Part 11 (2/2)
”Do you mean your grandfather? Do you work for him now?”
”Step-grandfather officially, but yeah, I've been working with him since I finished college. I'm the executive vice president of sales and marketing.”
”Wow.” Emma sounded genuinely impressed. ”That sounds like an important position.”
Self-conscious about the rapid and consistent promotions, Casey grumbled, ”My grandfather has shoved me right up the ladder. He takes every opportunity to give me a bigger office, a better parking spot, more perks. It's his goal that I'll eventually run the company for him.”
”What exactly is his company?”
”Electronics, computer hardware. You know, very high-tech, state-of-the-art stuff for businesses. Boring stuff.” He laughed at himself. ”Very boring.”
”I see.” Her look was filled with comprehension in a way exclusive to Emma. She understood him, which made long explanations unnecessary. ”So you don't like your job, or is it your grandfather you don't like?”
He avoided giving her a direct answer by saying, ”I like him fine. He's loosened up a lot, especially since he and Ruth married.”
That disclosure diverted her. ”Wow, everyone is getting married.”
Casey stared ahead, strangely annoyed. ”Nope, not everyone.”
Emma did a double take, probably trying to judge his mood. When she saw his sour expression, she went a little quiet. ”Like everyone else, Casey, you'll eventually find the right woman and swear love everlasting.”
She didn't sound overly thrilled with that prospect, which pretty much minored his own feelings on the matter. Marriage? Just the thought of it left him tight and uncertain in a way he refused to accept. ”We'll see.”
Emma bit her lip, feeling the new tension just as he did. In an obvious effort to lighten the mood, she said, ”Georgia had two really cute little kids, right?”
”Yeah, but they're not so little anymore. Lisa is fifteen and a real heartbreaker, though she doesn't know it, or else doesn't care.” He glanced down at Emma, saw her pensive frown, and regretted adding to her uneasiness. She had her hands full with the coming confrontation. ”Lisa's more into her studies than boys, and she's so smart she scares me.”
Emma relaxed enough to grin at that. ”As I recall, nothing scares you a especially a female.”
That was far from the truth, but Casey just shook his head. ”Adam's thirteen, a h.e.l.luva football player and real interested in becoming a vet like Jordan. He's even got the soothing voice down pat. They're great kids.”
She gave a wistful sigh. ”You've got a lot of nieces and nephews now, don't you?”
He shrugged. To Emma, it probably seemed like a lot. She had only her mother and father, and had been estranged from them for a long time. ”Jordan has those two; Morgan has Amber, now eleven, and Garrett who's nine. And Gabe has the three daughters.” Casey grinned. ”By the way, they not only look like Gabe, but they all take after him, too.”
”Natural-born flirts, huh?”
”Yep. And it makes him crazy. Gabe's about the most doting father you'll ever meet, and he shakes whenever he talks about his girls growing old enough to date.”
Emma snorted. ”He's probably remembering his own unrestrained youth.”
”Gabe was rather unrestrained, wasn't he? Not that any of the women complained.”
”'Course not.”
Casey admired the way her eyes glowed, her cheeks dimpled when she was amused. Hearing Emma laugh was a treat. ”I have a little brother too, you know. Shohn, who's almost ten now. He's a hyper little pug, never still, and he knows no fear.” Knowing he bragged and not caring, Casey added, ”He learned to water-ski when he was only five. Now he's like a d.a.m.n pro out there.”
”Uh-huh. And who taught him to ski?”
Casey pushed the gla.s.s doors open and ushered her inside. ”Me.”
Air-conditioning rolled over them as they stepped into the hospital and headed for the elevator. Casey transferred his hand to the small of Emma's back, and just that simple touch stirred him. Her waist dipped in, taut and graceful, then flared out to her hips. Standing next to her emphasized the differences in their sizes. He told himself that was why he felt protective. Then. Now.
Always.
Naturally, he cared about her. They'd been friends for a long time, and that, combined with the s.e.xual chemistry, heightened his awareness of her. It wasn't anything more complicated than that.
But even he had to admit that talking with Emma came pretty easy. He couldn't remember the last time he'd shared stories about his family. When he was with a woman, he remained polite, attentive, but everything felt very...surface. There wasn't room for personal stuff. Yet with Emma, he'd just run down his whole d.a.m.n lineage a and enjoyed it too much.
He was disturbed with his own realizations on that, when he heard someone say his name. He looked down the hallway and saw Ms. Potter, the librarian, being pushed in a wheelchair by a nurse, followed by her daughter, Ann. Casey drew Emma to a halt. ”Just a second, okay?”
He went to Ms. Potter and bent to kiss her cheek, which warmed her with a blush. ”Getting out today, huh?”
”Finally.”
”You were only here two days,” the nurse teased, then added, ”And you were a wonderful patient.”
Ms. Potter fussed with the elaborate bouquet of spring flowers in her lap. ”Even so, these will look much better on my desk than on the windowsill here.”
Casey gave her a mock frown. ”Your desk? Now don't tell me you're rus.h.i.+ng right back to work.”
”Monday morning, and it's none too soon. I can just imagine what a mess my books are in. No one ever puts them away properly.”
Ann stepped up to the side of the wheelchair. Her brown eyes twinkled and her dark hair fell in a soft wave to her shoulders when she nodded down at her mother. ”The flowers are gorgeous, Casey. Thanks for bringing them to her.”
”My pleasure.” He saw Ann look beyond him to Emma, so he drew her forward. ”Ann, Ms. Potter, do you remember Emma Clark?”
Ms. Potter, always sharp as a tack, said, ”I do. It was a rare thing for you to come to the library, young lady.”
Embarra.s.sed, Emma stammered, ”I a I've never been much of a reader.”
”You only need to find the right books for you. Come and see me next week and we'll get you set up.”
Emma blushed. ”Yes, ma'am.”
Casey did his best not to laugh. Ms. Potter had a way of putting everyone on the spot, but always with good intentions. She genuinely cared about people and it showed.
Ann stared hard at Emma before her eyes widened with recognition. ”Now I remember. You went to school with me, didn't you?”
”A long time ago, yes. I think we were in the same English cla.s.s.”
”That's right. Didn't you move away before your senior year?”
”Yes.” To avoid going into details, Emma grinned down at Ms. Potter. ”That's a doozy of a cast you have on your leg. And very art deco, too.”
Ms. Potter reached out and patted Casey's hand. ”You can blame this rascal right here. I was all set to keep it snowy white, as is appropriate for a librarian and a widow my age. But Casey showed up with colored markers.” She pointed to the awkward rendition of a flower vine twining around her ankle in bright colors of red and blue and yellow. ”Before I could find something to smack him with, Casey had flowers drawn all over me. After that, everyone else had to take a turn.”
<script>