Ash Rising (DEAd Series) (33 page)

A sob escaped her, and she pressed a hand to her mouth to stop more from following. She heard a rough sound and the next thing she knew, his arms engulfed her, hugging her securely against his chest. Emma clutched his shoulders and held on.

“Emma,” he murmured in her hair, rocking her and pressing his mouth next to her ear. “Emmaline. Don’t cry.”

“I love you. I want to move in with you. I want that. And don’t tell me what to do.”

He extricated himself from her death grip to stroke her hair away from her face. “I’ll try not to, but we’re both a little bossy.”

“We are.” She laughed and wiped her eyes, but his hands brushed hers away so his lips could trace her wet cheeks.

“You’re moving in with me.”

“I am. Let’s do it this weekend. And when I get sent back to the States, we’ll—”

“You’ll still live here. We’ll buy another house wherever you are. Buffalo. Doesn’t matter, but I want home to be with you. I love you. We’ll make it work.”

“We will.” Determination and love filled her words, made her voice strong. “We will.”

Andy and Lisa, working alongside him and Emma, helped move what personal possessions she had with her to the lake house. Andy had been delighted with the news, Lisa slightly less so. She’d never had the chance to meet Liz, not like Andy had, so she’d take a little longer to accept the concept of Ash being in love. Lisa would have a long time to get used to the idea, because he never intended to let Emma go.

“He can’t stop staring at you with that stupid grin on his face, Emma,” Andy joked as he carried the last bag into the house. “Between him being so distracted and my useless leg, that makes about one whole other person.”

Emma gave him a mock scowl as she relieved him of a suitcase and disappeared into the bedroom. Ash followed her with his gaze, wanting to follow her with the rest of him, until Lisa smacked him in the gut. He staggered into the kitchen to prep steaks for the grill while Lisa started slicing vegetables at the sink.

“Good to see you smiling again.” Andy sat at the counter as Ash put together the marinade. “This is great. I’m happy for you, man.”

Ash couldn’t hold back his grin. “I never thought this would happen. But it feels right. I’m ready. I love her.”

Lisa jerked, almost cutting her finger when she whipped around to stare at him. “You haven’t known her that long. Seriously? In love? I thought you said that would never happen again.”

“Crazy, right? I didn’t think it ever would. I mean, I loved Liz. When she died, and my mom and dad, Daniel, what happened to your leg.” He gestured at Andy. “Me in the coma, in the hospital for so long, the physical therapy, recovery, everything. My whole world gone. Changed. I’ve been trying to deal with the guilt, but it’s still there. Always will be, you know?”

Andy nodded solemnly. He risked a glance at Lisa, who stood leaning against the counter with her arms crossed over her chest.

“But then I think about what all that cost me. People I loved were killed—murdered. Pretty heavy price to pay for any mistakes I might have made. Too heavy. And now, well, now I have Emma. To make up for all that.” He glanced up at Andy, who was wide-eyed, and Lisa, who narrowed hers. “Sounds crazy, right?”

“You can’t think that—put that on her. Make her that,” Lisa whispered shakily. “Ash.”

“No, he makes sense,” Andy said. “In a weirdo sort of cosmic way, maybe, but still. You deserve something good.”

Lisa placed a hand on Ash’s arm. “After everything you’ve been through? I don’t want you to hurt like that ever again.
I
don’t want to go through that ever again. You have no idea the things I went through for you.”

He hugged her close. “I don’t know what I would have done without you guys.”

She pulled away to examine his face. “What if the perfect woman is still out there waiting for you? You’ve spent enough of your life looking and trying them out. How do you know Emma’s the one for sure?”

“How do you know that about anyone?” He kissed her forehead. “You don’t plan—it just happens. I didn’t want to love her, because she’s a heardheaded, stubborn thing, and the whole being from different countries really sucks, but I’m crazy about her. And somehow, she can see past my bullshit and fell in love with me, too. It’s crazy.”

“It’s great.” Andy rose and grabbed the bowl to carry the steaks out to the deck. “Let’s get these bad boys on the grill. I’m starving.”

Emma stood in the cavernous walk-in closet when she heard a soft knock. She turned to find Lisa standing in the doorway.

“Why does he have so many packages of brand-new underwear?” Emma wondered out loud. “A whole bunch of them.”

Lisa scoffed and ran a hand over the sleeve of one of Ash’s shirts. “Because he puts them in his duffel, which he has with him pretty much all the time. In case he has an unscheduled or unexpected overnight stay, know what I mean?”

“Huh.” Emma glared at the stack. Ripping the packages open, she let the boxer briefs fall into a pile on the floor. “There. He won’t be needing to carry those around anymore, now will he?”

