She made a sound of protest and tried to pull him back into her, but he resisted. Meeting her gaze, his voice was husky but quiet. “I’m sorry.”

“For . . . ?”

“I’m thinking blueberry pancakes,” Dale said, and Emma nearly jumped out of her skin.

“Hey,” she said, pointing at Dale. “You promised.”

Dale looked sheepish. “I got hungry.”

“Dad, can you give us a minute?”

“Sure, but hurry up. You’re holding the kitchen hostage.”

Simon let out a breath, brushed a kiss to Emma’s temple, and put space between them. “I can’t let him cook for himself, he tends to set off the fire alarm. The fire department isn’t thrilled with us.”

Emma shook her head and squeezed his hand, even if she’d wanted to climb him like a tree. Which was fantasy anyway. Her reality was that she hadn’t been with anyone in so long, she wasn’t actually sure she remembered how. “It’s okay.”

Simon nodded, but looked surprisingly, and endearingly, unsure as to whether she was being honest about understanding. So she went up on tiptoes, gave him a soft good-night kiss, smiled when he groaned and reached for her, and backed away from him. “See you,” she whispered.

His solemn expression softened. “See you.”

For the first time ever, Emma climbed the stairs with a smile. Halfway up, she started to doubt what had just happened. Started to think maybe it hadn’t been about Simon’s dad, but about . . . him purposely putting the brakes on.

Then her phone dinged an incoming email and distracted her. All day she’d been trying to load her email but she’d not had enough reception. She glanced at the screen. The first email was from her bank and she could see the first two lines in preview. It started with: “We regret to inform you . . .”

She tripped on the next step and nearly went down. Nearly. She caught herself.

Hog whined and nudged.

“I’m fine.” But the truth was, she was the furthest thing from fine.

Chapter 12

Step 12: Be open.

The next morning, Emma unlocked and opened Paw Pals, pretending she wasn’t an inch from a panic attack about her uncertain future. It’s not uncertain at all; you’re going to have to move to Florida and live with your parents.

She moved woodenly through the building, turning on lights, booting up the computer, filling water bowls, reloading the snack bins, making sure everything was still spotless from the previous night’s cleaning. In the back, surrounded by the adorable, colorful play yards, she stopped to just take in the fact that this really wasn’t going to happen for her, this future she’d hoped for, the one that would’ve put her on her feet, given her a purpose and a hope.

Gone.

Hog leaned on her, eyes warm with love and worry. “I know, big guy,” she murmured. “We’ll figure it out.”

She heard the bell on the front door ping as it opened, and then came the click-click-clicking of heels on the concrete floor that made her groan. Sure enough, she went to the front to face Alison. Did the woman wear heels every single day as her armor? Not that Emma was one to judge. She had her own armor of self-deprecating humor—which was a lot cheaper than great shoes. “Morning,” she said in automatic professional greeting.

“Name one good thing about it,” Alison said.

Ha. Okay, so Emma wasn’t the only one with a bad attitude today. If Alison hadn’t been the bane of her existence all those years ago now, she might’ve liked her for that alone. “You here to book Killer for the day?”

“No, she’s with her dad today.”

“That must be hard.”

Alison shrugged. “Life’s hard, right?”

“Believe it or not, I actually agree with you there.”

Alison snorted. “Heard Simon came home not too long after I left.”

“Yes.”

“Simon has nanny cams in his dad’s apartment. It’s to keep Dale safe. But Dale’s a smart guy, even if he can’t always access all those smarts. He likes to watch the feeds.”

Emma stilled, pretty sure she knew where this was going. “And?”

“And he caught you two kissing.” Alison grinned. “Then he interrupted because he can’t help himself. He’s a nosy busybody when he’s bored.”

“You’re a scary family.”

Alison laughed, sounding pleased. “Yeah.” She picked up a bedazzled pink collar from a display. “Don’t be surprised if you end up infamous for this.”

“The collar?”

Alison snorted. “The kissing.” She cocked her head at Emma’s look of horror. “Have you forgotten what it’s like to live in Wildstone?”

“Yes.”

“Seriously?”

“I’ve forgotten lots of the little things, yeah.”

“Right. The coma.” Alison’s smirk faded. “Sorry. Well, to remind you, you can’t sneeze and fart at the same time in this town without making it on the stupid Facebook page that everyone pretends to be too cool for but follows religiously anyway.” Alison paused and looked her over. “You know if you hurt him, everyone will know and you’ll answer to me.”

Emma laughed.

Alison didn’t.

“He’s my PT,” Emma said. “And my friend.” Maybe . . .

“You fired him. And friends don’t kiss with tongues.”

Emma shook her head. She really had forgotten what Wildstone could be like. One of those little details her brain had filed away somewhere during her coma, along with a lot of other things that might be helpful about now, leaving her feeling deeply out of her league.

“I just don’t want his head messed with again,” Alison said.

“Again?”

Ignoring that, Alison turned in a slow circle, looking around. “I talked to Gabby about you. She said you’re a natural, that she can’t see anyone else taking over this place. You make her customers feel like family, and she feels her repeat business is almost exclusively thanks to you.” She faced Emma. “So. About your lease.” She pulled an iPad from her shoulder bag. “You’re approved. Ready to sign and write me a big fat check?”

“I got rejected for a business loan.”