patting her little bottom with one hand. Looking down at them, Greg suddenly felt entirely helpless to keep himself aloof. He shouldn’t be falling for her, but he was.

  “Greg?” she whispered.

  He leaned down to catch her words.

  “I think I’d better change her....”

  And just like that, Emily was out of his arms again, her heels clicking softly against the wooden floor as she disappeared out the back door, Cora in her arms and the diaper bag over her shoulder. The only thing left behind was the car seat, sitting at his feet.

  So this was what a family felt like. It wasn’t quite what he’d imagined, but he’d never really allowed himself to imagine these sorts of things before. And now that he sat here in his church, the old reverend standing up to preach and his side still warm with the feeling of her arm, he felt his firm resolve wavering.

  Father God, I didn’t want to know what this felt like. I didn’t want to know what I was missing.