“Not letting me get fired that first night we met?”
The deep laugh almost made her melt into Cain’s chest, but Emma stayed where she was.
“Not going after you when you left. My pride stole a lot of years and a lot of good memories from me.”
“I’m sorry for everything. I should’ve come back when Hannah was born, but I thought you’d have me shot the minute I stepped foot out of the cab.”
“Nah, maybe just a few warning shots to make myself feel better, but this time you brought the second greatest gift you could ever give me.”
Emma closed her eyes and relished the feel of Cain’s hand on her face.
“I missed a lot in Hannah’s life, but so did you in Hayden’s. That doesn’t make us even, but it gives us something to talk about for months to come. Just one thing, Emma. If you stay, it’s for good this time. It’s going to take time to rebuild what we had, but you need to be here if we’re going to try.” Cain pinched her cheek slightly. “I can’t say if this will work or not, but I’m willing to give it my best for the sake of our family.”
“Don’t worry. I learned from my mistakes. I need you and love you, and I’ll try as hard as I can not to hurt you again.”
“I don’t mean to be blunt, but only time will prove that. I meant what I said. I won’t go through this kind of pain again.”
“I know better than to promise you any more than that. But each day after this one I’ll prove to you that I’m sincere. There’ll be no more pain for you or our son. If you allow Hannah and me back in, you’ll never doubt my word. It’s the mark of a true Casey to keep their word.”
Cain laughed again and pulled Emma down far enough to kiss the tip of her nose. “And are you a true Casey?”
“I’m something better. I’m your Casey.”
Across town Muriel’s law office went up in bits when the second bomb of the day went off, sending pieces of debris flying in every direction and trapping two of her young associates in the rubble. It was six o’clock, and they were the only ones left in the building.
Cain had no choice but to answer those responsible, but would Emma keep her promise once she did?
Chapter Four
Without warning, Merrick opened the door and stood stock-still. She expected them to be at each other’s throats, not kissing.
“We’re almost done, Merrick. I’ll call you when we are,” Emma said with a fair amount of authority in her voice.
“I need—”Merrick started, only to be interrupted by Cain.
“Do as the lady said. This won’t take long, but she’s right. We need to finish.” When they were alone again, Cain gazed up and into the eyes that had always fascinated her.
Emma’s eyes were a vivid deep green that looked like some special power had speckled them with gold flecks. Cain had always used them to gauge how Emma was feeling. At the moment they were filled with love and adoration, a potent combination for Cain, but the depth of Emma’s betrayal had cut deep. As much as her heart wanted to forget, her head screamed for her to be careful.
“I didn’t mean to overstep my bounds with Merrick.” Emma moved up a little and ran her fingers though Cain’s hair.
“Didn’t you?” The voice rumbled, and Emma could feel it where their bodies touched. “It sure sounded like you did.”
“This won’t work if we go about it the way we did before. I won’t go back to that.”
Emma began to move off her, but Cain held her to her injured chest. “What way is that, lass?”
“I won’t be sent out of the room like a child or some addlepated woman who needs looking after every time the adults have to talk business. I’m either your partner or I’m not.”
“Would this be a good time to remind you that just days ago you were in a deal with the feds to have my ass arrested?”
Emma didn’t bolt or smart off only because Cain asked the question without anger or malice. She was more curious than anything. “If you can’t forgive me, we’ll never be able to trust each other again.”
“Do you know what trust means to me, Emma?”
“I do know, and I’m sorry for the pile of betrayals between us.” Emma brushed Cain’s damp hair from her forehead, knowing the pain was making her sweat. “But I refuse to believe there’s no love between us anymore. That’s strong enough to build on, don’t you think?”
“If life has taught me anything, it’s that sometimes it doesn’t matter what I think,” Cain said almost to herself. “Have you ever gambled?”
“A long time ago I left everything and everyone I’d ever known to move to a place about as different from my upbringing as you could get. It was one of the greatest times of my life, but
“And now?”
“The true sin is to keep denying the way I feel about you. Four years is a long time, but I don’t think four hundred lifetimes will be enough to make me forget you.”
