35. Chapter Thirty-Four
Mac had decided for lunch that he was taking them out to eat. Janie didnt know where but he said that she would love it. Hopefully it was someplace friendly towards kids. Janie was worried that people wouldnt like Eleanor being with them. Normally she didnt mind but she wanted to be conscious of other people.
“I thought since you liked this place before that we could come again,” Mac said as he pulled into the parking lot.
She looked up and saw the place that he had taken her when her car broke down. She did love the food here, it was amazing. And theres definitely things that Eleanor could eat.
“Thank you,” she gently said.
She waited for him to come around and help her out of the car before she got Eleanor out. Much to her dismay, they had fallen into a pattern. He would normally help her out and then either one of them would get Eleanor. It was almost unspoken because they had done it so many times. Things were definitely going to be hard when things ended between both of them.
“Lets go grab a table in the back like last time,” Mac said. She nodded her head and made her way towards the exact table they set up before. What were the odds that the table would be empty?
Janie placed Eleanor down before she sat down right next to her. She was hoping to put distance between Mac and herself so she didnt have to sit right next to him. Ever since the guys had left the office, Mac had kept a watchful eye on her. Whenever her phone went off, he would look at her and she would fidget. Not all of the texts were from her ex-husband, but the majority of them were.
Mac sighed and sat down in front of her. He was facing towards the door while she had her back towards it. It wasnt her favorite spot but she knew that Mac would want it.
“Stop putting distance between us,” Mac said. “I don’t like it.”
Janie didnt say anything as she looked at him. What would she say to that? He had caught her red handed trying to put distance between them.
“Im not putting distance between us,” she lied. Maybe if she said that, he would believe it. She highly doubted it but it was worth a try.
“Yes, you are. Its easy to tell when youre trying to put distance between us. Give us a try before you say no. It may be the best thing that has ever happened to you,” he said.
The waitress from the night they were there came over and gave him a smile. Mac ordered for all three of them and she left.
Janie looked at Mac as he interacted with her daughter. He had handed her crayons and a piece of paper. Something she wanted to do right now.
“You can color as well if you want. I brought some crayons and paper for you as well,” Mac said. “Just let me know if you want to.”
She blushed and looked down at her lap. He had brought her crayons and paper as well? He wouldnt think that it was weird for her to color in public? Where everybody could see her.
“I dont care what everybody else thinks. If you want to color, you can and Ill support you.”
She nodded her head and he brought some paper and crayons out, placing them in front of her. She started to color as they waited for their food.
“Your family is just the cutest,” someone said.
Janie looked up to see an elderly couple looking at them. Did they really think that they were a family? She opened her mouth, ready to tell them that they werent a family but Mac beat her to it.
“Thank you so much,” he said. “Ive always wanted a family and I finally do.”
“So sweet. You guys take care,” The lady said.
The couple walked off and Janie looked back at Mac. Why would he do that? Why didnt he tell them the truth? They werent a couple, let alone a family.
“Why did you do that?” Janie asked.
Mac had started to color a little section of her paper. She waited for him to respond, but he didnt.
“Are you going to answer my question?” She softly asked.
He looked up from what he was doing and gave her a small smile. “Because I consider you two my family. You two have become so much to me and I would hate to lose you guys.”
Her mouth hung open and she tried to process his words. The waitress came by and dropped off their food, but she didnt pay any attention. Mac had thought about Eleanor and her being his family?
“Its okay. Thats just how I feel,” he said. “Lets eat before the food gets cold.”
Janie slowly started to eat her food and helped Eleanor eat hers. Her stomach was all in knots. From her lying and feeling guilty to being anxious about what Mac had just said. How was she supposed to respond to that?
She didnt get far into eating before her stomach started to protest. She wasnt going to be able to eat anymore with everything going on. Janie started to focus on feeding Eleanor, not that she needed much help, but she was trying to keep her mind off of everything.
“Please eat,” Mac said.
“Im not really hungry,” she replied.
“Just a couple more bites? Im sorry if youre not hungry because of what I said. That wasnt my intention. I was just speaking the truth and I wanted you to know.”
She nodded her head and took a couple more bites. The food here really was great and she wanted to eat it, but her stomach was tied up in knots. She watched as Mac started to interact with Eleanor, feeding her some fries and coloring with her.
Janie started to envision him and her together. How they got along so great and how he was great with Eleanor. Whoever he was with, he would be an amazing dad. He would be an amazing Daddy, as well.
Her heart constricted as she thought about it more. She wanted that. She wanted it so badly but she knew that with her ex-husband, she wouldnt be able to. And her daughter, because there werent a lot of men who wanted to be with a woman who already had a child. If any.
Janie’s phone went off again and she went still. Donald was starting to send her threatening messages as the hours went by. Threatening to drag her out by her hair and leaving Eleanor on the side of the road. He was threatening to lock her up in a room and have his way with her until she said yes to being with him. She didnt know what to do.
Mac looked at her, giving her a worried glance. It made Janie realize that with her ex-husband threatening her, she was never going to be able to be with any man. And that broke her.