A Family to Be (Saddle Falls) by Sharon De Vita Page B

continuing her clean up.
    She felt a hand on her back and turned to see Ernie standing over her. A large broom and dustpan had replaced his mop and pail. With a grateful smile, Em wiped her hands on her apron and took Ernie’s outstretched hand, standing up.
    “Thanks, Ernie,” she said softly, giving him a grateful pat on the shoulder. She turned to Josh. It was time to put a stop to this nonsense right now. “Can we talk for a minute?”
    Em wiped her hands on her apron again, wishing she could push on her back to work out a kink, but knowing if she did, Josh would probably be on the phone to the hospital.
    “Sure.” Josh grabbed her hand. “Let’s go outside.” He frowned suddenly. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were blazing. “You can take a break can’t you?”
    “Since I’m the boss, I imagine I can.” Still, she cast an eye out for Agnes, and saw the older woman nod her head in approval as she refilled a customer’s coffee cup. With her hand still in Josh’s, Em’s chin lifted in determination as she let him lead her out the front door into the warm noonday sun, determined once and for all to set Joshua Ryan straight!

Chapter Four
     
    E m gave a quick glance up and down Main Street to make sure that she and Josh weren’t about to be seen or heard. She wasn’t up to dealing with any further gossip about them on top of everything else.
    Her feet were hurting and her back ached, but she’d die before she admitted any such thing to him. With a soft sigh, Em carefully leaned against the building, hoping to take some weight off her feet, nearly sagging in relief as her body aches immediately eased a bit.
    After a full week of working, she was tired and sore, but she felt absolutely wonderful knowing she was accomplishing her objective. She was making her own way, securing a future for herself and her baby, without anyone’s help. She was certain in the days and weeks and months ahead, things would only get better.
    “How are you doing?” Josh finally asked, studying her face carefully.
    “Fine, Josh, just fine.” Her words were clipped as she worked to get her temper under control.
    Cocking his head, he watched her. A slow grin tilted his lips and he lifted a finger to rub his brow. “Ah, why do I have the feeling you’re not exactly happy with me?”
    “Josh, you had no right to talk to Ernie,” she burst out. “No right at all. Nor should you have sent Jake in to try to ‘talk some sense’ into me,” she stated, repeating his own words to him and watching him flush a bit. Fists clenched, Em gave up trying to control her temper. “Look, I know you’re just trying to help, but you have to understand, I don’t need your help. What you did undermined my authority and made me look foolish. You also embarrassed me, Josh, and made it look like I’m not mature enough or sensible enough to take care of myself or my child.”
    That was the crux of it, she decided, the real point that had upset her so. The realization hadn’t hit her until now, and now it had hot tears filling her eyes.
    “Em, I’m sorry.” Alarmed by her tears, Josh took a step closer. “I never meant to… I didn’t intend to… I just thought—”
    “Josh.” She laid a hand on his arm, intent on getting him to listen to her once and for all, to understand why she was doing what she was doing. “Listen to me. I didn’t come home merely to aggravate you—”
    “I know that, Em—” She held up her hand, unwilling to let this go.
    “Please, let me finish. If I thought for a minute that I was doing something that would hurt me or the baby, I simply wouldn’t do it. Honest,” she added. “I know that in the past I might have made some poor choices, and maybe my judgment wasn’t right on target, and yes I know you frequently had to come to my rescue, bail me out of situations or protect me from something—even if it was myself—but that was then, this is now. I’m not the same person. I’ve changed,