Loving Him Was Red

~And I don't know
This could break my heart or save me
Nothing's real
Until you let go completely
So here I go with all my thoughts I've been saving
So here I go with all my fears weighing on me~

Emma decided that it was best for her to keep away from the company as long as possible, by hiding out in the backyard with Bronx. She didn’t mind it either because he was such an adorable kid and was definitely keeping her entertained. She knew that being in the house would only make the whole situation even more unbearable for everyone who had to keep the secret of her and Patrick.

“Oh my goodness, this is a face I thought I’d never see again in my house,” Dale, Pete’s mom, exclaimed as she followed Pete into the house when they had first arrived. She grabbed Emma and pulled her into a hug. “How are you Emma?”

Emma squeezed her back. “I’m good, I think, just a little exhausted,” she replied.

Dale pulled away and looked from her to Pete. “Okay, I’m confused. Why is Patrick’s ex-girlfriend in my house?”

Pete laughed. “Well, that is confusing, Ma. Emma here is the Rolling Stone writer that has been following us on tour the past month and a half.”

“Well, looky-there, that is quite a coincidence!” she cried out. Emma gave Pete a sideways glance and he just smirked.

“Yep, big coincidence,” Emma retorted. “I hope you are okay with me being here, Dale.”

“Nonsense! I miss seeing you! Peter still has lunch every now and then with your parents, they said you were loving New York City.”

Emma had forgotten that Pete’s father was also a lawyer like her parents and once they had all discovered the circle of relations they were caught up in, decided to do business together every once I awhile. Her parents had failed to mention to her in their last few trips that they were still talking to Mr. Wentz. “Oh, that’s great to hear. Yep, New York is pretty intense.”

Dale gave her a concerned look. “But what about Patrick? How is he taking this? I mean you have been sleeping in the same tour bus as him for crying out loud!”

Emma looked at Pete who intervened then. “Well, Ma, that’s something we need to talk about.”

He explained the whole situation, from Emma and Patrick rediscovering their love for each other to the sporadic mess that was Natalie. Dale just shook her head. “I guess I can never have a dinner without drama,” she sighed.

Then Emma heard a door open from the upstairs and a small boy with shoulder-length curly blond hair stumbled down the stairs, rubbing his eyes in a tired way. “Daddy?”

Pete’s grin grew larger and he moved up the stairs and caught the boy up in a big hug. “Hey Little Man, what’s going on? Did we wake you?”

“No,” Bronx said. “I’ve been waiting for you to get home.” Pete lifted the boy and placed him on his hip and carried him down the stairs.

Emma had known Pete for a long time and had known him to be a good man, but she had never seen the depths at which he could be a good man until she saw him with his son. She had never seen him look so happy. She smiled as they approached. “Hey buddy, I want you to meet a really good friend of ours. This is Emma.”

The boy seemed reluctant at first to greet Emma so she decided to make the first move. “Hey there, Bronx. Love that t-shirt you got there,” she said, pointing to the Han Solo shirt. “Han is my favorite too.”
Bronx’s face lit up. “You like Han Solo?” she nodded. “Wait, it’s not because he’s a boy is it?” he asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

Emma glanced at Pete who was just shaking his head in amusement. “Oh, no, it’s because he’s the sharpest shooter in the entire Galactic Empire!”

The boy grinned. “He is so cool.” He scrambled out of his father’s grasp. “Want to play some Lego Star Wars with me?”

Emma laughed. “Yeah, sure, let me get changed first, okay bud?” he nodded and raced back up the stairs.

“Wait a minute, don’t you want to play with your old man?” Pete called up after him.

“NO!” Bronx shouted as he ran into his room.

“Such a charmer, just like his dad,” Dale remarked, smiling. She leaned over and kissed Emma’s cheek. “Why don’t you grab yourself the guest room and take a shower. We have a long night ahead of us.”

