“Do you think Em feels the same way?” Teddy asked.
“I hope so, but why don’t we ask her?” She nodded toward Josh and Emma heading toward them. “I’d say from the glow on both their faces that they’re more than just fine.”
“Good morning,” Emma said.
“Mornin’ to you,” Sophie and Teddy said at the same time.
“Coffee?” Sophie asked.
“We’ve had breakfast.” Emma grinned.
“Josh, I was wondering if I could get you to help me load up Sophie’s things,” Teddy said. “I thought we’d just grab a couple of bananas and some breakfast bars to eat on the way. We need to start taking care of business in Del Rio.”
Josh let go of Emma’s hand and brushed a kiss across her lips. “Sure thing. This shouldn’t take long.”
Emma slumped down in the chair beside Sophie. “So you got things all worked out, right?”
“We did,” Sophie said. “We’re going ahead with the house and the gallery, and even the commitment ceremony. We talked half the night and had makeup sex the rest of it.”
“And you feel better, right? You’re not going to let the past ruin the future?” Emma asked.
“I’m working on it, and Teddy has vowed to help me,” Sophie said.
“You’re going to be all right?” Emma asked.
“Are you?” Sophie fired back at her.
“I don’t kiss and tell, but you don’t have to worry about me being afraid anymore,” Emma said. “And I’m home at this trailer park, no matter which trailer I sleep in at night.”
“Even Arty’s?” Sophie teased.
Emma air-slapped her on the arm. “Arty is like a favorite uncle, so yes, I’d feel right at home on his sofa if I needed a place to stay. Sophie . . .” Her voice cracked.
“I know.” Sophie smiled. “Words aren’t necessary between friends like us, and goodbyes will always be tough.”
Neither of them could keep the waterworks at bay any longer. They stood at the same time and wrapped each other up in a fierce hug, sobbing as if their hearts were broken.
“I’m getting tears on your shirt,” Emma said, but she didn’t take a step back. “Oh, Sophie, thank you is so little to offer.”
“It’s Teddy’s shirt, and . . .” Sophie had to stop to catch her breath before she could go on. “And, God, this is hard.”
“We’re both happy, so why does it hurt so much?” Emma finally took a step back and wiped her eyes on the tail of her shirt.
“It’s crazy, isn’t it?” Sophie dried her wet cheeks on the sleeve of Teddy’s shirt.
“I promised myself I wouldn’t cry when you left,” Emma said. “This is not the end of our friendship. It’s the . . .”
With a new batch of tears streaming down her face, Sophie laid a hand on Emma’s shoulder. “It’s being friends forever.”
“No, it’s being family forever,” Emma corrected her. “I’ll see you on July Fourth, right?”
“No, I’ll be back next week. Teddy and I don’t want to wait until July Fourth to have our commitment ceremony. We’re coming back next Saturday and having it on Sunday. That’s Mother’s Day, and Mama said she couldn’t ask for a better present than a son-in-law. And before you ask, I don’t feel like I’m rushing into anything at all.”
“I’m so, so happy for you, Sophie, and for me since we get to be together for your ceremony in a week. Can I pretend that Rebel is my mother that day since it is Mother’s Day?” Emma managed a weak grin.
“Of course you can. Rebel would have an adoption ceremony if there was such a thing to make you her daughter, too,” Sophie answered. That brought on even more tears. “I’m so sorry that Victoria is . . . well . . . you know,” Sophie said. “You deserve a mama like mine.”
Emma stepped forward, and the two women wrapped their arms around each other again.
“Mother failed. She tried to make me weak and dependent, but I’m a strong woman who can make it on her own now,” Emma said.
“Strong enough that you helped me, so . . .” Sophie wept. “We’ve got to stop this bawling like babies.”
“We’ll call them happy tears.” Emma moved back a few steps. “Now, get dressed and go make a home and business with Teddy. Who all is coming to the commitment ceremony?”
“Teddy’s father, Jonathan, and Rebel are the only ones coming from outside the park family, so don’t go to too much trouble,” Sophie answered.
Emma sat back down in her chair. “Tell Filly that. This is like her daughter getting married.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Josh slipped his arm around Emma’s waist and pulled her close to his side that morning when Sophie and Teddy drove away in two separate vehicles. Arty and Filly came out of their trailers and waved from their front porches right along with Josh and Emma until the dust had settled back to the dirt road.
“Ready for a long inspiration walk?” Josh asked.
Emma leaned against his side. “Yes, but, Josh, I already miss her.”
“She’ll be back for the ceremony next weekend.” Josh dropped his arm and took her hand in his. If someone had told him five weeks ago that a beautiful brunette would come into his life and he’d be so comfortable with her that he would have a relationship with her, he would have thought they were bat-crap crazy.
“I don’t like change,” Emma said. “I didn’t realize it until right now. Maybe that’s why I let my mother dominate me for so long.”
“That’s because the big changes in your life turned out to be disastrous. Think about it, Em. First your mother decided to have you tutored at home, and you didn’t see Sophie anymore. You were isolated from all the people you knew at school. Even if they weren’t your friends, you were used to seeing them.” He kept her hand in his and stepped off the porch. “Then you went to college and the change you experienced there was really devastating. Don’t be afraid of change now. Sometimes it’s a good thing.”
“I’m not afraid of anything anymore. If Sophie had decided to have a huge church wedding in Del Rio, I would have gone to that. But I am glad she’s having her ceremony here. It’s a special place.”
“Yes, it is.” Josh squeezed her hand gently and then stopped and pointed to a turtle hiding in a clump of grass. “Take a picture with your phone. I can see one of your paintings of this old boy with hope written on his back.”
“Hope is the magic that heals hearts and souls,” she whispered as she took several shots of the turtle.
The sun was straight up overhead when Emma and Josh returned to the trailer park. Arty and Filly motioned them over to the picnic table, where they had laid out sandwiches, chips, and Filly’s homemade cookies for lunch.
“We were hoping you kids would be back in time to eat with us and talk about the wedding next week,” Filly said.
“I was thinkin’ maybe I’d make an arch for them to stand under when they say their vows,” Arty said. “They’ll pass through the arch to jump over the broom on the other side, and then we’ll have a big reception for them. What do y’all think?”