Elizabeth Pina

Excerpt:

Emma's beautiful blue eyes widened, and her mouth opened to speak. She looked confused and closed it again as he stared at her. She was precious. Sweet. Loving. Perfect. He couldn’t help it. He kissed her.

The touch of their lips was brief, gentle, and her eyes opened even wider. It thrilled him to watch that pretty pink flush spread across her cheeks. He loved her. Found her irresistible. She didn’t pull back or move her hand but stood and studied him. A smile lit up her face.

No words would come, so he kissed her again, squeezing her hand as he did. To his joy, her fingers tightened in return, while her other hand moved up to rest lightly on his upper arm. He could have stood and kissed her all night, but when he squeezed her hand even tighter, she stepped back and exhaled.

"Wow. That was—nice. Thank you. It’s great to see you."

"I can’t tell you how indebted I am for your help, Emma." He still held her hand and pressed it to his lips. He needed Emma. "The children adore you, and it’s wonderful to come home when you’re there. I wish you were always there for us." His next sentence tumbled out without much forethought. "Marry me, please."

She looked stunned. Her eyes searched his face, but she didn’t answer and seemed to be waiting for him to say something else. Marisa had laughed and thrown her arms around his neck in excitement. Why was Emma hesitating? Didn’t she love him?

"I’ll never hurt you, I promise. You can finish school and be a teacher or anything else. I’ll take care of everything and make sure you’re happy. We need you, Marisa."

Emma’s face paled, and her eyes filled with tears. "I’m not Marisa."