Page 67 of Her Righteous Protector

“Okay, but hurry, Dad.”

Then he turned to Hannah and practically dragged her out of the room as she laughed all the way down the hall. Zephyr was talking a mile a minute.

“God, Zed, I never understood it before,” Max said, his voice filled with awe as he looked at his long-time friend.

“Having a family, or when he calls you Dad?”

“Both,” Max breathed out. “It cracks my heart wide open.”

“Me too. Welcome to the club.”

21

“Clara’s Galaxy,” Zephyr begged.

Thank God she’d remembered to pack that in the luggage that she’d taken on the plane. She opened the book so she could start ‘reading’ it to Zephyr.

“This bed is not great for storytime,” Max grumbled again. He’d brought in two of the dining room chairs so that he and Hannah could read to Zephyr because the racecar bed had plastic sides that didn’t allow for them to sit on it with him.

Hannah shook her head at him in exasperation.

“You love your bed, don’t you Zeph?” she asked the boy.

“It’s awesome!”

Hannah looked down at the book and started to make up the story. Max knew that Dickerson’s next installment would be out soon, and Zephyr would be wanting that book instead. He wondered what kind of story Hannah would make up for that book.

He waited impatiently for Zephyr to fall asleep. You would have thought with all of the excitement of the day that he’d be out like a light, but nope, Hannah had to read the whole damn thing before he started his little boy snores.

By the time they closed his door and put on the baby monitor, Hannah was giving Max the side-eye.

“What?” she finally asked as they made it into his bedroom.

“What do you mean what? You were the one who needed all the alone time with your mom today. You scared the living shit out of me. For a moment there I thought you were going to bail on me.”

Hannah gaped at him. “You’re not serious,” she exclaimed as she grabbed him around the waist. “Max, I adore you.” She shoved his T-shirt up and he stayed her hands, then cupped her cheeks.

“Hannah, you haven’t been talking for three days. I tried to get you to open up. Then I found the negative pregnancy test. Why didn’t you tell me you were worried about that? You should know you can talk to me about anything. I would love it if we had a child together. I want us to last forever, I told you that.”

Her beautiful green eyes filled with tears.

“I’d been feeling like I didn’t measure up,” she whispered hoarsely.

Max shook his head. “I don’t understand.”

Hannah blew out a big breath and stared up at him. He felt himself relax because he could see…he saw the love shining out her eyes.

Thank fuck!

“Part of me felt guilty, and that’s what the tears have been about, because I was getting my every dream come true—because of Meghan. But then part of me feels like she gave you to me. You know? It’s like she threw you away, but then wrapped you up in a bow and gave you to me. At least that was what I finally decided on the plane. But before that, I’m telling you, I was a mess,” she sighed. “Mom made me figure out a lot of it.”

Max smiled gently. He loved Meghan’s mom. “What did she make you figure out?”

“That I deserved you. That I deserve happiness, and to be the hero of my own story.”

“She’s right,” he whispered.

He whisked her T-shirt over her head. “What else do you deserve?” he asked as he looked into her eyes, and his fingers unclipped her bra.