Emma knew Dale was right, which was why she tried to make it as comfortable as possible by staying out of everyone’s way. Except, Patrick couldn’t stay away from her. She watched him racing around the yard with Bronx who had stolen his fedora. She could still feel his lips against hers from just a few moments ago, her lips tingling with a pleasant sensation that she wanted to feel again.

Suddenly, the back door slid open and Natalie stepped out. “Pat! Dinner is ready!” she shouted out to him.

Patrick had just caught Bronx and tackled him to the ground, grabbing his hat out of his hand. He put it back on his head and looked up at Natalie. “Oh, great. Hey Bronx, you ready for some dinner?”

Bronx just looked at Natalie with a fear and he moved slightly behind Patrick as if hiding himself from her. Emma raced over and grabbed his hand. “Hey Patrick, why don’t you head inside with Natalie, I’ll take care of Bronx.”

Patrick looked at her oddly and she gestured with her eyes to Bronx’s face. “Um, sure, that’s fine.” He gave her one last lingering look before walking up the steps of the deck to meet Natalie. When he got up there, Natalie pulled him into a long and passionate kiss, at least it seemed on her side. Emma quickly looked away. When she looked back up they were heading inside, but not before Natalie threw her a dirty look. Um, okay, what the hell was that? She thought.

She looked down at Bronx. “Do you not like that girl?” she asked him outright.

Bronx nodded. “The last time I met her, she didn’t want to play with me. And her voice is scary.” Emma tried to stifle a laugh.

“Okay, well, just stick by me, I’ll protect you,” she said, taking his hand and leading him inside to wash his hands.

Once they had washed their hands, she took him back into the big dining room area and she let go of his hand, thinking he would just sit with Pete. However, once she found her place at the table, Bronx had clamored over to the empty seat next to her. She looked over at him in surprise. “Can I sit next to you, Emma?” he asked sweetly.

She smiled. “Of course you can, bud.” She patted the seat next to her and he climbed up on it.

“Wow, Bronx has really taken to you,” Pete commented as he took a seat next to his son. Joe sat on her other side and she glanced up to see that Patrick had sat down right in front of her. She gave him a small smile and he smiled back. Then Natalie plopped down on one side of him and Andy on the other. Dale and Patricia had decided to sit at either end of the table and Marie took her place next to Joe.
Once the meal was divvyed up, the chatter began, with Dale and Patricia leading the conversation, asking the boys about the tour and what had been going on. They were swapping stories, sharing memories of some of the old days, which Emma remembered as well. She kept quiet through the meal, glancing at Bronx every once in a while as he happily shoveled the chicken and macaroni and cheese on his plate down his throat. Suddenly, she felt a foot slowly nudge hers coming from across the way. She looked up at Patrick just above her eyelids and he was smiling. She looked back down at her food, smiling as well. She could not deny that although it was wrong, it all felt so exhilarating. Now I know why people are addicted to cheating, she thought. She could feel his socked foot gently rub up and down her bare calf and she squirmed in her seat a bit, wishing there was a way they could be alone together right then instead of surrounded by friends and family.

“I’ll tell you what though, this tour is gonna be nothing compared to what we have planned for the arena tour,” Pete said excitedly.

“Yeah, it’s gonna be wild,” Andy added, clinking his glass of water with Patrick’s.

“It must be good to tour with Brendan again,” Emma commented, trying to keep her mind off Patrick’s roaming foot.

“You know Brendan Urie?” Natalie asked her and inquisitive expression on her face.

“Brendan Urie, from Panic!? Yes, I’m a music journalist, it’s my job to know who he is,” Emma replied curtly.

“Oh, yeah, that makes sense,” Natalie said, glancing at Patrick, who was quoting lines from I Love You Man with Andy. Emma noticed that Natalie seemed to be acting stranger than she usually was.

“Can’t wait to hook up with Brendan again,” Pete said. “He did a good job of taking care of my boy Patrick there while we were all doing our own thing.”

Patrick looked over at Pete at the mention of his name. “Yeah, that was a fun tour, for the most part,” he commented.

