Page 69 of Surrender

She tilts her head back with a sly smile. “Mr. Jaaaaaack!”

He immediately stops talking to Corjan to tip his head to Lucy with a smile. “What’s up, Luce?”

She skips up to him and wraps her fingers around the belt loop of his jeans. “I make one for you.”

“You want to make one for me?”

She nods seriously and drags him to the kitchen table where an assortment of string and beads sits in a plastic bucket.

“Scarlett was going to make bracelets with her last night but ran out of time, so she left her supplies.” Bree crosses the room to pull Charlotte from her daddy. “We watched her very carefully to make sure any beads didn’t wind up where they don’t belong.”

“I appreciate that.”

Lucy’s bossiness is already hard at work. Jack sits beside her at the table, his arms around Bennett, and Lucy lies halfway across the top of the workspace to direct him.

“Pink next.” She waits patiently for him to thread the bead before pointing at another. “Dis one.”

My smile wobbles.

“Here.” She holds out a golden bead shaped like an amorphous blob. “It’s a bear.”

“I like bears,” Jack says, plucking the bead from her tiny fingers. His much larger ones struggle to string the bear onto the bracelet.

“Bears are strong. Like you,” Lucy says seriously.

Silence overcomes the room at her innocuous comment. Oblivious to the adults listening intently, she plucks a sparkly pink bead from the pile and hands it to him.“One more.”

As the last piece of plastic settles into place, Lucy beams at him. “There.” Pride is evident in her tone. “Put it on!”

Serious gray eyesflickeroverto mine where I stand motionless watching the two of themworktogether.

“Can you help?”Jacklays his wrist flat against the table.

I swallow hardbeforestepping forward. I knot the end of the string and measure the size over his wrist. I cut the excess and quickly tie the ends into a double knot, ignoring the way my fingers brush against his skin.

“Ohshoot,”Iwhisper beneath my breath.

“What’swrong?” Jack asks, equally quiet.

“I made it too tight. You won’t be able to slip it off.”

He blinks slow and heavy. “It’s fine. I’ll fix it later.”

As I step back, Lucy practically crawls on the table tolookdown at his hand. “It fits!”

“You did a good job, Luce.” Jack twists his wrist, making the beads shaketogether.

Something about this big, strong man wearing a pink bracelet does my head in.

“Lucy,honey, getoffthe table. It isn’t polite, and I don’t want you to fall.”

“Sorry, Momma.” She plants her palms flat and pushes herself backward until her feet touch her chair. “Can I have a snack?”

“We have snacks back at—”home.I almost said home. “Jack’s. Come findyourboots. We should getgoing.”

I quickly stash the rogue beads backinto their bucket and close the lid. The remnants of the hangover are playing havoc with myemotions.

Jack stands beside me, and I holdout my hands. “Here, I’ll take Bennett.”

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