37. Chapter Thirty-Six
It had been a day since Mac told her that he wanted to be with her again. That he thought of Eleanor as his own. It had shocked her and she didnt know what to say at that moment and still didnt. Everything was becoming even more real as he continued to confess his love and his want for her.
They were back in his office, trying to get work done. She desperately needed her office back or some type of office with her whole setup. It was harder and harder to get work done while Mac was in the room. Her mind was constantly on him and not work.
“I need to go talk to Hedda,” Janie said as she got up from the couch. “Can I leave Eleanor here or should I take her with me?”
Mac looked up from his computer and gave her a smile. “You can leave her here. Ill watch over her..”
“Thank you,” she said.
Janie placed her phone down next to her computer and walked out of his office. She didnt need her phone and Mac could easily find her in the club. And if he couldnt, he would text the guys and they could easily find her.
She walked down the hallway and towards the main room. Hedda had texted her asking if she could come talk to her. It was probably about a sleepover or hanging out since they wanted to do that soon.
“Hey girl,” Hedda said.
“How are you?” Janie asked.
“I just got my butt spanked.”
Janie cracked a smile and chuckled. When was Hedda not getting spanked or in some type of punishment? From what she had observed, Hedda loved to rile things up.
“So, when are you free to hang out?” Hedda asked. “Ive been dying to hang out with you. You can even bring Eleanor with you if you want. Shes so cute.”
“Maybe next week? Ive got a little bit of work to catch up on but Im almost there,” Janie replied.
“You let me know and well make it happen. Im not busy at all.”
“Will anybody else be coming or will it just be us?”
“We can invite some of the other girls. We can also invite Kyle and Tucker, as well. Ive only hung out with them a couple of times, but its been fun.”
Janie nodded her head. She had hung out with all of them several times and they were all great. Tucker was more of a middle like Hedda but Janie wasnt sure. Sometimes he acted way younger and she hadnt asked him.
“Okay, so I totally could have asked you that over text, but I really just wanted to talk to you about Mac. How is it going?” Hedda asked.
Janie was not expecting that. She had honestly thought that Hedda wanted to talk about the sleepover and hanging out. It hadnt even crossed her mind that Hedda would want to talk about Mac and her.
“So?” Hedda said. “Has anything happened?”
She shrugged her shoulders. Sure, things had happened, but she didnt really want to tell people about that. “Were not together. Or still kind of talking, though I told him we weren’t going to get together.”
“Why did you say that?” Hedda asked.
Janie shrugged her shoulders again. Because she had baggage and had a kid. Because she had an ex-husband who was threatening her. But nobody knew that.
“I say go for it. You only get one life and I know you have feelings for Mac. And Mac definitely has feelings for you and Eleanor.”
“I have an ex-husband and a kid,” Janie said.
“So what. Does your ex-husband have rights to your kid?”
“No, he waved all rights when we got the divorce. He wants nothing to do with Eleanor.”
“I still say go for it with Mac. The way he looks at you and Eleanor, you two are his world. The way he interacts with Eleanor, its like shes his own kid. You dont find that a lot in guys,” Hedda said. “Just take ten seconds of courage and tell him that you want to try. But only do that if its truly what you want.”
The fact that Hedda saw Mac interact with Eleanor like that just confirmed what he said. But, she was still nervous. It could all be an act and she didnt want to rush into anything. Yet, she had known Mac for years and was comfortable with him.
Janie nodded her head. Maybe she should just put away her fear and tell him shell give it a try. Lay down some rules, that if he doesnt want Eleanor anymore, that its not going to work out. Eleanor was her daughter and will always be her daughter.
“Tell him your worries and why youre scared of committing,” Hedda said. “Hell try and understand and help you out with it. Hes not going to make fun of you. If anything hell be happy you told him.”
She nodded her head once again, agreeing with Hedda. Mac had told her he would be there for her, judgment free. It was hard to believe but maybe she could trust him on that. Trust him that he was going to be judgment free and help her out.
“Well, Ill let you get back to work. Definitely text me when youre free and want to hang out. Better yet, just send it in the group chat and well see who is available that day,” Hedda said as she gave her a hug. “Were doing this even if I have to kidnap you.”
Janie chuckled. “All right. So, I dont think its going to get to where you have to kidnap me. I love hanging out with you guys.”
“And we love having you with us, in all your pink glory.”
Her cheeks started to turn red. She couldnt help that her favorite color was pink and she wanted to wear it every single day. It didnt matter. She always found a way to wear pink. If it was in her hair, her shirt, her pants, her shoes, socks, bra, underwear, bracelets or even her fingernails. She was always wearing some type of pink.
“Ill see you later,” Janie said as she started walking back towards Mac’s office.
It was nice to get away from his office for a little bit. She had thought she would avoid all conversation about Mac, but that didnt happen. It seemed like her life was now revolving around him and it didnt seem so bad.
Maybe she should take Hedda’s advice and take ten seconds of courage and tell him her worries about everything. She knew he would listen to her and give his whole attention. She wasnt worried about that. Janie was worried about how he would react. Would he be calm?
Janie slowly opened the door to his office and walked in. Mac was sitting on the couch, with Eleanor in his lap. Her head was resting on his chest and she absolutely loved the sight. Janie had never seen Eleanor so comfortable around a guy.
Granted, Eleanor hadnt been around too many males other than her brother-in-law. While Eleanor did like her brother-in-law, she wasnt as comfortable with him as she was with Mac. It was so weird to watch. Janie never thought that Eleanor would be comfortable and relaxed around anyone but her.
She continued to look at both of them, taking the sight in. Part of her wished that she could do the same thing. Snuggle up to his side and just relax. It sounded like heaven and she wanted that right now. She wanted to be comfortable and relaxed.
Mac’s head turned towards her and he didnt look happy. She faltered in her steps and stopped. What was wrong? Had he finally decided that he didnt want them? Was she too late?
So many things were running through her head and she didnt know what was going on.
“Is everything okay?” She whispered in a shaky voice. She hoped and prayed that he would say everything was okay and he was just in a bad mood. That had nothing to do with her or Eleanor.
Mac sighed and placed her phone down on the couch. Crap. Her phone. What had he seen?
“Why didn’t you tell me about your ex-husband?” He asked.
Janie stopped breathing, her eyes going wide, and she felt the blood draining from her face as he said those words. Shit. He had found out.