“And, he introduced you to me, that was pretty good too,” Natalie prompted. She leaned over and kissed his cheek, rather dramatically in Emma’s opinion.

Patrick sheepishly said, “Yeah, of course.”

“Shoot, I forgot to get a knife for the pecan pie,” Dale suddenly said. “Pete, could you,”

“I got it Mrs. Wentz,” Emma said quickly, standing up and walking over to the kitchen area. She could feel a few pairs of eyes on her as she went directly to where Dale kept her serving knives and pulled one out. She walked back over to the table and placed the knife next to the pie.

“Thank you, dear,” Dale said, kindly.

Emma gave her an acknowledging nod and went to take a sip of her water, when Natalie said, “Wow, how did you know where that knife was?” Emma felt her eyes widened and she could feel a small silence fall over the table.

“Lucky guess. I figured that’s where I keep my knives, near the stove, so I just figured she did too. Doesn’t everyone?” she replied. Then she shoved a large helping of salad into her mouth. She could still feel Natalie’s eyes on her.

The conversation seemed to move away from the tour and onto personal matters, with Joe and Marie recounting their decision to move to New York and sell the house in Chicago. Suddenly, Patricia directed a question at Emma, which caught her off guard. “So Emma, I ran into your mom the other day.”

Emma’s head bolted up from her food. “Oh, um, you did?”

“Wait, you know Emma’s mom?” Natalie suddenly blurted out.

Emma’s heart started racing, but she tried to keep her cool. “When we were talking earlier, when we first met, it turns out my parents kind of know Patrick’s parents from,”

“College,” Patricia finished for her. Emma threw her a grateful look.

“Wow, that’s really weird,” Natalie said, looking at Emma with a narrowed glance. “I didn’t know Chicago was such a small city.”

“Big City, Small Town Feel,” Joe chimed in, grabbing a chicken leg and biting into it.

“Anyway, she and your dad seem to be doing well,” Patricia remarked.

Emma nodded. “Yeah, dad is thinking about moving to part time hours though. He says he’s getting too old.”

“Yes, I’ve been begging Peter to do the same thing,” Dale commented, referring to Pete’s dad.

“So have you guys met before then?” Natalie cut in, trying to act interested in the conversation.

Emma glanced at Patrick, who was eyeing her warily. “No, I’ve never met them before. My parents didn’t have a lot of their friends over,” she lied. She couldn’t believe how easily she could come up with these falsities. I think I deserve an Oscar, she thought.

Dale started going on about Mr. Wentz’s practice and how exhausted he has become with it when Natalie cut in again and said, “So, wait, if you’re from Chicago that means your ex-boyfriend must be from here too!” She looked at Emma with wide eyes.

Emma felt her body warm up. “Um, what?” She glanced in Pete’s direction and he was looking up at Natalie with a suspicious look. Why she felt the need to bring up Emma’s ex-boyfriend, again, was beyond her.

“You know that ex-boyfriend that you’re still in love with.” She looked at Patricia and then Dale who both looked disconcerted by Natalie’s outburst. “See, Emma, here, was telling me about this ex-boyfriend she had who was a musician and he dumped her after five years! Isn’t that just crazy?” Natalie blathered on.

Emma glared at her and glanced at Patrick who was looking sideways at Natalie with a worried expression on his face. “Um, they aren’t interested in that,” Emma said off-handedly, trying to stop Natalie from moving forward.

Natalie looked back at her. “Why not? You know, if you’re here, you should try and find him to make it right. Wouldn’t that be really romantic?”

Emma narrowed her eyes. “I don’t really want to talk about this, and I’m not sure why you want to.”

Natalie’s eyes narrowed back at her. “Because I find the subject of you and this ex-boyfriend extremely fascinating.”

Emma’s eyes quickly darted to Patrick who seemed to be holding his breath. “Why do you find it so fascinating, Natalie?”

