Page 50 of Lost in You (The Monroes 3)

Telling both women wasn’t something Liam wanted to do, but they needed to hear the news from him. Granted, now was definitely not the right time.

“I’ll still help financially,” Liam added. “I’m not quitting this family.”

“If I even thought you were, this conversation would’ve already taken a different turn,” Zach stated.

Liam didn’t say anything more as the back door opened and Cora and Sophie came in, still chatting about the couple who had just left for their prom. Liam turned to the fridge and attempted to get back into his work.

Still, something wasn’t sitting right in his chest. Actually saying the words that he was leaving made things seem so much more real. And while this was ultimately what he wanted, he wondered how Macy would take the news.

Damn it. Why did he care what Macy thought? They didn’t have a relationship. Unresolved emotions, then a truce, then an understanding that they’d both crossed a line they weren’t sorry for.

He had no idea what would happen with her when he saw her again, but he needed to tell her he was leaving. Surprise settled into Liam as he realized this conversation might be more difficult than the one with his brothers.

* * *

Macy hung up her phone and clutched the cell to her chest. With a smile, she blew out the breath she’d been holding the entire time she’d been on the phone.

When she’d first started the process of foster care, she hadn’t thought she’d be a viable candidate because she was single, but she was chosen. She’d passed the home inspection, passed the background check, and her case worker said everything was lined up and good to go. They had a ten-year-old girl right now, but Macy had requested a younger child. She worried if she had one in school that she wouldn’t be able to run back and forth, plus attend to homework. A younger girl where she could give the child more one-on-one time, which is what any child needed. Macy could bring her into the store for a bit. As a kid, Macy didn’t know any different than growing up around PVC pipe and bolts.

She didn’t want to get her hopes up, but she couldn’t help it. This was just the first step in what she hoped would lead to full adoption. Maybe that family she’d always dreamed of would happen, just not in the traditional sense she’d thought. Regardless, she was going to change a baby’s life forever . . . and Macy knew her life would forever be changed as well.

The store had closed ten minutes ago and she’d yet to do anything with the receipts or the computer. But that would have to wait. The gutter on the back side of the building was coming loose and she needed to get up there and repair it while it was still daylight.

Suddenly fixing a gutter didn’t seem so daunting. The idea of having a little one in her home excited her. Macy knew the child she was getting would be a little girl no older than five.

She’d already ordered a crib, but she needed to get a toddler bed as well. Or maybe a twin bed against the wall with one of those side protectors.

Macy knew her online shopping tonight would be over the top. She didn’t care. She had been raised by a loving set of parents and she felt every child deserved to have that love and security. There was nothing she wouldn’t do to create a family, to bring in a child who didn’t have a home.

Oh, books. She’d definitely need to get a bookcase and fill it with colorful, fun books. Story time with her mother was one thing she remembered fondly. Night after night her mother would read to her while rocking her in a big, oversized rocking chair.

Which meant she’d need to order a chair, too.

Yeah, her credit card was about to take a major hit.

Macy went to the shed out back and found the extension ladder. With her tool belt in place, she propped the ladder against the side of the building and started to climb. She’d gotten about halfway when Liam’s SUV pulled in.

Considering she didn’t know what to say to him after their last encounter, Macy concentrated on the task at hand. As she reached the top and zeroed in on the loose section of the gutter, she spotted Liam from the corner of her eye climbing the steps to his apartment. She didn’t miss the way he kept glancing her way and the beat of her heart kicked up. That man’s vibe was potent and she wasn’t even close.

When Macy reached for the gutter to hold it in position, a rusty nail she’d missed caught her palm. Cursing, she jerked her hand back. Damn. It was the same hand she’d burned the other day. Thankfully she still had a Band-Aid on, but the nail had torn through it and gotten to her wound. The nail hadn’t gone deep, but deep enough to cause a sting and have Macy climbing back down. She couldn’t continue working with an open area on her skin. She needed antibiotic ointment and a new bandage.

Once she reached the ground, she attempted to undo her tool belt. Instantly, strong hands covered hers and jerked the belt off.

“What the hell happened? If you need help up there just ask for it.”

Stunned, Macy glanced up to Liam. “I don’t need help and if you’re already going to start with an attitude, go on upstairs and leave me be.”

“You need a tetanus shot,” he growled.

“I had one at my last checkup. I do know how to take care of myself.”

She brushed by him, heading for the back entrance to the store.

“Damn it, Macy.” Liam grabbed her shoulder and spun her around. “Let me see your hand.”

Still holding it against her chest, Macy shook her head. “It’s not bad. I just need to change the bandage. I have a first-aid kit in my office.”

In an instant he stood in her path, blocking her from getting inside. “Do not dismiss me.”

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