Chapter 28 #3
He tucked her hair behind her ear. “That’s definitely tempting, but don’t you have a group of kids who are expecting you to read to them at the library in a couple of hours?”
She stroked his hair back from his damp forehead. “They’d be just as happy if the librarian did it.”
He shook his head. “Lydia Monroe will be in the house. American royalty.”
She groaned out a laugh as she rolled her eyes. “That’s the worst thing you’ve ever said to me.”
He laughed as he rolled to his back, bringing her with him to settle her on top of him. “You know you’re going to have fun.”
She nodded as she rested her arms on his chest. “I always do. The kids are always so sweet.” She leaned in for another quick kiss, loving that she could press her lips to his whenever she wanted to. “And today’s a big day for Everly. It’s her official debut, which Mac isn’t all that excited about.”
“It’s just a couple of pictures of her and the kids while you read the story, right? For the local media?”
She shrugged. “Unless the AP picks it up. It’ll depend on how slow of a news day it is.”
“You were in the national papers once or twice when you were growing up. I remember seeing the articles when I was studying your dossier.”
She nodded. “Burke, Will, and I shook hands with Grandpa Beau’s constituents a couple of times.
Voters love it when candidates bring their families along.
It’s good optics, so that’s what we did, which my mom didn’t like one bit, but you can’t marry into this family and not understand your duties and the expectations pressed upon you. ”
“Will you have to parade your kids around, too?”
“A little, I imagine,” she said as she trailed her finger along the scruff on his jaw. “Especially if Uncle James wins the presidency. My spouse and I would be expected to be there for certain big moments. If I have kids at that point, they’ll be expected to be there, too.”
“Huh.”
She shrugged. “There’s more of a spotlight on our family after our tragedy. People want to see Aaron and Avery’s only surviving child being loved and supported by the rest of the Monroes.”
He frowned. “That sounds cold.”
She jerked her shoulders again. “But it’s true. Luckily, it’s not a big deal because they do love and support me, so it’s easy for all of us to do what we need to do.”
He trailed his palms up and down her back. “I wish I could be there for you today. Unfortunately, being an undercover agent while the press’s cameras are out doesn’t mix well.”
She shook her head. “It’s not a big deal. I’m going to read a story to a group of children—like I do for the kids in my classroom one hundred and eighty days out of the year. I’ll pose for a few shots with Everly, Maverick, and Mac, and we’ll come home.”
He shrugged. “I just like the idea of your boyfriend being there to support you.”
“And that’s very sweet, but your girlfriend understands your predicament. She also knows that you have a meeting with your FBI buddy.”
He nodded as he twirled her hair around his finger. “Can I ask you something? About Will?”
She hesitated, then nodded. “Sure.”
“Is it crazy to think that Will would borrow money from Asher?”
She frowned, surprised by his question. “It’s not crazy, but I don’t know why he would. He makes more than a decent salary.”
He shrugged. “Will mentioned something about becoming a partner when he and I first met. That usually comes with a steep buy-in, especially for a big, fancy firm like the one he works for.”
“That’s true, but I know that he and Mac put aside the money from the sale of Mac’s business for the partnership, so it doesn’t make sense that he would borrow money for that.
Mac most likely doesn’t want to own anything again—or that’s her current way of thinking while the kids are so little, so it made sense to use that instead of touching their savings. ”
He nodded.
She held his gaze, knowing that he was trying to work something out in his brain. “Why?”
“I heard Will and Asher arguing yesterday. I walked into the locker room at the tail end of their conversation, but Will said, ‘I’m going to get it back to you.’ That sounds like a money conversation to me.”
She shrugged as she shook her head. “I’m not sure.”
He nodded again.
“I can try to ask Mac about their finances…”
“Is that something you guys usually talk about?”
She shook her head. “Not really. We both usually have access to plenty of funds, so it doesn’t come up.”
Ty shook his head. “Then that’s not a good idea. If it’s not a topic that usually comes up, then it shouldn’t now.”
“Okay.” But then she sighed when she couldn’t help but worry. “Something’s going on with him, Ty. Something’s different. It scares me a little because he’s not acting like himself at all. The Will you’ve met this summer is not the Will that I’ve known and loved my entire life.”
He wrapped his arms around her as he pressed a tender kiss to her forehead. “We’re going to figure stuff out.”
She nodded, knowing they needed to get up when all she wanted was to stay right there, cocooned with him.