Page 46 of Moonlit Kisses

I glance at Emma for guidance but she’s too busy smiling at her son’s enthusiasm. “Probably not today. I can’t stop for too long. The owner will be here to collect his car soon.” His little face drops and his body sags. “Maybe next time I do the tires on the Dodge, okay? I’ll have more time and we can do it together.”

His eyes light with happiness. “Really?”

“Yeah. Really.”

He runs to Emma. “Did you hear that? I can help Uncle Max change his tires one day. How cool is that?” My eyes catch on Molly. She’s smiling as she watches my niece and nephews.

I move closer to Lachlan. “Hey, Lachlan. How are you doing today, Buddy?”

“I’m good. Thank you for asking, Uncle Max.” Emma steps next to Lachlan.

“Show Uncle Max what you brought over for him.” She leans into me. “Hey, little brother.” I roll my eyes and Molly giggles. It’s comical that she insists on calling me little brother.

He nods and then walks toward the door, picking up a square timber box. It looks a little heavy, so I move to help him. Molly makes room on the desk, and we place it down carefully. The workmanship is incredible. “What’s this?”

Lachlan focuses on making eye contact with me and I smile inside at how far he’s come over the past twelve months or so. “Theo helped me make this sorting box for you. You can put the different-size nuts and washers in here.” He points to several of the compartments. Molly’s hand comes up to cover her mouth and Emma’s face is full of pride.

I crouch down to Lachlan’s level. “This is incredible. It looks exactly like the one I was looking at buying last month. I keep mixing up all of my nuts, washers, and bolts and need something to help me keep them organized.” His little chest puffs out with pride. “Thank you, Buddy. It’s amazing.”

“You’re welcome, Uncle Max.”

I lift my eyes to Emma. “This is incredible. Thank Theo for me, won’t you?”

“I will. I’m pretty sure Lachlan did most of the work, though.” She grins at her son.

I realize I haven’t introduced Molly to my family. “I’m sorry. You guys haven’t met Molly.”

Kenny butts in. “Yes, we have. We already said hello before we saw you. She looks like Elsa, fromFrozen. She’s so pretty, Uncle Max.”

Emma, Molly, and I all burst into laughter. Kenny’s always comparing pretty ladies to her Disney princesses.

“We already introduced ourselves.” Emma angles her body in such a way that she can raise her brows at me without Molly seeing. With wide eyes, she mouths, “She’s beautiful.”

I shake my head and huff out a laugh. Beautiful is an understatement, in my opinion.

“You should come to Lachlan’s birthday party!” Kenny shouts as she spins around the room.

Molly’s eyes snap to mine in confusion.

“Oh, you totally should. We’d love to have you come,” Emma adds with glee. She knows exactly what she’s doing. She’s fucking stirring the pot. If she knew where I slept last night and what I was doing this morning, she’d be all over it and I’d never hear the end.

Molly’s like a deer caught in headlights as her head swings between me and Em. “Oh, uhm, I wouldn’t want to intrude on a family event.”

“You wouldn’t be intruding at all. The more, the merrier. Right, Lachlan?” Emma runs her fingers through Lachlan’s hair.

He doesn’t seem convinced. “Yes.” He tilts his head up to Emma. “What does that mean? The more the merrier?”

I crouch down to Lachlan’s level. “It means a party is more fun when there are lots of people.”

His face scrunches up. “I don’t like to be around a lot of people. It’s too noisy.”

“That’s okay. I don’t have to come, Lachlan,” Molly offers. Sheer relief on her face that she has an excuse.

“Molly doesn’t make all that much noise, Buddy.” I smirk at Molly.

“Oh, okay then. But will she be mean like Mona?” he asks.

My grin drops and I shake my head. Mona was a fucking bitch to my family. I shouldn’t have stayed with her as long as I did. I didn’t realize the kids had noticed, but I shouldn’t be surprised because Lachlan notices everything. “No, Lachlan. Molly wouldn’t know how to be mean. She’s incredibly kind.”

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