“That won’t stop him.” Lisa leaned one shoulder against the doorframe and crossed her arms over her chest with a smile. Definitely not an encouraging smile.

“No, I don’t suppose it will. The fact he’s with me, and I’m moving in, that’s what will stop that shit.”

“You think? Let’s hope so.” Lisa shook her head, and Emma’s shoulders tightened.

“Do you have a problem with me moving in with Ash?” she asked point blank. Playing catty little games had always irritated her.

“No, not at all. I just have a problem with the mess it’ll create when Ash is…Ash.”

Oh, brother. Why couldn’t one of his best friends get past his youthful indiscretions? Couldn’t anyone see the man he really was? Tired of people telling her about all the women he used to be with, she only cared about the woman he was currently with and would be for the foreseeable future.

Her.

“I know who Ash is. I know he’s been with a lot of women. Everyone takes great delight in telling me all about them, but I also know he’s trustworthy. He’d never go behind my back and be unfaithful. If he wanted that, he’d never make promises in the first place.”

“I know he’s honorable,” Lisa said. “I know better than anybody alive. I hate to see you fall in love with him and then you both be disappointed when he is who he is. When you expect things he can’t give. That’s not fair.”

“I don’t expect anything from him he can’t give me. Or isn’t willing to give.”

“It’s just that I’ve seen him go through a lot of women over the years, and they all wanted what you do. They wanted him. Exclusively. Ash doesn’t do exclusive.”

Emma held on to her temper for the sake of Lisa and Ash’s friendship. So hard, but the last thing she wanted to do was piss Lisa off the first night she was officially in the house.

“How many women has he told he loved them?” Emma fought against crossing her arms over her chest to mirror Lisa. God, she really didn’t want to fight with one of Ash’s closest friends, but she was tired of people underestimating him—and her. “Maybe one other? And how many has he had an exclusive relationship with? Wanted an exclusive relationship. Again, one other. How many women has he asked to move in with him?
One. Only one. Me. I trust him. I love him. It’s going to be hard, but what relationship isn’t? We’ll figure out a way to make this work.”

“I’m just concerned for you both. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt.”

“You can’t stop that. Nobody can. I’ll hurt; he’ll hurt. You can’t avoid getting hurt in a relationship. The thing is, we both care about each other enough to work though rough patches when they happen. I can see past his amazing face and body, past how excellent he is in bed, and love him anyway, despite all his faults. I know he’s slept with a score and more of women, that he can be careless, he’s arrogant and snotty and a complete jackass at times. I can see past all that into how kind and honest he is, how much he cares about people that are close to him. And somehow, he loves me, despite the fact he knows I’m stubborn and bossy and short-tempered. We care enough to forgive each other when those things piss us off, love each other enough to appreciate them, because that makes us who we are. I don’t have to tell you, though. You know what I mean.”

Eyes blinking wide, Lisa took a step back.

“With Andy.” Emma clarified. “You’ve been with him a long time. You know how he can completely piss you off, but you love him anyway.”

“Yeah,” Lisa murmured. “Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.”

“I know you care about Ash, but Lisa, so do I. I love him. I really do. I want this to work. I hope you know that. You understand him better than anybody. You took care of him when he was broken, physically and mentally, when he was at his lowest. I hope this point in his life is a high, and you’ll be here for that, too.”

“I’ve always been the one constant in his life. I’ve always been there for him.”

“And I want to be as constant as you—for the rest of his life, if we’re lucky.”

Lisa tipped her head with an attempt at a smile more grimace than grin. “You can try.”

“Thanks for your help today. Glad you guys could come over.” Ash poked at the steaks on the grill before closing the lid.

“Wouldn’t have missed it. I like her, Ash. She’s good for you. Doesn’t take any of your shit, and if she does, she gives it right back.”
Andy lowered himself into a chair at the patio table.

“I like her, too. Feels like I’ve been given a second chance. I didn’t think there’d be anything—anyone—after Liz, but then she came along and wham. I’m ass over elbows, not sure if I’m coming or going. She’s got me all pissed off and turned on and laughing and needing her so damn much. Doesn’t feel right when she’s not here, so…” He shrugged.

“Well, you don’t love easy, but you love hard when you do.”

“I don’t think Lisa’s quite ready to accept her with open arms yet.” Ash glanced at the doors leading into the house. “She seems a little weird.”

“You know Lisa.” Andy sighed and sat forward, staring at his tightly twined fingers before lifting his gaze. “She’s always had a thing for you. That probably influences her feelings toward Emma. Nothing personal against her.”

An automatic denial sprang to his lips, but he and Andy knew each other too well. And Lisa. “She thought she did once, maybe, but that was a long time ago. We’ve all been so close for so long. She probably just feels a little protective, maybe, after being there for me after. After the bombing.”