“Because you never told me who he was. I mean, you said he was really busy with touring and stuff, so it sounds like his band must have been really famous. Do I know him?”

“I don’t like to kiss and tell,” Emma shot back.

“Why? You’re a journalist, isn’t that in your nature?”

“You’re right I am a journalist, but I’m not a gossip columnist. Big difference,” Emma retorted. She shook her head.

“Oh come on, no one here is going to go shout it from a mountain top or put it on Twitter. Who is it?”

“Natalie give her a break,” Patrick suddenly spoke up. “If she doesn’t want to talk about it, she shouldn’t have to.”

Emma felt like she could cut the silence in the room with a knife. She saw Natalie’s eyes grow wide with anger. “I think she does have to talk about it actually, Pat.” She directed her angry glare at Emma. “Who is it Emma?”

Emma slammed down her silverware. “Natalie, just leave it, god…. What is your problem??”

Natalie took a deep breath and said, “You are my problem, Emma.” Emma looked at her incredulously, taken back by what Natalie just admitted. “You’re just this weird girl, but everyone seems to think you’re the coolest person ever. You happen to be from Chicago too, you seem to know everything about these guys as if you spent years with them, not just a month and they seem to know a lot about you. I mean how can you say that you just happen to guess where Pete’s mom keeps her knives! That’s the most stupidest thing I have ever heard!” Emma felt speechless so Natalie continued. “Plus, I have never met a girl who DIDN’T want to talk crap about her ex-boyfriend and tell all of his secrets, especially if SHE was the one that was dumped. Respecting his personal life, my ass!” She exclaimed.

“Whoa, language,” Pete cut in, placing his hands over Bronx’s ears. Natalie just gave him a acerbic look that made him wince.

“So I’ll ask you again, who is this mysterious boyfriend of yours!” she was practically yelling at this point and no one dared jump in.

Emma glanced at Patrick who slowly sunk lower into his chair and tilted his hat forward, covering a portion of his eyes. Emma glared back at Natalie. “Well, it seems like you already know, so why don’t you tell me,” she said bluntly.

Natalie’s eyes crinkled in disgust and then she pulled something out of her pocket and threw it onto the table between them. Emma looked down and saw that it was a 4X6 picture of her and Patrick from many years ago. It was a candid shot of them sitting on Patricia’s couch in their pajamas, Patrick resting his head on Emma’s lap. Emma was looking down at him, her nose scrunched up as she smiled at him. It was a tender moment that neither one of them knew was being captured. Emma’s heart beat loudly in her ears, her palms getting sweaty, her stomach starting to twist nervously. She looked up at Patrick who was also staring at the picture now.

“Where did you get this?” Patrick asked her carefully.

“It was hanging up at your mom’s house,” Natalie said, turning to glare at him. “Should have checked to see if she was going to hang pictures up of your ex-girlfriends before bringing me there.”

Patrick looked at her, his eyes full and apologetic. “Natalie, I am really sorry. I didn’t want you to find out like this.”

Natalie shook her head in disbelief. “No kidding!? Why did you keep this a secret?”

“Because I didn’t want THIS to happen,” Patrick said, gesturing toward the scene they were creating at the dinner table. “Apparently, I couldn’t get away from it though,” He muttered.

Natalie looked at Emma. “And you, you’re pathetic, you know that!? What did you think… that you could take this stupid job and try to convince Pat to be with you again!? Guess you were pretty pissed off when I showed up!”

Emma looked away from her, tears stinging her eyes. “I didn’t take this job to get back with Patrick. I took this job because my editor forced me to.” She turned her look back to Natalie. “I have spent three years actively avoiding seeing him again, what makes you think I would do something like that?”

“Because you’re still in love with him!” Natalie exclaimed. “You said so yourself, IN FRONT OF HIM!” she pointed at Patrick, who was staring at Emma with sympathetic eyes. Then Natalie turned her wrath onto the other band members. “And you guys, how could you not tell me!”

