Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
Lacey brushed the light blond hair from her son’s forehead. His eyes drooped, and he yawned. “One more.”
She laughed, shaking her head. “It’s getting late, kiddo. I don’t think you’ll even stay awake for one more story.”
“Please?” he murmured. His arms tightened around the large gorilla in his arms, and he buried his face in the soft fur. “Just one more story.”
Lacey pursed her lips together. The kid was her kryptonite. He was the sweetest, most well-behaved kid, and if she were honest with herself, she knew it had nothing to do with how she’d raised him.
Her parents had given him the start he’d needed. As much as she despised the fact that they wouldn’t give her a chance to raise her own son, she couldn’t deny that he’d turned out okay despite it all.
His eyes closed, and she let her fingers thread through his hair again, watching carefully until she knew he had fallen asleep.
He mumbled something unintelligible, and a smile broke across her face.
There was nothing more important to her than this little boy.
Every decision she’d made during the last several years was to get him back.
She’d die before she let someone take him from her again.
Emotion swelled within her breast, and she closed her eyes to fight the burning emotion that threatened to overwhelm her. She didn’t care what her sister said. Her life was perfect—fulfilled—just because she had him in her life.
The door to her bedroom creaked open, and she lifted her eyes to find her sister hovering in the crack of the open doorway. She pushed the door open just a little and wiggled a bottle of wine back and forth.
Lacey rolled her eyes. Angela knew she didn’t drink. She couldn’t afford not to be on her A game—not when it came to looking after Bridger.
Angela must have read that reaction correctly because she rolled her eyes, too. “It’s non-alcoholic,” she whispered.
Lacey grinned, one more look darting to her baby boy.
His chest rose and fell with even, rhythmic movements.
He was out. After the evening they’d had, she was surprised it had taken this long for him to fall asleep.
Carefully, she shifted until she could reach the edge of the bed she shared with him, and then she set her feet on the floor.
He was getting a little too old to be sharing a room with his mother, but what other choice did she have?
The one-bedroom apartment was all she could afford right now, and with the everchanging economy, it didn’t seem like she’d have any chance at upgrading.
Eventually, she’d probably take up residence on the couch—not only because he’d want his privacy, but she’d want to prevent him from any teenage shenanigans.
She’d been a teenager once. She knew all about sneaking out to spend time with people who didn’t deserve her attention.
Carefully, she shut the door behind her and beamed at her sister. Angela shoved the nonalcoholic wine at her then flipped her hair and spun around. “I’ve got the good stuff for me,” she called over her shoulder.
Lacey’s brows lifted, and she released a surprised laugh.
“What exactly happened between you and Mack?” She hated the way her stomach swirled with nervous energy.
It wasn’t fair. She had zero interest in dating the guy.
She’d insisted on as much every single time he’d attempted to ask her out.
So why was she worried that Angela might have torn down his defenses and gotten him to ask her out officially like she’d been hoping for?
Because you like him .
Her skin burned at the confession, even though it was all in her head. She did like him. Angela had been right. He was really good with Bridger. Everything he did around her son was endearing and only added to how attractive he had become to her. Lacey both despised it and adored it.
Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad if she had one glass of the ‘good stuff’.
Angela let out a harumph as she collapsed on the couch.
She shot Lacey an exasperated look before she leaned forward and grabbed another wine bottle—the one that would definitely give her the floaty feeling she was after.
She plucked a corkscrew from the coffee table and twisted it into place before prying the offensive obstruction out of the way.
Red liquid sloshed into the wine glass in Angela’s hand as she let out a sigh. “I tried to kiss him.” She squeezed her eyes shut and made a face.
Lacey gasped. “Is he a bad kisser or something?”
Angela’s eyes flew wide, and she let out an embarrassed laugh. “I wouldn’t know. He didn’t let me get that far.” She groaned, and her skin changed color—nearly matching the wine in her glass.
Relief flooded Lacey’s churning stomach. “What?” she whispered, moving closer and slowly dropping onto the couch beside her sister. “Really?” Her thoughts swirled. Why hadn’t Mack wanted to kiss her? That wasn’t normal, was it?
Her sister grimaced again. “It’s so stupid. I thought we were having a moment. He’d been so sweet to Bridger all day. He’s that kind of guy—you know, attentive and all that. And he’d agreed to hang out with us. I thought for sure he liked me.”
Lacey didn’t realize that her mouth was hanging open until her sister gave her a little shove.
“Stop looking at me like that. I had the biggest crush on him when we were kids. I thought that he might have felt the same. But I guess he’s just that good of a friend.” She groaned again before tossing her glass back and taking a large swallow of wine.
Mack hadn’t kissed Angela. Even with her practically throwing herself at the guy. She’d grown up seeing the way Angela could bend guys to her whim. The fact that Mack hadn’t allowed her to get to him had Lacey spiraling.
Maybe it was the fact that Mack had been so freaking good with Bridger, but seeing him with her son today made her wonder if she could let the two of them get close.
He would definitely be the first guy who had managed to make her believe it.
Mack had successfully convinced her that he was good enough.
Dang it!
What was she thinking?
She couldn’t allow herself to get closer to Mack. First, she wasn’t going to risk Bridger’s well-being just because she was starting to like the guy. The clink of glass against glass drew her from her thoughts, and she focused on her sister once more. The second reason was seated beside her.
