Fool for You by Kelly Elliott

Emmerson

THE MOMENT LANDON pulled up to the large house we had both grown up in, a rush of warmth and happiness came over me. I knew it was because I was going to be with my family.

I was still a bit shaken by what had happened back at my place. When I had hugged Landon and then saw him staring at my mouth, my eyes drifted down to his soft lips…and I had desperately wanted him to kiss me.

Kiss. Me. I wanted Landon to kiss me. What in the hell was up with that?

I mean, it wasn’t like it was the first time. I’d had plenty of naughty thoughts when it came to the man sitting next to me. But those were in my dreams, and when I woke up I quickly pushed them away. I had never actually fantasized about physical contact when I was with him. In his arms. Inches from those soft, plump lips of his that made my insides want to melt just thinking about them.

Oh my God. Emmerson. Stop this. He doesn’t feel the same way.

I shook my thoughts away and focused back on family dinner night.

“I love dinner at the ranch,” I said as I opened the door to Landon’s truck and jumped out.

Landon came around the front and chuckled. “It’s a fun tradition. I’m glad our folks still do it.”

I looked up at him and smiled. “Me too. Now, the big question is, how will your wine be?”

He held it up and winked. “I have a feeling I’m going to take the title with this one.”

I smirked and started up the steps to the front door of my folks’ house, a bubble of excitement causing an extra pep in my step. Lady clearly felt the same way as she bounded ahead of us.

Dinner at the ranch was something I looked forward to each Sunday. I wasn’t sure if it was the excitement of what new wine would be discovered that month, or simply the fact that I loved being surrounded by my family. It was really the only time me, Landon, Noah, and Hailey were under one roof. We rarely saw each other after we’d all graduated from high school and headed to college. Landon started racing in high school and moved up so fast, he never actually attended college. And now that he wasn’t racing any longer and was living back in Waco, there was a better chance we’d all be here on Sundays.

Of course, there were some family dinners at the ranch I had hated in the past. Mostly when Landon had brought a date, which wasn’t often. It wasn’t that I wasn’t happy for him when he was dating someone; it was that weird little tinge of jealousy I got seeing him with someone.

“Oh man, that smells good,” I said as we walked into my folks’ house and made our way to the kitchen. I could already hear everyone laughing and couldn’t wait to get in on whatever it was.

Landon chuckled. “Sounds like the party started without us.”

“Sure does!”

The second we walked into the kitchen, I spotted Hailey. Her light brown hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and her cobalt blue eyes seemed to sparkle with happiness. I could instantly tell that something was different. She seemed to have a glow about her that lit up the entire room. She jumped off the counter and walked over to her brother, wrapping her arms around him.

“I hear you’re going to be auctioned off!” Hailey said with a giggle.

Landon rolled his eyes and gave her a playful push. “Don’t tell me you’re on the committee now,” he groaned.

Hailey smiled as she took a drink of wine and shook her head. “Nope. But someone let it slip that you were up on the auction block.”

I felt my eyes widen as my father and Noah both laughed. As handsome as they both were—with their light brown hair and eyes the color of the sky—they were lucky I didn’t think of volunteering one of them for the auction before Landon’s name flew out of my mouth. Well, Mom would have been pissed to share Dad, and my brother was already dating someone.

“Who blabbed?” I asked, pulling my phone from my purse and searching for Janet Monroe’s number.

Hailey shrugged. “Not sure, but I’ve already had three of my friends cancel their plans for that weekend since they’re now planning on attending the charity ball. The committee is thinking they will sell every plate this year and might have to add some more tables!”

I frowned, not liking the idea of Hailey’s friends bidding on Landon.

“Oh, this is wonderful!” my mother gushed.

Turning to her, I forced a smile. Her own smile faltered, and I knew she could sense something was off. She had that magical power most mothers had. Never mind how stunningly beautiful she still was. My father used to tell me I was a mini version of her. Her brown hair was pulled up into a loose bun on top of her head, and it flopped to the side as she tilted her head and asked, “Is everything okay, sweetheart?”

“I’m not sure,” I answered honestly, and then hit Janet’s number on my cell phone.

“What’s all the excitement I heard?” Addie Lewis asked as she and Emmit walked into the kitchen. Each week our folks took turns hosting Sunday night dinner.

“Your son has volunteered to do the charity date auction this year for Children’s Hospital of Austin!” my dad said, giving Landon a sympathetic smile.

“Are you insane?” Emmit asked.

Landon’s mother, Addie, let out a squeal of delight. “Oh, Landon, this is wonderful! How did they talk you into it?” She hugged him and then gave him a kiss.

Landon shot me a look over Addie’s shoulder. “I was signed up without my knowledge.”

Addie drew back in surprise, and once again the guilt of signing him up hit me right in the chest. Or maybe that was regret I was starting to feel.

Janet’s voice came through my phone. “Hello?”

“Janet, it’s Emmerson. How in the world did it get out about Landon Lewis?”