“Patrick told us not to, and he’s our friend,” Joe said simply. Patrick just shook his head and averted his eyes.

Natalie turned her wide-eyed fury back on Patrick. “And why does it matter if I fucking know anyway!!?”

“O-KAY, I think it’s time for Bronx to go, Ma, can you…”Pete trailed off, gesturing for Dale to take Bronx. She quickly got up and grabbed Bronx’s arm.

“Come on honey, let’s go up to your room and play.”

Patricia got up then too and said, “Dale, I think I’ll join you.” She looked pointedly at Patrick, who put his hat back over his eyes in shame.

As the two women led him away, Bronx looked back at the table and then at his grandmother. “Mammy, why is that scary lady mad at Emma and Uncle Pa’rick? Is it because they were kissing outside behind the tree while we were playing hide and seek?”

Emma heard Natalie gasp dramatically. Patrick groaned and sunk back down into his chair. “Thanks little man,” Patrick called out as Dale picked up Bronx and rushed him out of the room.

“What did he mean you were kissing outside!?” Natalie cried out.

Patrick stood up suddenly, “Natalie, I think this is something we should talk about in private,” he said, reaching for her arm to pull her up, but she pulled away from him.

“No!” she jumped up and stood facing him, her fists clenched. “Did you cheat on me with her?”

Patrick glanced at Emma, who glanced at Pete and then at Patrick’s mom. They both looked uneasy. “Natalie, I can explain…” But he didn’t get to finish because Natalie smacked him hard across the face. “HOLY SMOKES that is painful!” he exclaimed, grabbing his face with his hand to try and still the stinging. He doubled over in pain.

“You are a fucking jerk!” Natalie shouted. “How long has this been going on? Did you fuck her too?”
Patrick looked at her guiltily. “Natalie, look, Emma and I…”

But she wasn’t going to let him finish. “Oh my God! I cannot believe you! You are a dick!” then she pointed to Emma. “And you’re just a stupid groupie whore. I can’t believe Pat would even let you touch him!”

Patrick opened his mouth to protest, but Emma cut in. “I don't care what you call me, but don’t call him Pat ever again,” she said in a low voice. She knew that she should have felt guilty and ashamed, but at that moment all she felt was the need to punch Natalie in the face. Natalie turned and stared at her, shocked she had the gall to speak.

“What did you say?” she said in a threatening tone.

Emma stood up. “I said, don’t call him Pat. He HATES being called Pat because that’s what people call his mom. He goes by Patrick. God, every time you say that I want to take that necklace around your throat and choke you.”

Natalie looked at Patrick dubiously. “Yeah it’s kind of true,” Patrick said timidly. “That’s why no one else calls me it.”

“Oh my God, this is fucking ridiculous!” Natalie shouted. “Pat, oh I’m sorry, PATRICK, are you still in love with her?”

Emma felt like she was waiting with bated breath to see if Patrick would admit it. He turned to her and gave her a small smile. “Yes...”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Natalie said angrily. “You’re not in love with her. You just think you are because you’re in that “whoa, I get to fuck my ex-girlfriend, I wonder if the sex is going to be better’ phase.”

“That’s a thing?” Andy muttered across the table to Pete and Joe. They shrugged.

“Yep, I think it is,” Marie confirmed.

“It’s not a thing,” Patrick cut in. “At least, it’s um, not what this thing is,” he said gesturing between himself and Emma. “Natalie, I should have been honest with you. I have always loved Emma. I never wanted to leave her. I was a really stupid kid.”

Natalie looked at him and then at Emma. “You both are disgusting,” she said and then in one swift movement, she picked up her cup of water and threw it at Emma. It happened so fast, she didn’t even have time to react and suddenly her face was dripping with water. Pete and Joe both pushed their chairs back to avoid any splashing.

“Oh my God,” Emma said slowly, wiping water out of her eyes.

“Emma are you okay?” Patrick asked, reaching for his napkin and handing it to her. She took it and muttered ‘thanks’ as she wiped the water off her face.

