Chapter 82

It had a few weeks since Emma and father had moved to Lyncrest, and she started her new job at Spencer’s firm. She fell into an easy routine of walking home during lunch to check on her father and take a walk with him. His speech had greatly improved, and Emma was excited about how much better he seemed. There was still a long way to go, but recovery was in sight. However, Spencer and Emmett were concerned as her morning sickness was getting worse. She was pushing herself to do too much and soon, she wouldn’t be able to take care of herself and her father.
“You don’t need to come… every day, you know,” Emmett commented during one of their afternoon walks. He held onto his walker as they meandered around the park.
“I want to,” she smiled up at him.
“I love that you do… but you need to think about… yourself. And the baby.”
“We’re fine.”
Emmett frowned. He was beginning to feel like a burden to his daughter. All she did was work and care for him. She was young, and beautiful. He wanted to her experience life and have fun. Carefully, of course. He didn’t want anything happening to his grandbaby.
After their walk, Emma settled her father back into the apartment and went back to work. She loved her team and the project they were working on. Spencer had assigned them work on a new concert venue that wanted to open by the end of the year. It was fun and exciting and challenged Emma in all the right ways. It was smaller, but Spencer promised that bigger projects would come. He wanted to ease her into the process first.
“Good job today, everyone,” Spencer called at the end of the day. He said goodbye to everyone as they left but asked Emma to wait for a moment.
“Let me drive you home,” he offered.
“Thank you, but it’s okay. I can walk.”
“You’ve already taken that walk three times today. Let me drive you. Please?”
“Okay,” Emma acquiesced. She smiled at Spencer’s kindness. The drive was just about five minutes. He walked her to her apartment.
“Daddy?” she called as she opened the door. “Are you up?”
“Right here, sweetie.” He was sitting on their small sofa in the living room. He saw Spencer behind her. “Hello, Spencer. Please come in.” They exchanged a knowing look. Emma caught that.
“What’s going on?”
“Sit down, Emmie,” her father said. Emma sat down next to her father
“We want to talk to you about, well you. You’ve not been taking the best care of yourself,” Spencer said as he pulled up a chair and sat across from them.
Emma looked down, her face red with embarrassment.
“I… I’m fine.
“You worry about me… too much,” Emmett added.
“I have to. You need to be cared for.”
“About that. Mr. Wells and I have been talking. He thinks that it would be best for the both of you if he moved into an assisted living facility.”
“What?” Emma was outraged. They had planned this behind her back. “Am I not taking proper care of you?”
“That’s not it,” he answered.
“We’re thinking of you, and the baby. It’s been close to a month since you found out that you’re pregnant. You haven’t changed anything for it. You haven’t scheduled a doctor’s appointment. It almost seems like you’re ignoring it.”
“I…”
“Don’t say you’re fine. You’re… not fine,” Emmett said. His voice was firm and filled with concern.
“It’s just that…” Emma didn’t have a reason. Everything they said made sense. She’d been feeling run down and worn out but didn’t want anyone to worry about her. She thought she had been doing a god job of hiding her fatigue. Apparently not.
“Mr. Wells asked me to look for a place. It’s called The Ivy Gardens,” he handed her a brochure. She flipped through it. “It’s not far. About a half hour drive.”
The facility looked gorgeous on paper. It was nestled in the countryside among rolling hills and pristine lakes. Gorgeous walking trails and generously appointed rooms were plastered all over the pamphlet.
“This looks expensive.”
“No, it shouldn’t be. I designed and built the facility. So, everyone from the company receives deeply discounted rates.”
“Is this what you want?” Emma asked her father.
“Yes.”
Emma looked between the two of them. She did not like the idea of sending her father away to a facility. It felt like she was getting rid of him. But this is what he wanted for his recovery, and it was his way of trying to take care of her. He grabbed her hand, giving her a reassuring squeeze.
“Okay, Daddy,” she gave him a sad smile. “So, what now? Do I call and talk to them?”
“I… already called. They said… I could move in this weekend.”
Emma was stunned. She was upset that her father would do this behind her back. And that Spencer helped. But it showed that he was doing well. He was truly striving for recovery. Emma had made moves to begin her new life. It would be selfish of her to not let her father do the same.
That weekend, Spencer arrived in the morning to drive Emma and her father over to The Ivy Gardens. Emma ensured to pack up all of his things. She included some of her mother’s things as well so he would have a piece of her.
The trip was scenic. Beautiful, lush green hills, sparkling lakes, and florid fields peppered the landscape. And sheltered under a majestic canopy of trees was her father’s new home. Spencer allowed Emma and her father to go in on their own. This was a moment for them, and he didn’t want to intrude. Emmett held onto his daughter as they walked in.
“Good morning,” a nursing assistant greeted them. “You must be Mr. Wells. Welcome to The Ivy Gardens. My name is Katrina. I’ll be your main caretaker.”
“Hello, Katrina,” Emmett greeted.
“Hello. I’m Emma. Thank you for caring for my father.”
“It is my absolute pleasure. Please allow me to show you around our facility.”
Katrina walked them around, showing them everything. As the tour progressed, Emma felt her nerves dissipate. Her father loved it, and it calmed her. The walking trails seemed to excite him the most. They also provided activities and excursion for their residents.
“Our cooking classes, crafting courses and bird watching club are the most popular. We also offer photography, gardening and we partner with a local animal shelter. We try to keep our residents as active as possible. Along with medical treatment, we know that mental and emotional enrichment is important to be our residents healthy.”
“I do love it,” Emma said.
“Me too.” Emmett beamed.
“Let me show you to your room,” Katrina guided them towards the residential area of the facility. Emmett’s room was large, bright, open, and it had an amazing view of the walking trails. “I’ll leave you to unpack and get settled.”
“You don’t need… to worry about me.”
“This place does look amazing. But it feels like I’m abandoning you. Like I’m giving up on you. Like you think that I think you’re a burden,” Emma began to get emotional. “You know I don’t that, right?”
Emmett hugged his daughter tight.
“I know. I’m doing this for… both of us. Right now, baby is most important,” he took a deep breath so he could keep going. “I want to be… the best father… and grandfather.”
“You already are.”
“Spencer is a good man,” he continued. “And he likes you… a lot.”
Emma felt her face grow red. Her father’s words seemed to shed light in the shady corners in her mind. Spencer was everywhere, at every turn offering her help and guidance. Whenever it seemed that she would sink, he appeared with a lifeline. It never occurred to her that he would have romantic feelings for her.
What was surprising was that she had feelings for him too. She felt admiration, and respect. He was an amazing leader, successful entrepreneur, talented designer, and wonderful mentor. He was a great friend, but she couldn’t see him as a lover.
“Daddy, I… He’s a good friend. But I don’t think he and I will be together that way.”
“Emma…”
“I’ll be back next weekend, and I’ll spend here with you. I love you.”
“Love you, too,” he said, understanding he had flustered her.
She couldn’t stop thinking about what her father said. If Spencer wanted more from her, it was worrying. There may come a time in which he could get tired of waiting for her. She feared she might hurt his feelings or lose him all together. But there was no way she could accept those feelings from him. Or anyone. There was still a large Will-shaped hole in her heart. And she wasn’t ready for that to be filled yet. That didn’t mean that she would let Will back into her life. But her focus had to be on her baby, her father, and her career. Romance was not her priority.