Page 57 of Rage's Heart

I shrugged, rolling my shoulders to release some of the tension. “Fucker had it coming. You see how he was looking at her?”

“Yeah. You don’t have to explain it to me, brother,” Dread said, his expression turning serious. “I’d have done exactly the same thing.”

Mac and Sarah returned from the kitchen, both carrying boxes of what looked like cookbooks.

“Where’d Chad go?” Sarah asked, glancing around.

“Said they had somewhere to be,” I lied, taking the box from Mac’s hands. “Something about meeting someone.”

Sarah frowned.

Mac just raised an eyebrow at me, obviously not buying it.

“What did you do?” she asked quietly.

“Nothing,” I insisted, pressing a quick kiss on her mouth. “Just had a friendly chat.”

Her lips twitched. “Right.”

The rest of the packing went quickly.

I was grabbing the last box when I overheard Sarah and Mac talking quietly in the kitchen.

“I’m sorry about Chad,” Sarah was saying, her voice sincere. “The way he acted today was completely unacceptable.”

“It’s okay,” Mac replied. “It’s not your fault.”

“It kind of is,” Sarah sighed. “I should have listened to you sooner about how he treats you. I guess I just didn’t want to see it.”

“Hey,” Mac’s voice softened. “You’ll figure it out. Just... promise me you’ll be careful, okay?”

“I promise,” Sarah said. There was a pause, then, “You really love him, don’t you?”

“I do.” The certainty in Mac’s voice made my chest tighten. “He’s the real deal, Sarah.”

I moved away, not wanting to eavesdrop any further, when Mac appeared in the hallway. From the look on her face, she knew I’d been listening.

“Ready to go?”

She nodded, a small smile playing at her lips. “Let’s go home.”

I liked the sound of that.

Home.

Our home.

After another round of goodbyes to Sarah, who hugged Mac like she was going off to war, we were finally on our way.

Once we made home, we spent the next couple of hours unloading and arranging her things throughout the house. By the time Killer and Dread left, Mac and I were both exhausted.

She collapsed onto the couch, phone in hand. “I should call my mom,” she said, worry creasing her brow. “About tomorrow.”

I sat beside her, pulling her feet into my lap. “Want me to give you some privacy?”

She shook her head. “No.”

I nodded, beginning to massage her feet as she dialed. Her eyes fluttered in pleasure, but I could see the tension on her face as the phone rang.

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