Drew rushes into our circle and locks eyes with her daughter who begs her, “Mom! Stop him! Aunt Jaimie, Sarah, Rachel, Meagan! Hold them all off!”
Drew says, “Jake, honey, stop!”
Emma squeezes in front of me and begs her father, “Don’t do this! I love him!”
The looks on everyone’s faces, especially Jake’s, sinks my gut. I’m not a father, not yet, but I know how special Emma is and I can’t blame him for hating every syllable of what she just said.
Right now…
I don’t look like a good man.
To anyone except her.
And maybe Drew and Hannah, if I’m lucky.
Cora Williamson shouts from behind a wine glass and a smirk, “Give him everything you’ve got, boys! Tanner, you deserve this,” she hisses.
Jake takes Emma by the shoulders and moves her.
The men come at me as a single unit.
Surrounding me.
I put up my fists.
Piercing through the air Emma screams that wild, animal scream again.
Jake freezes, shocked by the sound just as much as I was when I first heard it.
“He didn’t hit on Mom!” She points at her ex-boss with loathing in her eyes. “He was sleeping with Cora the whole time. Why do you think she just egged you on? She has no idea what happened with you guys back then! She just wants revenge because she’s bitter and won’t find her own damn happiness again. And you, Dad, your temper is so hot you never gave Tanner a chance to defend himself except with fighting. Mom, tell him what really happened, please!”
Jake looks at Drew whose sweet voice is much quieter than her furious daughter’s. “Is that why you fought each other that day? Honey, I thought it was over the planning of his friend’s project because we’d gone over budget and I never dreamed you believed he made a pass at me. He never did, I promise you. I would have said something because I like to see you jealous.”
Jake Cocker’s jaw tightens as the paradigm shift takes hold. With shoulders hunched like a fighter he eyes his brothers, then sizes me up before telling his daughter, “It doesn’t matter! He’s too old for you, Emma. I won’t allow this.”
Emma snatches up my hand.
I’ve never been so tense, but if she’s going to stand up for me like this I won’t turn her away and tell her to give it time, though that’s what I want to do, for her. For him. For all of them. Doesn’t matter now. I’ll stand by her, if this is her choice. She’s who matters most.
“Daddy,” she begins, “I’m so sorry but you don’t get to decide. I’m not your Baby Love anymore. I’m a grown woman and—” Her voice cracks. “I can’t believe this is happening.” She turns into me and buries her face.
He’s glaring at me as I say, “Jake, I…”
But it’s Drew who pushes my arm and silently commands us to start walking. I meet her eyes, grimly nod, and guide her out.
The Cocker Brothers and their wives part to let us by. Hannah murmurs for Emma to call her. Michael Cocker has been joined by a woman who must be Nancy, and they’re upset but handling it like civilized people do.
Inside, Emma and I walk through tables of conversation toward her great-grandmother. She whispers, “Bye Grams, I have to go, I love you,” and kisses her head.
May Cocker smiles and gives me a wink. “That was fast.”
CHAPTER 31
EMMA
“I drove Hannah here but she has my key, too.”
His lips are grim. “We’ll take my rental.” He opens the door for me and I slide inside, pausing as I feel him watching me. Our eyes meet, his filled with fear that I’ll regret this.
He climbs in and we lock eyes. “Tanner, can you just take me somewhere?”
“Home?”
“Somewhere far away.”
A stiff nod and a half hour later we’re pulling off 75 for the Hartsfield-Jackson International airport exit. Tanner scans for signs that read Valet, finds one, slowing the Porsche until we’re at the white line. “Wait here.” He jumps out and talks with the man before opening my door and offering his open palm.
His hand is steady.
Mine is not.
Our eyes meet and he pulls me to him in a warm and comforting embrace. “You’re so brave, Emma.”
“Or stupid,” I mutter on a laugh.
He takes my chin, dark eyes somber. “I won’t let you down.” Lacing our fingers, and gripping tightly, we start walking. “I could call Dan and ask about flights, but what say we wing it?”
“That sounds amazing,” I admit. “Somewhere warm?”
“With a beach,” he nods, navigating us through the busy sidewalk of rolling bags and confused passengers whose eyes scan for signs of what to do and where to go, next. I know how they feel.
He guides me to a ticket counter’s VIP line and I glance to him. Since I’m stunned, I stay quiet and soon learn that this is the airline he has frequent flyer miles with and is a member of their program. “We want to go somewhere warm,” he says, sliding his credit card with their logo on it, across the counter.
Bearing the name-tag Paulette, the uniformed ticket agent takes the card with glamorously long nails. It’s her one way of standing out from her co-workers since she’s forced to wear that conservative and sexless wardrobe. “Yes, Mr. Hamilton.” She scans us and peeks over the desk. “Eloping?”
I beat him to the answer. “No, we just want to get away and we’re being spontaneous about it. That’s why we don’t have suitcases.”
A smile twitches on Tanner as he informs Paulette, “We’re going to get clothes when we arrive. I’m very rich.”
I lift an eyebrow. “You’re not supposed to say that.”
“Why not?”
Paulette rolls her head, “Yeah, why not? People are always talking about how poor they are.
