Page 148 of Renewal After Dark

As he left the apartment to return to his home, he realized he was looking forward to everything. Every. Single. Thing. And it was all thanks to McKenzie and her little boy.

Life was looking rathersweetlately, and it was gettingsweeterall the time.

Chapter30

McKenzie spent Jax’s naptime completing her initial assessment of Duke’s books and made a list of recommendations for streamlining processes. The good news was that his records weren’t in terrible shape. The bad news was he owed estimated quarterly state and federal taxes that were overdue and accumulating penalties. He needed to take care of that as soon as possible, and she hoped that wouldn’t be a problem for him.

Next, she spent an hour reconciling Sierra’s bank statements and posting journal entries to her general ledger. She made a list of recommendations for her, which included separating her personal and corporate expenditures by procuring a corporate credit card that offered points or cash rewards. The commingling of personal and professional made for messy accounting, which she explained to Sierra in an email that included a list of credit cards that would suit her business.

The work made her feel useful and productive. When she was finished, she made notes about the time she’d spent on both accounts. She wouldn’t bill Duke for any work she did for him, but she added an hour and a half to Sierra’s tab for month-end billing. Figuring out her hourly rate was on her to-do list.

She stood to stretch just as the first squeak came from Jax.

Smiling, McKenzie went to retrieve him, freeing him from the car seat and lifting him into her arms. He was sweaty from sleeping and snuggled her as always when he first woke up. “How’s my best buddy?”

“Bud.”

“Yes, you’re my bud!”

“Bud.”

McKenzie put him on the bed to change him and took full advantage of the opportunity to place noisy kisses on his belly that provoked the laughter she loved so much. When she first realized she was pregnant with him, she’d been terrified. She and Eric hadn’t spoken about having children and had been careful to prevent pregnancy. To this day, she had no idea what had gone “wrong,” but once the fear had subsided, she’d been excited.

Until she’d told Eric, and all her excitement died a painful death. She’d been shocked, devastated and terrified after he left her to deal with the baby on her own. A few bleak weeks had followed, along with debilitating nausea that had made it nearly impossible to work. Moving back in with her mother had been a new low.

But a funny thing had happened as her baby had grown inside her. The excitement had come back, and then after he was born, she’d experienced the most profound feelings of pure joy that she’d ever known. Jax might’ve been “an accident,” but he’d become the happiest accident of her entire life.

She gave him a quick bath and changed him into pajamas. Then she took a quick shower and packed up what they needed to spend the night at Duke’s.

Spend the night at Duke’s.

She had no doubt they’d pick up where they’d left off the night before, and the very thought of it made her scalp and various other parts tingle with anticipation.

Every minute they spent together took them a step down the path toward something significant. Was she ready for that? Was he? Before him, she would’ve said no way, no how. The last thing she needed was another man in her life. But this man… He was different. Her unicorn, her one-in-a-million.

She was so tempted to jump right in with both feet—case in point: packing a bag to spend the night—but they needed to have a conversation about where this was headed, because it wasn’t just about them. Jax was part of the equation, too, and as such, she needed to make sure they were on the same page.

Carrying Jax and her backpack, she went downstairs and across the yard.

He had music playing, loudly, so he didn’t hear her knock.

In the kitchen, she found him singing along to “Tennessee Whiskey” as he stood watch over something on the stove, his hips keeping time with the song.

For a moment, she was struck dumb by the realization that she was more than halfway in love with him—and that was before he sensed her there, turned and smiled with his whole face. Yeah, she was probably more than halfway in love.

He reached out to take Jax from her and continued to dance around the kitchen, delighting her little boy with his singing and his moves. “You gotta love Chris Stapleton. What a voice.”

“I do love him.”And you. I love you, too.But she couldn’t say that. It was far too soon for such things, and besides, who knew if he even wanted a little insta-family?

The insecurities hit hard, one right after the other. Every man left. Her father had left. Eric had left. Others before him… How did anyone who’d been through that ever take a chance on someone new?

“Something wrong, sweetheart?”

His voice tugged her out of the deep thoughts.

“No, just thinking.”

He turned down the music. “About what?”

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