Chapter 14 - THE LAST THING NATHAN SAID
Nathan waited by the curb. Emma asked Ruth to stay inside and kept her phone in her hand.
“I saw the texts,” she said.
He nodded. “I figured you would.”
“Why?”
“Mom said you’d been asking questions about the company. I was afraid you would call off the wedding before we got the paperwork settled.”
“So you had Veronica cut the dress.”
“I wanted you shaken. I thought I could come down the aisle, cover it, and you’d trust me again.”
Emma stared at him. “That’s what Dante did. You stayed at the altar.”
“I froze.”
“You looked at your mother.”
Nathan’s jaw worked. He didn’t deny it.
“For a long time,” Emma said, “I thought you loved the person I was when we were alone. I kept making excuses for the way you acted around your family.”
“I did love you.”
“You wanted me frightened enough to need you. I won’t call that love.”
Nathan looked toward the workshop. “I know you’ll never take me back.”
“No.”
“I gave the investigator everything I have. I’ll tell them what I did.”
“Do that.”
He walked away without asking her to comfort him.
A month later, Patricia and two former employees faced charges connected to the falsified records. Charles and Nathan gave statements. The civil dispute over the company continued, but Emma’s ownership had been recognized while it was resolved, and the sale could not move ahead without her.
Emma made a different choice for the properties. She met with the people who rented space there, looked over the repair costs, and hired an independent manager to help her make a plan. The Mercer Street workshop needed a new roof and electrical work. It also had room for apprentices to learn the trade her father loved.
One cold afternoon, she found Dante outside the building, looking up at the damaged brickwork.
“You followed me?” she asked.
“Sofia told me you wanted an estimate on the stone arch. She gave me your number. I came to ask before I recommended anyone.”
“You could have called.”
“I was going to.” He lifted his phone. “Then I saw you.”
Emma smiled despite herself.
Dante offered her the name of a skilled contractor. She wrote it down.
They walked to a coffee shop around the corner. This time, she was the one who asked him to come along.
“You still have the coat?” she asked.
“At home.”
“Good. I was worried I’d ruined it.”
“You gave it back in better condition than most people return an umbrella.”
Emma laughed. It surprised both of them.
They talked until the afternoon light faded. When she stood to leave, Dante said, “Emma, I’d like to see you again.”
She considered him across the small table. He had helped her, made a mistake, answered for it, and given her space to decide what came next.
“I’d like that,” she said. “Call me.”
When Emma got home, an envelope waited in her mailbox. There was no return address.
May you like
Inside lay a piece of ivory satin from her wedding dress and a note in Veronica’s handwriting.
I FOUND THIS IN THE BRIDAL ROOM. THE REST OF THE DRESS IS STILL THERE, IF YOU WANT IT.
