Free Believe Me (Hearts for Ransom Book 3) by Georgia A Evans Page B

only thing she could imagine Emily wanted to talk to her about.
    “Please.” Emily blinked rapidly several times. “I made a huge mistake, and if I don’t make this right, I won’t be able to live with myself.”
    Claire stood, silently waiting for her to continue. Emily Taylor was one persistent woman, she’d give her that.
    “After I saw Mason with that woman, I was furious. I was still angry when Logan got home from work. He asked me what was wrong, and I told him everything.”
    “I’m sorry,” Claire said, “but other than hoping he will keep my daughter’s parentage to himself, I don’t see what this has to do with me.”
    “Logan picked him up at Trimble’s on the night they had to have been talking about. He found him sitting at a table pouring his drunken heart out to an off-duty waitress, who was thoughtful enough to sit and listen until Logan got there to pick Mason up.” There was an earnest expression on Emily’s face.
    It still didn’t change anything from Claire’s perspective. “I still don’t understand what this has to do with me.”
    “Please.” Emily looked like she was about to cry. “I feel terrible. Jan Daniels and I both have strong reason to dislike Trimble’s, and I’m sorry, but women there have bad reputations. The one with Mason that night didn’t do anything wrong, as far as I know. In fact, it seems like she must be a very caring person. She made sure Mason didn’t try to drive himself home when I’m sure she had somewhere else she’d rather have been. Then she visited him at the hospital.”
    “That’s all well and good, but—”
    “I think you and I were both too quick to judge that woman just because of how she looks and where Logan met her.”
    “She works at Trimble’s.” Claire kept her voice level. “You, yourself just said what women there are like.”
    “But, Claire.” Emily’s lovely eyes glistened. “Neither one of us knows why she works at Trimble’s, or what kind of woman she really is.”
    “Emily,” Claire said firmly. “They were talking about Mason showing her a good time.”
    Emily shook her head. “Logan said, as drunk as Mason was, the only good time he would have been able to show anybody that night was the time it took for Logan to pick Mason up and haul him out of there.”
    Claire still wasn’t altogether convinced of Mason’s innocence. “I just don’t know.”
    “Well, I do,” Emily declared. “I’m going to go see Mason at the hospital right after this party and tell him I’m sorry. It’s Thanksgiving, and as far as I know, he’s alone, eating hospital food.”
    “Excuse me, Claire,” Stan said from directly behind her. “We’re sorry, but it’s time for you to check your tables.”
    “I have to go,” she told Emily, relieved this discussion was over.
    “Promise to at least think about my explanation; it’s the truth,” Emily asked. “Give Mason another chance to see Zoey.”
    Claire didn’t know if she was telling the truth or not when she answered “I’ll think about it” before she walked back to the door.

 
     
    The turkey wasn’t half bad, and at least they’d given Mason enough food to satisfy his appetite. He still felt uncomfortable when the nurse cut his food for him, but he just couldn’t quite manage that for himself with only one functional arm. At least she hadn’t tied a little bib around his neck and patted him on the head like he’d seen parents do to their children in restaurants.
    “Knock, knock.” A hand on the end of a long arm stuck through a crack in Mason’s door, a store-bought pie balanced in it. Jesse Rogers’ usual grin was in place as he opened the door the rest of the way and walked into the room.
    “Happy Thanksgiving.” His big, friendly grin accompanied the greeting.
    “You, too,” Mason returned. “What are you doing here, Jesse? Shouldn’t you be at home with your family in Illinois?”
    Jesse set the pie on the windowsill and shrugged his coat off