Chapter 472

Emma blew the steam from her tea before taking a tentative sip. “I realized something else tonight,” she said, not looking at Zoë. “I’m in love with Jake.” Emma looked up to gauge Zoë’s reaction and got an eye roll for her trouble. “Like that was a surprise,” Zoë said. “What?” “Oh come on, Wills. You came back from overseas with this—” she waved her fingers around in front of Emma’s face, “—glow about you. And all those ‘late nights at the office’—” she actually used air quotes, “—anyone with half a brain could see that you had fallen hard for the guy.” “It was just meant to be a fling,” Emma said. “No one was supposed to fall in love.” “That’s not how these things work,” a voice said behind her. Emma turned to see her mother standing in the doorway. She no longer had the washed-out look on her face and had even gained a little weight. She looked healthier than Emma could ever remember her being since Tom died. “Shouldn’t you be in bed?” Emma asked, turning back to her tea. “I just cam