Emma “Are you okay?” “What?” Emma stuttered, turning from the limo window and looking blankly at Jackson. “You’re distracted,” he told her. “I’ve asked you the same question three times and you haven’t said a word. You just sat there. Are you okay?” “Oh, I’m sorry,” Emma replied. She reached for his hand. “I’m just tired.” “Are you sick?” Jackson asked. “You look a little pale.” “I’m fine,” Emma told him. “It’s probably just a little bug. I’ll be fine.” A baby bug, she thought to herself. And I’ll be fine in about nine months. Emma thought about telling him about the positive pregnancy test, but decided to wait until she had it confirmed by a doctor. Her appointment was in a couple of days. She was still so early in her pregnancy that she didn’t want to get his hopes up yet. She didn’t want him to think about his business troubles tonight, either, so, she was waiting until the doctor confirmed what the pregnancy test told her. It was better for everyone that way. “Oh look, w

JacksonThe rest of the work day went smooth as silk. Sales were up. Stocks were up. The investors were happy. The board of directors was happy. There was no talk of replacing him.Plus, he was taking Emma out to dinner tonight. He knew this amazing little sushi place that could fit them in a back corner where no one would bother them. He was going to eat sushi and laugh with Emma until he burst.Jackson’s day couldn’t be better.“Mrs. Bales, have a fabulous evening,” he called to his secretary as he left the office. The clock read just after five.“You too, Mr. Weathers,” Mrs. Bales called out after him. “I made those reservations you asked for. Everything is set, just like you requested.”Jackson turned and grinned at her. “Thank you.”“Of course, Mr. Weathers,” she replied. “Give my best to Emma.”He was going to give Mrs. Bales a raise. That’s how good of a day it was. He was going to give the whole damn company a raise if things continued this well. Sales were finally coming back

Emma “You must be Emma. It’s so wonderful to meet you. You look just like your pictures in the magazines.” Emma stood at the door of Jackson’s apartment and suddenly wished very much that she didn’t have to do this. But, she didn’t really have much of a choice. This had to happen. “Yes, I’m Emma,” she said, forcing herself to smile as she opened the door a little wider. “Please come in. Your name is Becca, right?” “That’s me, Becca the wedding planner,” the woman chirped. Becca wasn’t much older than Emma, but was several inches shorter. She had beautiful blonde hair in beautiful wavy curls down her back. The woman looked like she just stepped out of a beauty salon. She wore a light pink dress that looked like 1950’s vintage. Her makeup was perfect. Her hair was perfect. Even though Emma wore nice slacks, a button-up dark blue silk shirt, and light makeup, she felt incredibly unprepared. Becca just looked so put together. “Now, I have some samples of other weddings so that I ca

He looked down at the picture again. He was a father. “What are you thinking, Jackson?” Emma asked. He looked up to see her biting her lip and looking like she was about to cry. “Please, tell me what you’re thinking.” “I’m thinking you are the most beautiful woman in the entire world,” he told her. He stood up and put his arms around her. She was shaking. “I’m thinking that I am the luckiest man in the world.” A shudder of relief went through her and she collapsed into him, tucking her face into his shoulder. He rubbed her back. “I was so afraid...” Her words came out muffled, but he understood them. “Why?” he asked, pulling her back. She shrugged. “I don’t know. Your reputation?” “It’s in our contract.” “Yeah, but so are sales taxes and membership fees. Just because it’s in a contract doesn’t mean that it’s something you want,” she replied. He took her chin in his hand, making sure that she looked up at him. She was so beautiful it made his heart catch. If he had felt protec

Emma Emma groaned, finally giving up on her nap. Exhaustion still tugged on her, but her phone simply wouldn’t stop buzzing or chiming. Unfortunately, it was on the kitchen table and a good ten steps away from the couch she currently was very comfortable on. The chime went off again. She thought about just leaving it there, but it was plugged in. The chimes would never stop since it would never run out of battery. Besides, that many text messages, emails, and phone calls had to be something important. With a groan, she threw her feet to the floor and sat up from the couch. She just wanted to nap today. This being pregnant thing was harder than she expected. She remembered her friend Grace’s pregnancy being easy. The only thing Grace had was an aversion to the smell of cooked chicken. Emma seemed to have an aversion to everything. She stood up and walked zombie like to the kitchen table. She picked up her phone and started making some ginger tea while she checked what was making he