There was a sister code between the two of them.
Despite all the issues that had occurred with Lacey’s teen pregnancy, Angela had always come to her defense even though their relationship had been strained at times.
She wasn’t about to mess things up with the only family that she felt was still in her corner.
Angela groaned again and placed a hand over her face. “It’s so embarrassing. I can’t believe that I did that.”
“I’m sure it’s not that bad,” Lacey insisted. “Did he say anything to make you feel uncomfortable?”
“No! And that’s the worst part,” Angela muttered, though this time she gave a weak smile. “He was so sweet about it. He told me that I was a sweet girl.” She made a face and took another sip of her wine. “But he said he didn’t want to lead me on… and he was interested in someone else.”
Lacey’s heart stopped. It was as if someone had stopped time.
She couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t move.
If she’d been holding her own drink, she might have even dropped it.
Mack couldn’t have been referring to her.
There was no way he would admit to something like that.
“Did he…” She finally took a deep inhale. “Did he tell you who?”
Angela shrugged. “No. He just said he’s trying to get her to see him for who he was or some nonsense. Seriously, whoever that girl is, she better smarten up because Mack is like one in a million.”
He was. And Lacey was quickly beginning to see that.
Her sister waved a hand through the air with a dismissive flair. “Anyway, I told him he should just tell her straight up how he feels. Girls like that stuff.”
“Yeah,” Lacey mumbled.
They sat in silence for a long while. Lacey didn’t know what Angela was thinking about, but the thoughts in her head had gone all haywire. She couldn’t stop thinking about how Mack hadn’t stopped hounding her for a date—how he’d wanted her to give him a chance.
Then tonight, he’d shown her just how good he could be with Bridger. But to top it all off, he’d refused Angela’s advances.
It would be so easy just to allow herself to give in to the guy. If Angela wasn’t staying on her couch for the next couple of weeks, perhaps she would.
No.
Lacey gave a short shake to her head.
She wasn’t going to let that happen. While she was secretly thrilled that Mack didn’t want to give up on her, she knew better than to believe that she’d get a happily ever after. She wasn’t some princess. She had responsibilities and a future with her son to figure out.
No distractions.
And Mack was nothing if not a big distraction.
Angela sighed once more and curled up into a ball on the corner of the couch. “I know I’m not going to be here long, but you know how much I hate not having someone to hang out with. And you’re either working or taking care of Bridger.”
At Lacey’s flat look, Angela laughed and held up a placating palm.
“I didn’t mean it in a bad way. I simply think that since you have so many responsibilities, it might be nice if I can find someone to have fun with when you’re otherwise engaged. Mack is out of the question…” She tapped her chin thoughtfully. “I think he might have a younger brother.”
Lacey laughed, throwing a pillow at her sister.
Angela let out a squeal, shifting so she shielded her nearly empty glass from the onslaught. “Hey! Careful! This stuff costs too much to be a stain on your couch.”
“The couch is a faux leather. I doubt it’s going to do much damage that hasn’t already occurred since Bridger moved in,” Lacey laughed.
“And I doubt it would look that great if you go chasing after the brother of the guy you almost kissed. Maybe set your sights on someone else. I’m sure there are plenty of guys at the rodeo who want to have a pretty girl draped on their arm. ”
Angela grinned almost wickedly. “You’re totally right. I should go back tomorrow night and see if I can put my hooks into someone who wants to have a short fling before I have to head back to Billings in a few weeks.”
“That’s the spirit.”
Her sister motioned to the bottle Lacey had left on the coffee table. “Not interested?”
Lacey followed her motion and shrugged. “It’s not like it’s going to do the same thing that yours does for you.
I’m perfectly happy to live vicariously through you, though.
” She bit on her lower lip, fighting the urge to revel in the fact that Mack had openly admitted to someone else that he wanted to date her—well, sort of.
Angela sat up and placed her now empty glass on the table. “You know what we need to do? We need to find a couple of guys to go out with on a double date.”
Lacey fought her own urge to groan. “I’m not going?—”
She waved a hand through the air. “I’m well aware of your rules for dating people. One date rule, right? We’ll find some guys who aren’t local. You can get a sitter, and we can have some fun. Just two sisters going out with some hot cowboys.” She raised her brows flirtatiously. “What do you say?”
Taking a moment to pretend to consider her sister’s proposition, Lacey tilted her head just to make it look good. Then she shook it. “Pass.”
“Why not? You can’t tell me you have an eye on someone else—not with that ridiculous rule of yours. And you need to take care of yourself if you want to take care of Bridger the right way. What’s the harm?”
There wasn’t any harm. They both knew it. But there was something holding her back. Much like Mack had brushed off any other advances, Lacey felt herself doing the same. Something told her that no one would compare to the man who had stealthily stolen not only her heart, but the heart of her son.
She shrugged. “I just don’t have the mental bandwidth for that sort of thing. But you go ahead and have some fun. Then you can tell me all about it.”
Angela pouted then nodded. “Fine. But if I find someone who has a friend, I’m not making any promises about keeping you out of it.”
Lacey laughed. “Fine. Whatever.” Her sister wouldn’t do any such thing. Lacey knew Angela better than that. She reached for the remote. “Until then, let’s catch up on some TV. What do you want to watch? I hear there’s a fun new comedy on Netflix.”
Angela poured herself another small serving and nodded. “Sounds perfect.”