the morning, leaving a scribbled note and a half-full pot of hot coffee, but he was just awake enough to catch up with her at the door and hug her goodbye.
"Don't let the bastard grind you down," he said, stifling a yawn. "You're worth ten of him, any day."
She was deep into the previous week's accounts when Natalie walked into the back office — the store was still closed — bursting with curiosity, but it took only a glance from Emmy to quell her enthusiasm.
"Not good?" she asked, and Emmy shook her head.
"It was good, and then it all turned to shit. I don't really have the stomach to go over it right now though, Nat, please. Later, maybe?"
"Ouch — I thought Venice was impossible to fuck up..."
"Venice was great. Coming home, not so much. But I'm glad to see the business has been doing well in my absence."
"Em, as long as your...as Oswell keeps his nose out of our business, we're on a roll. Best ever sales this Thanksgiving — we destroyed last year's numbers. To be honest, actually, the eviction threat probably boosted our profits, so I suppose technically we owe him but..."
"Talk me through these figures, please, and let's leave that asshole out of it," Emmy cut in.
The rest of the morning was spent dealing with accounts and keeping track of the higher-than-usual volume of stock that moved through the store ahead of Christmas. Emmy deflected every attempt at discussing Eric — Nat gave up after a couple of openings, Gina called and got short shrift — and she would've kept quiet about Jake, except that he turned up at the store at the end of the day.
Nat was the first one to notice him as he strode in and Emmy caught her reaction even before she realized who had caused it: Nat's eyes roaming up Jake's long legs, clad in faded denim, the lingering glances at the camouflage parka — probably USMC standard issue — zipped up against the biting wind, and the double take when she got to his face. Jake, it had to be said, looked especially good as he ducked in from the rain, his short blonde hair plastered to his skull, his whole face glowing from the challenge of the elements, which made his blue eyes sparkle even more than usual.
He obviously recognized Natalie because he was flashing her a Hunter special smile, all teeth and goddamn dimples, and Emmy felt she had to intervene before her partner turned into a puddle.
"Hey Jake," she called out, "come to check up on me?"
"I figured it wouldn't hurt. Besides, knowing you, you've been working all day and probably haven't eaten, so I was coming to fix that."
Emmy raised an eyebrow and tried not to look at Nat, who was silently broadcasting outrage at not having been informed that Jake was around.
"Did you bring food?"
"Nope — I'm taking you out to eat. You've been here, what, twelve hours? That probably goes for you too," he added, turning to Nat. "Come and have a burger with us, I know this great joint."
Which was how the three of them ended up twenty minutes later in an Irish bar downtown run by another ex-military buddy of Jake's which served excellent burgers with greasy fries, and some pretty decent beer. The owner, a smooth-talking guy from Bay Ridge named Mickey, slid into their booth for a quick one and flirted outrageously with Nat, until she caved and gave him her number, while Jake and Emmy looked on amused.
When Mickey left to deal with other patrons, the tables turned on Emmy, and she found herself the focus of her friends' attention as they waited for the burgers to appear. Nat was — understandably — desperate for information, Jake more laid back, but neither of them appeared willing to let go until she spilled some serious beans.
"What exactly happened when you got back?" Nat asked, her eyes brimming with concern.
Much as Emmy was tempted to brush her off, it was unlikely to work this time. Plus Jake was watching the two of them like a hawk, and while she knew he wouldn't say anything if she didn't, because he was that kind of loyal, Natalie was one of her best friends.
“Honestly? I don’t know exactly. We had a great time in Venice — and the bastard kept the destination secret until we were landing, it was a total surprise, but..." Emmy paused at the memory of that first sight of the