Page 89 of Mack

T.J.’s voice drifted down the hall. “Mack? Are you here?”

They both looked toward the doorway.

“Yeah, buddy,” Mack called. “Come on out.”

The thunder of small feet, and then T.J. appeared in the kitchen doorway in his pajamas, Rex under one arm and Blue under the other, hair flattened on one side.

He looked at Mack, then at Mallory, then back at Mack.

“Is the bad man gone?”

“He’s gone,” Mack said. “He’s not coming back.”

T.J. nodded, satisfied, and climbed up onto his chair. “Can I have Cocoa Puffs?”

Mallory let out a breath that was almost a laugh. She looked at Mack and found him watching her with that steady gray gaze, still waiting for his answer.

“Yes,” she said quietly. Not to T.J.

To Mack.

He held her gaze for a moment, then reached past her for the cereal box.

“Cocoa Puffs it is,” he said.

“You have Cocoa Puffs?” Mallory asked.

“Picked them up on the way home last night.” He nodded toward T.J. “Figured he’d want them.”

She looked at him for a moment, then set her cup down. “I didn’t tell you about his record because I only just found out myself. When he showed up, I asked him why he’d waited almost four years. He gave me some line about being busy and I looked him up after he left.” She shook her head. “It was right after I left him. He got drunk and drove and killed someone.”

“Please tell me you’re not blaming yourself for that.”

“No.” She said it firmly. “That’s on him. That has nothing to do with me, but he did blame me for it. Said it never would have happened if I hadn’t left him.”

“That’s pure bullshit and you know it,” he said in a low voice.

He glanced over at T.J., who was deep in conversation with Rex and Blue about something urgent, then looked back at her.

“I love you,” he said. “But if we’re going to do this, no more secrets. Not from me. Not from you. Whatever it is, you tell me. That’s all I’m asking.”

She stared at him.

She’d heard everything after those three words and none of it had landed yet.

“You love me?”

“With everything I have.” He said it quietly and without fanfare, like it was simply true and had been for a while. “And I love that boy over there talking to his dinosaurs. I want both of you in my life.” He sighed. “If you’re not ready for that, I’ll wait. But I needed you to know.”

“I love you too, Mack.” She held his gaze. “So much it scares me.”

“You have nothing to be scared of. I will never hurt you. Either of you.”

“I know that. That’s not what I mean.” She shook her head. “I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you. That’s what scares me. I don’t want to lose you. I can’t lose you.” She glanced at T.J., still chattering away at the table. “He’s been miserable without you. Every single day he asked for you.”

“I’ve been miserable without both of you.” He reached for her hand. “I want you to move in with me. If you think it’s too soon, or you’re worried about T.J., it’s alright. But I’m asking.”

She looked around the kitchen. The farmhouse that had been waiting for someone to fill it. The window seat. The barn out back with six horses and a little boy who already knew all their names.