Page 67 of Seeing You

“Do you want to…”

He silenced her with another kiss. “Nope. Don’t want to talk about it.”

All around them everyone was talking and laughing and joking and the overall mood was light and fun.

Marcus just needed to learn how to feel comfortable in that environment.

He might only be here in Sweetbriar for another week, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t spend it doing all the things that Billie enjoyed—which naturally meant time with her family.

And as the day rolled on, it got easier and easier.

The alarm going off at four a.m. was jarring.

Watching Billie get up and move around with ease as she got ready for her day was a great way to wake up.

Driving home and sneaking into his childhood home was borderline ridiculous.

Tiptoeing through the house, he was surprised to find his father sitting at the kitchen table nursing a cup of coffee.

“Dad? What are you doing up so early?”

“Couldn’t sleep. I woke up about an hour ago and after gently tossing and turning—damn ribs—I decided to just get up. I’ll nap in my recliner later.” He took a sip of his coffee. “Kind of early for you to be sneaking out. I hope you at least woke Billie up to say goodbye.”

That made him chuckle even as he poured himself a cup of coffee. “Believe it or not, she’s already at work. Her alarm goes off at four and she’s out the door by four-thirty. It seems inhumane for anyone to be up and working at this ungodly hour.”

“Pfft…speak for yourself. Nothing wrong with starting the day early; it also means that quitting time is early. It all balances out.”

“I guess. Still…it makes for a lousy night’s sleep. I normally get up around five-thirty to go work out before going to work, but that’s all right in my condo complex. The amenities there are top-notch and extremely convenient.”

His father made a non-committal sound as if he wasn’t impressed.

Which, let’s face it, he wasn’t.

Sitting down, Marcus studied his mug for a moment. “I had a weird thought yesterday when we were over at Jade and Levi’s place.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. First, I was thinking about how the Donovans aren’t my biggest fans.”

“Seems logical.”

Frowning, he muttered, “Thanks.” Then, “Which then had me thinking about why they don’t like me and then, obviously, I thought about the breakup.”

“Naturally.” John took another sip of his coffee. “Did they talk to you at all, or were you left sitting in a corner by yourself?”

“Of course they talked to me, Dad,” he wearily replied. “I just sort of…my mind wandered.”

“Okay, okay. Go on.”

“I threw myself into my job after Mom died because it was a way to avoid dealing with my grief.”

John nodded.

“Then I threw myself into it even more after Billie left me because…”

“Because you were afraid of getting hurt again and work became your refuge.”

Marcus was certain his jaw was on the floor. “How…how did you know that?”

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