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Chapter 56
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The Fantasy Maker Chapter 1
Prologue"Mom, Seth hit me!""I did not!""You did!""Boys, if you don't settle down, I'm going to turn this car around and take you back home." Emma glanced in the rearview mirror at her two sons. "And then you'll have to sit in your bedrooms until your father gets home.""But he won't be home until Friday," Justin moaned."Exactly."The boys immediately sat back, clutched their hands in their laps, and stared straight ahead as they had been told to do too many times to count. Emma slowed the car for a stop sign, glancing into the rearview mirror with a stern, warning look one last time before jabbing the power button on the radio. Exchange one noise for another.Her thoughts were a million miles away. As a popular pop song infused the car with its deep bass beat, she found herself thinking about recent trips she had made to the Pilot Point Spa and Resort. Or the Ranch, as it was called by its customers. She knew she should feel guilty, especially in light of the places th
The Fantasy Maker Chapter 2
Emma shoved Steve's uneaten breakfast into the garbage disposal with the remnants of the boys' meal, feeling a little too much satisfaction as the sound of the grinding blades filled the room. Was it evil of her to imagine his face sliding into the disposal?Maybe.She sighed as she bent to put syrup lathered plates into the dish washer. She loved her husband, really she did. Every time he looked at her with those amazing blue eyes, her heart still skipped a beat. She just wished that he still felt the same way.They hadn't had sex in months. In fact, she could distinctly remember the last time. They were in the Turks and Caicos Islands, celebrating their wedding anniversary. He spent nearly the whole time on his cellphone while she went scuba diving, took hikes with a local guide, and explored the local markets. Only on the last night of their trip did he seem to have time for her. And even that felt more like an afterthought than anything else.They went to dinner at the resort.
The Fantasy Maker Chapter 3
Emma was standing in the backyard with her camera in her hands. She was adjusting the focus, trying to get just the right angle on a tiny dandelion moving just slightly in a gentle breeze. Just as she had it perfect, she heard a voice call out to her from the corner of the house."Mrs. Hamilton?"She pressed the shutter several times before turning and acknowledging the short, squat man walking toward her."You must be Mr. McWhorter.""Billy," he said, holding out his hand as he approached. "Nice to meet you." Emma turned toward the house, gesturing to the far, west corner of the main building. "Over here is where I'd like to build the addition."As he followed her across the yard, Emma described her vision. "A building about 45x45, with 20x20 of that a dark room on the far side, close to that stand of trees. The other half will be a photography studio, so I want it to have as much natural light as possible. High windows with retractable shades and sky lights.""Have you spoken
The Fantasy Maker Chapter 4
She stood in the doorway and watched them. Her three men. Seth and Justin sat across from each other in their superhero pajamas, Justin in Iron Man, Seth in Superman. They had their noses buried in worksheets, Justin struggling with a simple crossword that forced him to define his spelling words for the week, and Seth with his math. Steve sat at the head of the table, his laptop open and a stack of paperwork fanned out beside it. Every time his eyes moved over something at the top of the screen, it felt like he was looking at her. She studied his face, the angles so familiar that her hands could almost feel them against her palm. She remembered the first time she saw him. It was like this.He moved in to a house across the street from where she lived the summer she was sixteen. She caught glimpses of him from time to time, saw him coming and going with his father, saw him playing basketball alone in the driveway. But it wasn't until school started again that fall that they really me
The Fantasy Maker Chapter 5
Emma followed Jen through the lingerie store, a blush so hot on her cheeks that she felt like she was having some sort of hot flash."What do you need that for?" Emma asked before she could stop herself.Jen held up the satiny teddy she had just tried on in the tinny dressing room. It was red and black, with tiny yellow bows along the top and bottom hems. Too tight, too short, and too sheer for Emma's comfort."To make Ray remember why he married me."Emma laughed despite her embarrassment. "I'm sure you never let him forget.""I try not to." Jen glanced back at Emma as she continued to make her way through the stacks of displays. "You should get something, too. I'm sure Steve would appreciate it.""I don't think Steve would notice even if I wore this," she said, snatching up a pair of crotchless panties from a low lying table. Jen's eyes widened and Emma dropped them, laughing so hard she thought her ribs might burst.They walked out of the store a few minutes later, the fifty
The Fantasy Maker Chapter 6
"When do you come back?"Steve dropped a handful of socks into his suitcase. "Sunday night."Emma leaned against the wall, watching him move between the dresser and the suitcase balanced on the end of the bed. She was chewing on her lip, trying to hold back the words that were sitting on the end of her tongue. Words of accusation that were just begging to be released. But she knew it would do her no good to release them."What kind of conference is this?" she asked for the third time."It's a leadership conference, Em.""In Houston?""Yes.""And you have to go?"He paused, several pairs of underwear in his hands. "I could miss it, but then I would also miss getting information that might help me in my job. Is that what you want?"Emma looked at him, looked at the barely contained anger in his eyes. When had this happened, she wondered. When had they become enemies?She shook her head. "Will you call the boys tonight?""Of course."He dumped the last of his things in the sui
The Fantasy Maker Chapter 7
Emma's hands shook as she pulled the baby doll top over her head. She was afraid she might snag it with a fingernail or tear it with her big head. The darn thing was expensive. And she had never worn anything like this before. Her idea of sexy nightclothes had always been an oversized t-shirt. She adjusted the yellow bows, tugging at the black and red lace that rubbed lightly against her skin.She didn't want to look at herself in the mirror, but she had to be sure her hair was still sitting evenly on her head, that her makeup had not smeared on the thin, sheer material, that her nipples weren't lopsided under the tight band of lace. She blushed as she met her own eyes in the mirror, but had to admit it did not look as bad as she had thought it might. Not quite like she imagined Jen had looked in it, but not bad.She heard an engine in the front drive. She ran to the sliding glass doors and glanced down, spotted Steve wearily climbing out of his car. A shiver of anticipation ran up h
The Fantasy Maker Chapter 8
A rare, quiet moment found Emma. She curled up on the couch, her camera in her hands. She ran through the memory card's collection of photos. Seth's birthday had been a week ago and this was the first moment she had to look at the pictures she had taken during the party. She couldn't believe her baby was getting so big. It seemed like just last week he was crawling across the living room like the devil was on his heels.The pictures were filled with smiling faces. Her parents. Steve's parents. Neighbors, friends, and children everywhere. She smiled at a picture of Justin shoving a piece of cake into his grandmother's mouth. Another of Seth trying to break the Hulk pi?ata he had insisted they buy for his celebration. One of Jen trying to hide the glass of wine she had snuck from the kitchen. And one of Steve, sitting on the back porch with a cellphone stuck to his head.She was going to have that thing surgically removed one of these days.It had been weeks since the night he came ho
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