6 Mountain Brothers for Christmas

I gushed over the phone for another few minutes before Emily had to go handle the kids. She said she would be home soon. I knew she was still mad at me and I needed to make things right.

Still flying high from my success, I attached my book to an email and sent it off to a publisher I knew. We’d been friends since college, and I knew he’d be interested in the book. After the email went through, the front door opened, and I flew out into the living room.

Tommy and Sarah ran up to me and hugged me tightly. They congratulated me on finishing the book and asked when they could read it. I smiled and laughed, hugging them both and spinning them each in a circle.

When my eyes found Emily, she was standing by the front door with a box in her hands.

“What’s that?” I asked.

“Come see for yourself,” she said.

We all walked into the kitchen, and Emily set the box on the counters. She opened it slowly, revealing a beautiful cake with the word “Congratulations!” scrawled across the top in bright red icing. I laughed out loud and grabbed Emily around the waist, hugging her and lifting her off her feet.

Her answering laugh was music to my ears. I’d waited all day to hear that very sound, and when I finally set her back on her feet, she looked up at me with a genuine smile on her perfect lips.

“I couldn’t have done it without you,” I said.

“I’m proud of you,” she said back. “I really am.”

“Can we have cake now?” Sarah asked.

We all laughed, and I nodded. Emily cut us each a large slice, and we sat down to eat. The kids asked me all kinds of questions about the book, but I only had eyes for Emily. I couldn’t look away from her gorgeous face. Her eyes drew me in like magnets, and nothing anyone else said could pull me away from her.

Cake was our dinner tonight, and the kids were soon ready for bed. Emily took them up for baths, but I read them each a story and tucked them in. Now that my book was done, I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders.

As I walked back downstairs with Emily trailing along behind me, I heard my phone ding in the kitchen. I hurried over to it and unlocked the screen. There was an email waiting for me. It was from my publisher friend so I opened it quickly, my eyes scanning the words and my heart beating frantically in my chest.

When I looked up at Emily, she was watching me with concern. I grinned and held up my phone for her to see.

“What is it?” she asked.

“I sent my book to a publisher this afternoon,” I said. “Right after I finished. That was an email from him, saying he likes it. Emily, he wants to publish it! He wants to publish my book!”

“That’s wonderful, Sean,” she said. And though she truly looked happy for me, she still wasn’t happy with me.

I sighed and reached for her. She moved hesitantly into my arms. “I’m sorry, Emily. I’m sorry for being such a miserable prick lately. I pull you close, then push you away, and it’s all because of my own insecurities. You don’t deserve that, and I’m sorry. I know you take such good care of us because you care, not because it’s your job. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to us. To me,” I told her honestly.

When we pulled apart, I tucked her hair behind her ear a

nd pulled her face to mine. I kissed her softly, sighing and leaning into her.

“I love you,” I said when our kiss broke. “Emily, I love you.”

“What?” she asked, stepping backward. Her face was flushed, and her eyes were wide. She looked like she didn’t believe me.

“I love you,” I said again.

“No.” She shook her head. “You don’t mean that. You’re just excited about your book.”

“Emily,” I said, stepping forward to take her hands. “I love you.”

She blinked and stared at me in disbelief. While we looked at each other, understanding dawned on her face. Slowly, she smiled.

“I love you too.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT - EMILY

My heart was pounding in my chest as the words rolled off my tongue. I’d been struggling to understand my feelings for Sean for weeks now. When Janie accused me of being in love, I felt for sure she was wrong. After all, I’d only known Sean for a short time. I couldn’t possibly love him yet. Still, there was a truth to Janie’s words that stuck with me in the days to come.