Natalie looked at Patrick. “You know what!? This is actually a good thing. I can get guys way hotter than you,”

“Ouch,” Patrick retorted, frowning.

“You were supposed to be the good guy. You were supposed to be the one I was going to settle down with,” Natalie finished. She shook her head. “This is all their fault.” She pointed at Joe, Pete and Andy.

“Us? What did we do?” Pete asked her.

“Yeah, I’d prefer to not to be sucked into this crazy fest,” Joe retorted.

“You are a terrible influence! If Patrick wasn’t in this band he wouldn’t have cheated on me and we would be married with babies by now! When I first met you, you didn’t think you would ever get back together with these guys. Then HE,” she pointed to Pete, “called you up and locked you away in the recording studio for days, and you changed. Things were better when you weren’t with these guys.”

Patrick looked at her alarmed. “Natalie, it’s not their fault.”

“Yes it is! This is why I want you to quit this band!”

Patrick shook his head. “I’m not leaving this… Natalie, I would never quit this band. This is my life, my career. I hope I’m still singing with these guys when I’m 60.”

“Could you imagine trying to do reunion tours singing “Saturday” when we are that age?” Pete jested.

“Man, I can barely jump around to that song now!” Joe chimed in.

Patrick gave them both a look to be quiet and they quieted down. He took Natalie’s hands. “I’m sorry that I lied to you. I’m sorry that I cheated on you with Emma. It wasn’t right. But, honestly, I don’t think I’m the right guy for you anyway. I can’t give you what you want.”

Natalie was silent for a minute and then she said, “You’re right, you can’t. That’s why I’ve been getting it from my personal trainer.” She turned on her heel and stormed away from a stunned Patrick. “I’m getting out of this hell hole. You all deserve each other.”

They all stared after her in shock. “Well I’ll be damned,” Pete said in a stunned voice. “Did you have any idea?” he directed at Patrick.

Patrick shook his head slowly, his eyes wide. “Nope, not a clue. I just thought she was really into working out.”

Emma stared after her in shock. She could not believe what she had just admitted, and it made Emma angry. “I’m going to kill her,” Emma announced and she started after her, but Patrick scurried over and grabbed her arm.

“Emma, no, stop,” he said, pulling her back. She turned and looked at him.

“Do you even realize what she just… the nerve of her, getting angry at us…” Emma could feel her breath shortening and she could feel tears coming to her eyes again. “Oh shit, I am all wet,” she muttered looking down at her shirt, wiping a few tears away as well.

Patrick pulled her toward him, and she could feel his arms circling her body. “Emma, I don’t care.” She rested her head on his chest. It was the first time in weeks that she felt like she belonged anywhere. It was the first time she felt that she could be honest. She buried her head further into him, taking in all of his presence.

“So, um, not to be the Debbie Downer, but, how’s Natalie getting out of here?” Joe piped up.

Patrick and Emma pulled away from each other, looking at one another in askance. Suddenly Marie stood up. “I’ll take her to Patricia’s and then to the airport. I’m assuming I’m the least guilty out of all of you, so she won’t immediately try and murder me.”

Joe stood up and kissed her on the lips. “That’s why I married you, baby,” he joked. She rolled her eyes and hit him playfully.

“I’ll see you guys later,” she said, waving to them and then she went out to the front yard to find Natalie.

Emma could feel all of the bricks on her chest being lifted simultaneously. However, a few still remained. She felt relieved but still hesitant that everything was okay yet. She looked at Patrick, who was holding her hand. “You know, to be fair, though, it was partly Pete’s fault all of this,” Emma suddenly said, devilishly looking at Pete.

“What?!” Pete said in mock surprise. “I have NO IDEA what you’re talking about.”

“What are you talking about?” Patrick asked her.

Emma laughed. “You will have to ask Pete later. Turns out he’s a little bit closer to Christian than we realized.” She squeezed his hand. “So, I have to change this shirt and my bra. I am not a fan of being wet.”

