Page 24 of One Night with my Best Friend's Dad

“One minute,” he tells her.

As Piper walks away, Mac turns to me, his eyes full of concern. “Kelly, what’s going on? Why are you leaving?”

I swallow hard, my gaze dropping to the floor. “I—I can’t stay here, Mac. It’s too much. Piper was right. This is all just a mistake.”

“A mistake?” Disbelief spikes Mac’s voice as he shakes his head, but then his words soften as he says, “Kelly, I love you. And I want to be there for you and our baby. Please, don’t leave.”

“You…You—love me?” The words come out of my mouth a garbled mess. Tears well up in my eyes again. “But Piper...she hates me. And you’re her father. I can’t come between you two.”

Mac reaches out, his hands gently cup my face as he tilts my head up to meet his gaze. “Piper and I have had a talk. She’s sorry. She still needs a little time to adjust to us, but she’ll get there. And she will.” He hesitates for a moment as he stares into my eyes. “I can’t let you go, not now, never.”

“I never had enough money to fly home,” I cry out.

He laughs as he pulls me into his arms. “Good, because you’re not going anywhere. I want you and the baby with me forever.”

“I need to be with you.”

He presses a kiss on my head. “Good, that’s settled. And we need to have a discussion on your education. Piper told me youwere in your last year of studying marketing. I don’t want you to give up on your dreams because you’ll be a wife and mother.”

A wife?

I search his eyes, seeing only sincerity and determination there.

“I’m not asking you here.”

“I love you,” I whisper.

“And I love you.” He turns and holds out his hand to Piper. She walks toward us with a smile on her face.

“I’m sorry,” I tell her. “I won’t come between your relationship.” I understand now what Piper was trying to tell me. She was afraid I was going to be the one who ruined her developing relationship with her dad.

She shakes her head. “Don’t be. I was being a selfish bitch. And I took advantage of your beautiful nature. I knew you’d leave if I needed you to.”

“You don’t have to apologize. I get it. We both want him to love us.”

Mac laughs. “I feel cherished for once in my life.”

Piper stares at her dad and says, “Oh, Dad, I’m sorry for trying to ruin your life. I never, ever thought about how lonely you were as a hockey player and a coach. I thought you loved the life it gave you.”

“I love it, Piper, but I lost so much because of it, too.” Mac turns and takes my hand, his thumb stroking over my palm. “I never wanted your mother to move to California and take you with her. I wanted a family. And I get a second chance at that now.”

“And I want you to have it,” Piper replies.

I take a deep breath, the weight of the world lifting off my shoulders as Piper’s words sink in. “You really mean that?”

Piper nods, a small smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. “Of course. I was just being a brat before. I want you both tobe happy.” She turns to Mac, her expression softening. “And I’m looking forward to being a big sister.”

Piper and I both laugh, the tension in the air dissipating. I reach out and give Piper’s hand a gentle squeeze. “Thank you, Piper. That really means a lot to me.”

“To us,” Mac corrects, wrapping an arm around my waist and pulling me close. “We’re in this together, remember?”

“I hope so, including the nighttime feeds,” I tease, poking him playfully in the chest.

Mac rolls his eyes. “Don’t remind me. I’m already feeling old as it is.”

Piper giggles. “Well, you better get used to it, Dad. Looks like you’re going to be a young dad again.”

“Young?” Mac scoffs. “I’ll be lucky if I can keep up with this one.” He gestures to my growing belly.

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