Addie’s eyes widened as she looked from me to Landon, and then back to me before she whispered, “Ohh, I see.”

“Emmerson, sweetie, I know what you’re thinking, but I figured if word got out, we’d have more plate sales. And more plate sales means more money for the hospital.”

“But the charity date auction participants have always been announced at the ball.”

Janet laughed. “Emmerson, it’s Landon Lewis. He’s one of the most eligible bachelors in Texas! How in the world could we keep this a secret? I know you don’t seem to find him attractive, but the rest of the world does, and he’s going to bring in top dollar with his date.”

I spun around and walked out of the kitchen as quickly as I could. “I never said I didn’t find him attractive!” I whisper-shouted into the phone. “He’s my best friend, Janet, and I signed him up without him knowing!”

There was a chilling moment of silence before she slowly spoke. “He…doesn’t…know? People magazine reached out to us about the charity date auction after news got out that Landon was going to be in it! And you’re telling me he doesn’t know?!”

“Of course he does…now! But I agreed on his behalf and he’s not that happy with me, and now you let everyone know…” I sighed and dropped down into my father’s desk chair. I hadn’t even noticed that I had walked into his office. “He’s never liked the limelight, Janet. And now I’ve thrown him right back into it because I’m a selfish bitch and a terrible friend.”

“I’m sorry, Emmerson. Your family does so much for the hospital, and I let my excitement get the better of me. I’ll tell the reporter from People no comment, and we won’t bring it up again. If anyone asks, I’ll let PR know we don’t release the names of the volunteers ahead of the ball.”

I closed my eyes and let out a relieved breath, even though the cat was clearly already out of the bag. “Thank you so much, Janet. I appreciate you being sensitive about Landon’s privacy on this.”

“Of course. I guess a part of me went a little crazy, thinking this might be one of our biggest charity balls yet, and I let my judgment slip.”

I sighed as I mumbled, “You and me both.”

“Will you let Mr. Lewis know we’ll handle it all?”

I nodded even though she couldn’t see me. I suddenly felt so tired, and I had no idea why. This charity ball really was taking up way too much of my time, and although it was for a good cause, I was going to resign from the committee when this was all said and done. “Yes, and thank you, Janet.”

I hit End, dropped my head back against the chair, and closed my eyes. Why in the hell had I volunteered Landon? I never stopped for one second to think about the press that would be involved in this event. It was supposed to be a local event, though; I honestly never dreamed freaking People would be covering it.

“Everything okay?”

The sound of Landon’s voice stirred up butterflies deep in my belly.

I opened my eyes and met his gaze from across the room. It struck me how incredibly handsome Landon was. It wasn’t the first time I had noticed it, but for some reason right then, with the way he was looking at me, it felt different. My heart sped up a bit, and I slowly dropped my gaze, taking in every inch of him.

His dark hair was cut short, and he wore a baseball hat that was turned backward. My stomach did a weird dip, and I had the urge to cross the room and kiss him.

Landon’s blue eyes seemed to light up the room, and when he raised one brow at me, I felt a rush of warmth run the course of my entire body until it pooled in the depths of my womb.

Oh my goodness, I want this man like I want my next breath.

With a quick shake of my head, I tried to remember the last time I was with someone. Almost a year, and the guy I’d dated had ended up being a complete waste of my time.

No matter how hard I’d tried to feel something more for him, I couldn’t. And Jason had known it. Once Landon came back to town and we started spending more time together, Jason gave me a choice: him or Landon. I never even had to verbalize my pick. Jason saw it in my eyes and simply turned and walked away from me. Just like that, my relationship with him was over. I hadn’t even been upset about it.

“Everything is okay now, I think,” I said to Landon. “I’m really sorry they let it slip. I should warn you, People magazine reached out about you being one of the charity date volunteers. Janet promised me that she’s going to tell them no comment and that she won’t confirm if it’s true.”

Landon leaned against the doorframe and gave me a lazy smile, his two dimples coming out to show off. “I’m not afraid of a little press, you know, Emme.”

I returned his gesture with one of my own, although it felt forced. “I know that, but you left all of that for a different life, and I feel like I just threw you right back into it.”

He pushed off the door and walked farther into the room, stopping at the edge of the desk. “You know, if you had asked me to do it, I would have said yes.”

I looked up at him in shock. “You would have?”

Landon nodded. “Don’t you know by now, Emme, that there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you?”

I opened my mouth to reply but nothing came out. The earnest look in his eyes made my breath stall in my throat.

“You’re my best friend, after all, and I know if I needed your help with something, you wouldn’t think twice.”

“I wouldn’t,” I quickly said.

He jerked his head toward the door. “Come on, everyone’s starving. Let’s go eat.”

After Landon and I got back to the kitchen, we all helped get everything ready. Hailey and I set the table, Noah and Landon hauled food from the kitchen to the massive dining room, and my father placed the two bottles of wine Landon had brought in the middle of the table. They were cabernet sauvignon, and when my father first saw them, he’d slapped Landon on the back and smiled.

