“What about him?”
“They told me he got mugged walking home from a bar a couple of days after my...” she didn’t know what to call it, “. . . incident.”
“Incident.” Nathan rolled the word around like it was the last word he would ever use to describe what had happened.
“He broke his arm, ruptured his spleen, and had a skull fracture.”
“He got off easy.”
She squinted at Nathan, and his face went completely blank.
“Do you know something about that?”
“I know something about karma.”
Boom. The crack of the first fireworks exploding in the sky made Nathan flinch, but he quickly recovered.
“You okay?” He brushed a honey-colored curl from her face.
“Yes. So okay, you have no idea.” She kissed him softly as another firework blew.
“Not my favorite sound.” He squeezed his eyes shut on a long blink.
She held his face and kept his lips close to hers.
“Nathan?”
“Em?” he mimicked.
“I have a confession to make.” Nathan paled as though he expected her to drop some huge bomb... as if he knew she was hiding a big secret. He remained silent.
“I hate fireworks.” When the next one sounded, she clamped her eyes shut and wrinkled her nose. “Too loud.”
Everything faded but the sight and sound of him laughing. He laughed with relief and joy and, yes, love. She saw love in his eyes as clear as his bright green irises. And then he kissed her like he meant it.
“Come on.”
“Where are we going?”
“Well, we are two people who hate fireworks, so this time I’m taking you home with me. In the future, we should consider leaving the country on the Fourth. The Caribbean or Greece.”
He tugged on her hand as he pulled her quietly from the room, the words home and future fizzing in her brain like champagne bubbles. No one noticed as they slipped out, their attention on the sky. Emma squeezed his hand, and he squeezed hers back, keeping his eyes forward, a hint of a smile dancing on his lips. As she walked to Nathan’s car with him, she imagined being together in a year, escaping to some tropical island to be alone, and she felt the best thing she had ever felt, deep in her soul.
Fireworks.
Two days later, Emma stood in the lobby of Knightsgrove-Bishop. She and Nathan had had a fairly businesslike interview, if you ignored the fact that she was in his lap for most of it, which ended abruptly when a giant of a man opened the door without knocking or speaking. A petite freckle-faced redhead stood behind him, holding a laptop, and staring down at her bright pink Converse high-tops. Nathan stood them up without embarrassment, kissed her on the lips and said he’d call later. The giant blocked the door for a moment, giving her a probing look filled with suspicion before moving to the side to let her pass.
Tox marched up to the desk and tossed a paper file in front of Nathan. Still lost in an Emma fog, Nathan glanced at it absently.
“What’s this?”
Tox leaned forward onto his fists. His expression was equal parts anger and sympathy.
“North, you’re being honey-potted.”
Down in the lobby, Emma shot a text to Caroline confirming lunch and shopping. Caroline was leaving for LA the next day and felt the need for some seriously unprofessional outfits. When Emma got Caroline’s ‘thumbs up’ emoji, she glanced through the glass and spotted JT contemplating the souvlaki cart on the corner. He saw her waving and turned her way. She mimed eating and he nodded, relieved. Across the street, a jogger was running in place at the intersection. A lean, well-built guy, maybe thirty, probably scrolling through his playlist. She wouldn’t have thought anything of it, but the light had changed twice, and he remained as pedestrians filed past. He looked around at nothing in particular and disappeared around a corner. The loitering jogger was pushed from her thoughts by a sharp voice behind her.
“Who’s your friend?” Alex sidled up and peered over Emma’s shoulder at JT, who was walking to the car.