Patrick grinned. “I don’t think I mind too much.” She slapped him playfully on the arm. “Oww, okay I deserved that.” He then turned to his three band mates. “Um, guys, I’m sorry you had to, uh, witness that.”

“Eh, it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” Andy replied carelessly.

“Yeah, I’m just glad we weren’t on the tour bus when that happened,” Joe added. “Where would she have gone?”

“I would have had Roman pull over on the side of the road and kick her out,” Pete answered. “Like in that Chris Rock movie when he ran for president.”

Emma listened as the four guys started making Chris Rock jokes and impressions and she squeezed Patrick’s hand again, getting his attention. She nodded in the direction of the stairs and his eyes widened in realization. “Uh, guys, I’m going to help Emma out for a second…”

“Uh huh, like she needs help changing her shirt,” Joe laughed.

Emma blushed furiously and started pulling Patrick away from them. “We’ll be right back guys.”

“Please take your time!” Pete called out. “Just don’t be too loud!” then he, Joe and Andy started cracking up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Patrick could still feel the sting from Natalie’s hand on his face, a physical reminder of the emotional pain he had put her through. He knew that he should have felt worse about the entire situation, but as he was being led up the stairs by Emma, all he could feel was relief and sudden sense of contentment. Emma led him to the guest bedroom, where she was staying while at Pete’s house. As soon as he was in the room, she shut the door. He wasn’t sure if he should kiss her and she wasn’t making a move to start getting physical with him so he just stood there in the center of the room looking at his hands while she rummaged through her duffel bag for a new t-shirt. When she found one, she took off the wet shirt and put on a new one, this one a faded, loose David Bowie t-shirt. She sighed with relief and looked up from her shirt to Patrick. He made eye contact with her and smiled at her with a diffident look, unsure of what to do next. She sat down on the bed.

“So,” she started, smoothing out her shorts. “That was an interesting dinner.”

He slowly moved over to the bed and sat down next to her. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure Dale is never having me over for dinner again.”

Emma chuckled lightly. “I’m sure she’ll forgive you. It’s hard not to forgive you.” He rested his hand on her naked thigh, enjoying the feeling of her skin under his palm.

“Is it, really though?” he asked her intently staring into her eyes. He hadn’t forgotten about the three years they spent apart – the ones where she refused to talk to him when he had tried. He knew how he felt about her: he loved her just as much as he did three years ago. He just wondered if she really still felt the same way.

“I didn’t think it would be,” she whispered. “I was sure that I could never forgive you for everything that happened. But I think that was my pride talking.” She paused and placed her hand over his. “Patrick, you broke me that night. Even if I wanted to forgive you, which obviously I have now, I wasn’t going to let myself.”

“I don’t deserve you, Emma,” he said softly, placing his other hand under her chin and drawing her face close to his. “If we do this again, I’m going to be better, I promise.”

She smirked and leaned closer. “You already are better, Patrick. But there was nothing wrong with you the first time. Pete was right, we were just young and didn’t really understand how all of this works. And then when you throw the fame into the mix and all of the people, it makes it harder.”

“Pete said that?” Patrick inquired. He wasn’t surprised at Pete’s insightfulness, but at the fact that he had talked to Emma about it.

She nodded. “Yeah, while we were arguing about how he orchestrated this whole debacle in the first place.”

Patrick suddenly remembered what she had said earlier about Pete being responsible for everything and said, “Yeah, what exactly was that all about? I mean out of any of the guys, I wouldn’t put it past Pete to be behind this, but how?”

She just laughed and softly pressed her lips against his. “Patrick,” she murmured, her lips still against his. “Do you really want me to explain that now, or would you like to….” She trailed off, kissing him again.

Patrick could feel his body reacting to her touch, and he wrapped his hands up in her hair, pulling her closer to him. “Yeah, no,” he murmured. “We can discuss it later.”