Page 35 of Fallen Ink

She sucked in a breath, hoping she hadn’t made a mistake.

Mace: Tomorrow good?

She bit her lip, trying not to smile like an idiot in her own kitchen. It seemed she had her first real date with her best friend tomorrow, and she couldn’t help but dance on her feet, her excitement warring with her nerves.

Her sisters were right. If she loved him enough to try and make this work, then she needed to take that next step, that risk. And tomorrow, when she went on a date with Mace that was just about the two of them and not just a friendly meal, she’d put all of herself into it.

Because that’s what she did, fear of the future or not.

Chapter 12

This was a huge step, at least that’s how it felt to Mace. He ran a hand through his hair and wondered if he actually knew what he was doing. Considering that he’d been walking through a murky fog for the past couple of months trying to figure out his game plan, he had a feeling this wouldn’t go any better than the other things.

Well, that was just a stupid thing to think. Sure, he kept going at things a little confused and more than a little behind, but it wasn’t as if he’d screwed up everything. He was working his ass off at MIT and gaining new clients weekly. Yeah, the walk-ins had decreased ever since the news had spread about the so-called drug deals and sanitation issues, but once they figured out who the man was out to get the shop, they’d be able to bulk up their reputation again. So, while it was really annoying and worrisome that business had taken a hit as it had between the graffiti and those other two major things, he knew they were stronger than whatever else came at them. The whole team was beyond talented, and they had the Montgomerys and their personal reputation backing them. So, whoever thought they had the right to try to hurt them could go fuck themselves.

And as for the most important thing in his life, his daughter? He felt like he was finally finding his footing when it came to raising Daisy on his own. Finding the balance between being a good father and ensuring that Daisy had daily contact with her mother wasn’t easy. And a small part of him wanted to cut his ex out of his life forever, not only for what she had done to him in the past, but for what she was doing to her daughter day in and day out in the present. Daisy was still too young to understand exactly what was going on, but she was old enough to know that something was different and wasn’t the way it was supposed to be.

He was still waiting on the final paperwork and decisions about what would happen in the future with his rights when it came to Daisy, and that unknown made his stomach clench to the point where he was pretty sure he would have to buy stock in antacids.

So, while the monumental legal worries were going on around him, he had to put all of that aside to focus on what was best for his daughter. The two of them had found a rhythm so far that seemed to be working. Because he was able to go into work later since the shop didn’t open as early as most nine-to-five jobs did, he could wake up every morning with his baby girl and get her ready for preschool. Then he’d walk her there himself before heading back home to see if he and Adrienne were going to carpool that day. His parents took turns picking Daisy up from school, and they truly loved the fact that they had this time with their granddaughter now.

And though it worried him slightly, Adrienne’s role in Daisy’s life had changed, as well. His daughter had bonded quickly to the other woman in his life, even before the changes in their relationship had happened. His best friend came to his house as much now as she used to, and that meant she saw Daisy more often than not, and his little girl always made sure to say hello when she knew he was texting Adrienne. He knew Adrienne was doing her best not to change the way Daisy saw her, and for that, he was grateful. There was a difference between changing their relationship as a couple and changing the way she was viewed in his daughter’s eyes.

And after all of that, he had a feeling he would probably win the award for the most convoluted and circular thought patterns of the day.

His sister Violet would be at the house soon to watch Daisy so he and Adrienne could go on their first official date. He still couldn’t believe the two of them hadn’t actually been on a date yet. Yes, they had meals together and saw each other every day between work and sleeping together, but he hadn’t actually been the man he always thought he was and taken her out in public on a date. Tonight, they would rectify that. The fact that it had been her asking him out rather than the other way around was not lost on him. It had been her saying that she hadn’t had sex in over a year while also thinking he was hot at the same time that had led them to sleeping together in the first place. And while he had been the one repeatedly saying that he didn’t want to risk their friendship, it had been her saying that they needed to actually talk about the details and what they wanted from each other.

He hadn’t been treating her like he should, and he knew he would have to make up for it. She deserved far better than hot sex on lonely nights or in storage closets when they thought nobody was watching. Now that the world had pretty much figured out what the two of them were doing, it was up to them to either make it work or walk away and go back to who they were before so they didn’t screw anything up.

So, tonight, he would be the man he should’ve been all along and treat her like the woman she was. Someone who deserved to be cherished and cared for. And, yes, he also wanted to fuck her hard into oblivion, but the thing was, he knew she wanted to do the same thing right back to him. He was even interested in this whole Sir and Ma’am, May I thing her sister had apparently brought up. And while they tested that out, he would do his best not to think about Roxie and Carter and whatever the hell they did in the bedroom.

Daisy came into his bedroom right then as he was finishing buttoning up his collared shirt. He wouldn’t be wearing a tie or suit jacket since they weren’t going anyplace fancy tonight, but he still wanted to look better than his usual raggedy T-shirt and jeans with holes in them.

“What’s up, baby girl?” he asked as he turned to her.

“Are you and Aunt Adrienne going out for dinner soon?” Daisy asked. He’d explained to her that he and Addi were going out for a meal, but hadn’t been too specific since he wasn’t ready to tell Daisy that he and Adrienne were dating.

Since they were dating. No more mincing words, even if it made him feel like a teenager again.

“Yep. Your aunt Violet should be here in about twenty minutes, and then Addi and I are headed out. Is that okay?” He didn’t want to be one of those parents that let his child dictate how he led his life, he also didn’t want to change things up too quickly when she was just finding her footing.

His little girl nodded, her face solemn. “Aunt Sienna said even daddies need time with women they like. Do you like Aunt Addi?”

He was going to kill Sienna. Yes, she’d probably been put in an awkward situation when Daisy had asked her a question about him going out to dinner with Addi, but a little heads-up would’ve been nice.

“I do.” He knelt down in front of Daisy and tapped her on the nose, making her giggle. “She’s my best friend.”

“Like how I’m best friends with Sarah at school? But she’s a girl like Aunt Addi.” He’d noticed that she’d started calling her Addi instead of Adrienne more often, and though he knew he needed to be careful, he liked it.

“Yes, like that. And you can be best friends with boys, too.” He didn’t want to be that dad who was a sexist prick, but he also wasn’t really looking forward to her growing up and going through the dating phase—with people of any gender.

“I know. Roland is one of my friends, too. He’s just not my best friend. But now that I live here, he lives near here too, and that means maybe he’ll be my best friend soon. I don’t know yet. I have to see.”

Mace held back a smile at her words before opening his arms for a hug. Her little arms wrapped around his neck tightly and squeezed, and he stood up so he could carry her into the living room. That’s when he noticed that he’d missed a call from Violet since he hadn’t known he left his phone in the living room.

She’d left a message, but when he went to listen, he couldn’t hear her as it was mostly just static. Worried, he called her, and was relieved when she picked up on the second ring.

“I’m so sorry. Did you get my message?” She spoke fast and, thankfully, this time there wasn’t any interference on the call.

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