My stomach growled.
Mason’s lips twitched, like that sound had answered his question for me.
“We can eat, but then we need to get ready for school tomorrow.” I couldn’t ignore my last-minute preparations much longer.
Parker dropped my hand and darted off.
I sighed. So much for having a buffer between me and Mason. “I won’t stay long.” I kept my eyes on the ground as I followed after my kid, unsure if I’d done the right thing or made a huge mistake.
Funny. I’d been so worried about Mason crossing lines that I hadn’t thought about what to do if I did.
Chapter 6
Mason
A sense of satisfaction coursed through me as I watched Sadie glance around and then finally declare that she and Parker were going to stay. I don’t know why, but it felt as if we were at war, and somehow—by the grace of God—I had won this battle.
Even though she was incredibly beautiful, she looked tired. It couldn’t be easy, spending the entire day on your feet only to come home and be a mom. With no one taking over for her, she had to be on all the time. If I could, I would take all of that away, but she’d already drawn that line between us, and I doubted I could convince her otherwise.
So when she slipped upstairs to her apartment to change, whispering she would be back—I felt content.
I was fulfilling my promise to Adam to take care of her. Even though I was pretty sure she’d have a different story to tell.
I cleared my throat and headed over to the table where I caught Parker staring at the food. Mom really knew how to throw together a meal, and this one was no exception. There were pasta salads, vegetables, and a carved-out watermelon with balls of fruit inside of it. The meat was mouthwatering, and at the end of the table was a stack of her prize-winning brownies.
I grabbed a plate and bumped Parker with my elbow. “Need some help?”
Parker turned to look up at me, his eyes wide. “This is awesome,” he said as he shoved his little hand into an open bag of Doritos and brought out a fistful of chips. “Mom never lets me eat chips.”
I swallowed as I contemplated whether or not I should stop him…but then went with not. After all, it was a holiday. I was pretty sure Sadie was a fantastic mom, but I was also pretty sure that she needed to learn how to loosen up.
Some rules just needed to be broken.
Parker and I chatted as we moved down the line. He told me about school and how he was not looking forward to Benson being in his class. Apparently, some serious name-calling had gone down last year. I tried to be an impartial listener, but a protective surge jolted through me as I thought of Parker getting picked on by another kid.
Not wanting to overstep, I clenched my jaw and listened. Once our plates were full, I led him over to a few empty folding chairs, set my plate down, and then jogged over to the cooler to grab us each a root beer. I turned to head back when the sight of Sadie stopped me in my tracks.
She looked…incredible.
Her hair was released from her bun and fell in soft ringlets around her face. She wore a simple floral dress that hit her right above the knees, showing off her toned and tanned legs. Standing next to Parker, she looked more relaxed—more at peace—and I couldn’t bring myself to walk over to her.
I knew, as soon as I did, she would throw her wall up. Call me crazy, but I didn’t want to be the reason that she was unhappy.
I dug the toe of my shoe into the ground as the ice-cold soda cans froze my fingertips. I hoped that if I hung back long enough, she would grow hungry and walk away from Parker. Then I could return to my plate of food that was rapidly growing cold.
“Everything okay, son?”
Dad’s question startled me. My heart pounded as a rush of adrenaline coursed through me. My nerves tensed, and it took me a moment before I could turn around and address him.
“Yep,” I said as my body began to relax, leaving me feeling raw and exposed. I hated that anything startling caused me to overact. For some reason, my body thought that my fight or flight response needed to be on high alert—even during a family get-together.
“You’re standing here like a statue, staring at that Miller girl.”
I cleared my throat and turned so that my back was to Sadie and Parker just to prove Dad’s statement wrong. “Just lost in thought, I guess,” I said as I offered him a weak smile.
Dad studied me for a moment before he chuckled and reached out to pat my shoulder. “You know why I came over here.”
I studied him for a moment, and then Mom’s face floated into my mind. I sighed as I set the cans of soda down on the table next to me. Of course, she was worried about me. And seeing Sadie here, that she was actually living with me, had heightened her concern.
“I’m fine, Dad,” I said as I offered him my don’t-worry-about-me smile. The one I’d perfected as I climbed my way out of the depression I’d fallen into when Adam was KIA.
Dad studied me. “There’s nothing wrong with getting help, Mason. If you had a broken arm, you would go to the doctor.”
Mom had been trying to get me to see pretty much every psychiatrist whose number she could get ahold of since I came home. It wasn’t going to happen.
I nodded to let Dad know I conceded the point. But my situation wouldn’t be solved with an x-ray and a cast. If I was going to heal, then I needed to fulfill the promise I made to Adam. That was what was holding me back. “I understand. But I’m okay, really.”
Besides, if I could pass the psych evaluation for the sheriff’s test, then I couldn’t really see what the problem was. Didn’t everyone have issues? Why did my family think that I couldn’t handle mine? I could, and I had, and I did—every darn day.
“I just think—”
“I’m fine,” I blurted out and then pinched my lips when Dad raised his eyebrows and widened eyes. “I’m sorry,” I said as I scrubbed my face. “I’ll think about it. Really.”
Dad was quiet for a moment before he reached out and patted my arm. “We care about you, son. We just want what’s best for you.” He glanced over at Sadie. “And we’re not sure having her around is the best right now.”
A protective surge coursed through me, just as it had earlier when I was talking to Parker. Sadie was the best thing for me right now, and my family thinking otherwise made me angry.
I stilled my emotions as I shook my head. “It’s fine. She’s fine. We’re fine.” I winced as I tallied up the amount of times I’d said fine. If I kept talking like this, Dad would know that I was certainly not fine. “Besides, she hates me. It’s not like I’ll be seeing much of her. It really is a tenant-landlord situation.”
From Dad’s quirked eyebrow, I could tell that he didn’t believe me. I sighed. “What?”
He shook his head. “I don’t think she sees this as a tenant-landlord situation.”
My throat went dry as the world around me slowed. What did that mean?
Dad chuckled as he leaned in. “I’ve seen the way she looks at you. Trust me, there’s something there.” He pulled back. “We just want to make sure you’ve fixed what’s in here”—he pointed to my head—“before you take off with what’s in here.” He moved his finger down to my chest.