What he saw through the door was Em sitting in an empty store with her head in her hands.
“Sunrise, what’s wrong?” he asked as he pushed through the door.
She raised her head at the tinkle of the bell and his accompanying question. The look in her beautiful eyes matched the crease of concern between her brows. Em gestured to her empty store. “No one has come in this morning. No one.”
What the hell?
She shook her head in disgust. “I was closed yesterday. And I overheard Dana, Ellen, and Sadie gossiping about us in Lanson’s.”
“What did they say?” Jack bit out angrily as he strode to the counter. He reached for her hand but she pulled back, which only increased his agitation.
“They’re wondering which of us deliberately trapped the other.”
Fury mowed over his anger. “What?”
Em flinched at his bark. “Was it the shy, virginal bookstore owner who wanted to catch herself a man?” She gestured sarcastically to herself. “Or mercenary Jack Devlin who found out Emery Saunders comes from money?”
“They said that?”
“You can imagine what Dana was saying. How I trapped you but you’d never fall for it, that someone like me couldn’t keep your interest since I’m sexually inexperienced and we’ll be raising the baby separately.”
“I’m going to kill her.” He pushed back off the counter, ready to march into town and blast the hell out of them for gossiping about Emery like this. She didn’t deserve it. They’d practically run his mother out of town because of their gossiping shit, and he wouldn’t let them hurt Emery.
“Don’t.” Emery reached over the counter, grabbing his arm.
He covered her hand with his, seeking contact.
“Jack, don’t.” She tried to let go, but he took hold of her hand and held on. “I just want to get through this without giving them anything more to be scandalized over.”
His heart beat too fast. He had pent-up aggression he wanted to dole out on someone. Preferably someone who had hurt Em.
“Please.” She squeezed his hand.
Taking a deep breath, Jack nodded.
“Can I have my hand back now?”
He shook his head. “Not until you tell me why you’ve been ignoring my texts.”
“Your texts?” Emery scowled. “I haven’t received any—oh my gosh.” She covered her mouth with her free hand, her eyes filling with sheepishness. She dropped her hand and grimaced. “I blocked you. When you didn’t call or text for weeks … I blocked your number.”
Disappointment and self-directed anger twisted his gut. He tightened his hand around Em’s, feeling her silver rings bite into his skin. “How about you unblock it now?”
“Of course. I’d do it now if I had both hands free.”
At her teasing, Jack released her. He watched as she pulled her cell out from under the counter and tapped on the screen.
“When is your next doctor’s appointment?”
“This week. It’s my first prenatal visit.”
“I want to be there.”
“Jack, it’s not a big deal. Why don’t you come with me for the first ultrasound?” She looked up from her phone and waved it at him. “Unblocked.”
He ignored that. “I want to be at every appointment.”
She sighed, sounding a little exasperated. “Jess says I’ll have an appointment once a month until twenty-eight weeks. And then it’ll be every two weeks and then every week. Do you really want to come to every single one?”