Читать книгу Dreaming of Tomorrow - Susan Kohler - Страница 12

Chapter Five

Emily finally dragged herself home around 6:30 that evening. She was exhausted but she walked through the house to see what was happening. She found her father taking a nap on the sofa and she was careful not to wake him. Laura was in the den. After taking a deep look into Emily’s eyes, Laura scouted out her husband. She found Jack in the kitchen with Emily’s mom. They were cooking together and Laura grinned as she made a mental note to call for a pizza. She knew her husband couldn’t cook worth a darn. She told him to watch both of Emily’s parents before the two women went upstairs. Emily had to shower off all traces of horse before the smell made her dad’s allergies act up.

“How was the horse show?” Laura asked, cautiously seeing the trace of familiar sadness in her friend’s eyes. She also saw something else, something she couldn’t quite identify.

“You lied to me, you rat,” Emily told her with a wry grin. “I wouldn’t get near the horses, huh? Well, I had to get right next to the horses. They put me on the gate in the gymkhana arena.”

“Good grief! Didn’t Kate tell them you were not a horse person?” Laura sat on Emily’s bed.

“Kate and Bob weren’t there, I think the kids were sick.” Emily dug into her closet for something to put on after her shower.

Laura quickly called her friend. She talked to Kate for a moment and hung up her cell phone. “Her twins had the flu. She said she asked her friend Frank and Lanie to look out for you.”

“I never saw Frank or Lanie.” Emily sat by Laura.

“Probably because their daughter rides Western Equitation and you were up in the Gymkhana arena.” She turned to Emily and asked, “So how did you handle working so close to the horses?” She seemed a little disappointed with Emily. “And why didn’t you put up a fight?”

“The lady who sent me out there was more frightening than the horses,” Emily admitted. “I was really scared at first, but finally I got some help when a horse pinned me against the fence and one of the riders came over and helped me. He explained the events, told me stories about various riders, and fed me lunch. He was very considerate.”

She hesitated, looked, at Laura then continued, “He even asked me out to dinner tonight.”

“A rider?” Laura was interested. “Who was it?”

“His name was David,” Emily told her.

“David? A gorgeous hunk with wavy black hair and brilliant blue eyes? Rides a huge black horse named Target?” Laura was amazed because this was the best news she’d heard in a long time.

“That’s him,” Emily admitted.

“David Silvan asked you out to dinner? That’s fantastic!” Laura absent mindedly rubbed her bulging belly. “He’s one of the nicest guys I know, successful, and . . . Wow! He’s such a hunk!”

“Aw come on, Laura. You know he’s just being nice. How could a handsome guy like that really be interested in me?” Emily protested. “I mean, look at me.”

“Cut it out! Sometimes I get so sick and tired of the way you put yourself down I could just . . . Look, David is really a nice guy, but he’s not known for dating women out of pity. He must be interested in you.” Laura grinned. “Just go take your shower, fix yourself up, and go. At the worst, you’ll have a good dinner and maybe even some fun.”

“I have responsibilities here,” Emily said softly. “I can’t expect you to stay any longer.”

“Oh yes, you can.” Laura laughed. “To give you a chance to go out with David I’d gladly stay for a week.”

“And would Jack agree with that?” Emily laughed as she realized that Laura’s husband Jack would walk through fire if Laura suggested it. “Okay, don’t even bother to answer that. Hey! I just realized I haven’t seen my mom yet. Do you know where she is? Mom?”

“She’s cooking in the kitchen with Jack, don’t worry,” Laura said as she noted the alarm in Emily’s eyes. “I’ll wind up ordering a pizza since neither one of them can cook worth beans. Your mom’s flirting with him. It’s kind of cute, she thinks she’s twenty-five and she’s after my man. Jack’s having fun with her. He loves it. He’s such a sucker for female attention.”