She leaned her head back and looked up at me. “So is this your thing? You go bar to bar and save women that need help?”
I laughed. “No, it’s not my thing. I was just lucky today, I guess.”
She looked over at the table where my friends were. “Are you all in the military?”
I shrugged, tightening my hold on her. “Something like that.” There was no way I could explain it to her now, and I knew I didn’t want to. There was no way I wanted to give her any reason to walk away from me. “Tell me about you.”
She shrugged her shoulders. “What do you want to know?”
“Everything,” I insisted.
The music continued, a soft ballad of love everlasting, and I’d never wanted a song to last forever in my life. “Well, let’s see. My name is Emery Mason, and I’m twenty-three years old. I have worked in my parents’ bakery since I was little. I love to bake–as you can see.”
She gestured toward her body and rolled her eyes. Fuck, I wondered, did she think she was fat? She was perfect. She was younger than me by about ten years, but I didn’t even care. “You’re perfect the way you are.”
She cleared her throat. “So do you live here, in Houston?”
“For now. I travel a lot... for my job.”
She nodded, looking back over at the guys, no doubt thinking that I was military. She looked up at me with a glint in her eye. “That’s too bad.... I think I would have liked getting to know you.”
I brought my hand up and cupped the side of her neck. “Oh honey, you’re definitely going to get to know me.”
She was almost breathless and panting when she asked, “Why?”
I leaned down until our lips were not even an inch apart. I could feel her warm breath on my cheek, and I watched as her eyes darkened, and her heart seemed to be racing in her chest. “Why? Because you’re going to be my wife.”
She gasped then, and I pressed my lips to hers. She started to pull away, but I deepened the kiss. Our lips meshed in perfect harmony as her body softened against mine. I knew she could feel my desire pushed against her belly, but she didn’t seem to care. She pressed into me, trying to get as close as she could.
She pulled back, almost dazed, but smiling. “How about a date first?”
She felt it. I knew she did. There was something between us, something stronger than I’d ever felt. I pressed my forehead to hers. “Yeah, I’m good with that.”
“Mr. Nash! Can you hear me?”
I try to ignore the voice calling out to me. I hate that someone is interrupting my memory, but I know I have to let it go. The sooner I wake up, the sooner I’ll get to see Emery. Walker promised he’d get her here, and I know she’ll come. I can’t let myself think otherwise.
Chapter 6
Emery
I have to get to him. That's all I can think about as I ride in the back seat of Lucas' truck next to Becca. The call I got from Walker telling me that Nash had been shot had me falling to the ground in anguish. Walker had told me that he would come and get me, but I made him promise to stay with Nash, I would get there as soon as I could. Becca is one of my best friends, and she works at my bakery. I knew she hadn’t got to work yet and she would take me into Jasper with no questions asked. I wasn’t thinking about interrupting her time with her new boyfriend, Lucas, though.
Lucas is flying toward Jasper, and my hands are holding tightly on to one another in my lap. Becca has her arm around me trying to soothe me, but nothing is going to calm me until I have Nash in my sight, and I know that he is going to be okay. The road to Jasper normally takes 30 minutes, but it seems to fly by because before I know it, Lucas is dropping us off at the front door of the emergency room of Jasper Hospital.
I'm wiping at the tears that won't stop falling from my eyes as I all but run into the waiting room. I spot Walker and all of the guys, and Walker opens his arms to me. I run to him and hold on tightly. "Tell me he's okay. Tell me that Nash is going to be okay."
I'm holding on to the front of his shirt, pleading with him to make promises to me that he may not be able to keep. "He's fine, Emery. He's asking for you, he needs to see you."
I start to walk away and look over at Becca. She shakes her head. “Go, I’ll be here.”