We all sat except for Landon. “I have to say that I was given a heads up on something this evening and knew we’d be celebrating, so I wanted to have a wine that made this dinner a bit more special.”

Everyone glanced around the table, but I noticed Hailey smiling a bit bigger.

“We have here the two thousand and two Screaming Eagle cabernet sauvignon.”

“Lord, son, you must have paid a small fortune for that wine,” Emmit said.

“I did, considering I bought an extra one for Hailey,” Landon replied. He looked at Hailey and winked as he opened the wine. He walked around the table and filled up each glass, saving Hailey’s for last.

Motioning to his sister, Landon said, “Hailey, I believe you have an announcement to make.”

All eyes went to Hailey, and I couldn’t help but notice how Addie covered her mouth with her hand, gasping when Hailey slipped something on her finger.

Was that an engagement ring?

“Since Mike had to leave town for a business meeting, I asked him if I could share the news tonight without him being here, and he said yes. Well, I guess I should say I said yes.”

She held out her hand and the entire table erupted into cheers.

“You’re getting married!” Addie and my mother both said at the same time, while Noah stood and walked over to give Hailey a kiss on the cheek. I stayed seated, patiently waiting to give Hailey my congratulations.

When it was my turn, I pulled her in for a hug. “You didn’t tell me!”

She laughed and drew back as I picked up her hand and looked at the massive teardrop diamond on her hand. Her boyfriend—no, fiancé now—worked for a large oil company and was moving to the Dallas area for work by the end of the year. It shouldn’t have come as a surprise that he’d asked Hailey to marry him. They’d both hated the idea of being apart and in a long-distance relationship.

“He just asked me last night before he left for Dallas. The only person I told was Landon.”

I gave her a pretend scowl and shook my head. “When did he push me out of the top spot for news like this?”

Landon laughed and kissed Hailey on the forehead. “I am her brother.”

Hailey beamed up at him. “Besides, we all know he would have gotten the cheapest wine he could find if I didn’t tell him I had news to share first.”

Everyone erupted into laughter as we all took our places at the table.

“Emme, you’re going to help me plan my wedding, right?” Hailey asked with a wiggle of her brows.

Smiling, I replied, “Of course! And I’ll even give you a BFF discount.”

“Oh, this is going to be so much fun, planning this wedding!” Addie said as my mother nodded in agreement.

“Should I pull out our wedding scrapbook?” I asked, and Hailey looked at me with a shocked expression.

“You still have it?”

I chuckled. “Of course I do! How do you think I became so interested in wedding planning?”

Conversation over dinner was mainly about Hailey and Mike and the upcoming wedding. When did they think they wanted to get married? Where did they want to do it? Who was going to be in it? From the sounds of it, Hailey and Mike wanted a big wedding, which wasn’t a surprise. Hailey was always a bit more over the top than I was. If it were me, I’d want a small, intimate wedding.

“You’ll be my maid of honor, right?” Hailey asked as she reached across the table and grabbed my hand.

Tears filled my eyes, and all I could do was nod. I was so overwhelmingly happy for Hailey. She was like a sister to me. Yet, at the same time, a sadness swept over me, and I couldn’t understand why.

I hated to admit that my heart sank when she mentioned getting married on the ranch. I had always sort of thought I would be the one who got married first. And that I’d get married here on the ranch. It wasn’t like I was jealous…or was I?

Reaching for my glass of wine, I took a long drink. For Pete’s sake, what was going on with me today? I was having strange feelings toward Landon, and I was jealous that one of my oldest and dearest friends had found happiness and was getting married. Why in the world was I feeling so out of sorts?

From the corner of my eye, I saw Landon glance at his phone. He smiled and typed a reply back. When he looked up and caught my gaze, I smiled. “Hot date later?”

He laughed. “Hardly. A few of the guys from the shop want to go out tonight.”

“You should go and have fun. Dad can give me a ride back home,” I said, regretting the words the moment they were out of my mouth.

What I really wanted to say was that he should come back to my place and hang out with me. That way, I wouldn’t have a self-imposed pity party because one of my best friends was getting married and, once again, I was a bridesmaid and not the bride.

Here I was, planning weddings for everyone else while still looking for that one person who made my heart sing with utter happiness. The one man who made my knees weak when he looked at me, or had my stomach fluttering with a simple brush of his fingers over my skin.

Suddenly, I remembered being in Landon’s arms earlier. The feel of his hands when he placed them on my hips before gently pushing me back.

Oh. My. God. My knees had gone weak. My stomach had dropped at his touch. And I had longed to feel his lips against mine…

Holy shit. Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit.

With a noncommittal shrug, Landon replied, “Maybe. It’s been a while.”

Before I could even stop myself, I blurted out, “Or we could do movie night up on my roof deck.”

It was like Landon didn’t even need to think twice about it. He quickly replied, “I’m down for that.”

And just like that, the melancholy slipped away as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by excited butterflies in my stomach.