else,” he explained, ashamed to be caught staring at a woman who resembled his wife. She frowned and walked away. Frank leaned against his apartment building, the bright sun shining in his eyes. That was the third time since Julie’s death that he’d made this error. He closed his eyes, wondering when he’d learn to accept that his wife was dead and move on with his life.
He shook his head, strolling to the small parking lot. Once he got into his vehicle, he stared out the window. Maybe spending the day with Emily at an auction was what he needed to get his mind off his nightmares.
Emily tried to relax the kink in her shoulders, hurrying to get dressed before Frank arrived. Fatigue rushed through her like a tidal wave. She really wanted to take a morning nap, but she wanted to go to the auction today. A knock sounded, and her heart rushed with excitement when she ran to the door and opened it. “Oh, hi.” She tried not to let her disappointment show when Cameron, the milk truck driver, entered the kitchen.
“Hi, Emily. I’ve already put your milk in the tank. I just stopped in to say hello.”
She tried to smile. “Hi, Cam.”
He continued to look at her. “You look real nice this morning.” He crumpled his baseball cap between his thick, dark fingers. She knew he was just trying to flatter her. Emily sensed Cameron staring when she poured a glass of water.
She gulped her beverage before placing the glass in the sink.
He grabbed the back of a chair and pulled it away from the table. Gesturing toward the seat, he said, “You look like you could use a rest.”
Cameron’s hands trembled. He wasn’t a bad-looking man, but she wished he wouldn’t stay around so much. If he wasn’t so nervous, she could imagine a host of eligible women flocking to the milk truck driver.
Emily poured a cup of coffee and sat in the offered chair. “Would you like some coffee?”
He shook his head. “No thanks. I’m going to be leaving soon anyway.” He frowned. “You look tired. Is something wrong?” Concern filled his voice.
She clutched the coffee mug, closing her eyes briefly. “No, nothing’s wrong.” She took another sip of coffee. “I don’t mean to keep you from getting to your next milk pickup,” she began, anxious for Cameron to take his exit so she could leave with Frank when he arrived. She glanced at the screen door, and her heart skipped a beat when she saw Frank standing on the porch. “Hi.” Her throat was suddenly dry, and she sipped from her mug of coffee when Frank entered the kitchen. The cool scent of his aftershave filled the room with musky sweetness, and she sighed, relishing his presence in her home.
During the last week, Frank had appeared torn about his decision to relocate from Chicago to Baltimore. He’d told her that his nephew called him every day, saying he wished Frank had not left. He regretted missing Mark’s Little League games, and since he’d left, his sister, Trish, said that Mark had started misbehaving again. Frank had mentioned that he planned to take a weekend and visit Trish and her children soon and that he was still angry that Trish’s husband had abandoned their family a year ago.
Emily found it heartwarming that Frank wanted to be a substitute parent to Trish’s children. Whenever he spoke of his niece and nephew, his face brightened, and when Mark called him periodically, Frank immediately dropped what he was doing to see what his nephew wanted to talk about.
She’d been working closely with Frank this week as they went over her father’s accounting records. Whenever he looked at her, she became flustered, her heart racing like a horse speeding out to pasture. She couldn’t seem to keep Frank from dominating her thoughts—or tempting her heart.
“Good morning, Emily.” When he came toward her, she immediately noticed his cocoa brown eyes were red and his mouth was set in a firm line, as if he were angry. He sported a simple white T-shirt and