Page 19 of Lost in You (The Monroes 3)

“I know you’re there for me, Dad.” Her cell vibrated on the counter where it lay charging. She’d check it later. “I’m really fine, but it isn’t my store. It’s our store no matter what. Come in and do whatever you want. Now that we don’t live together, I miss seeing you all hours of the day.”

Her father laughed and shook his head. “I’m sure you’re happy to have your own space. Now your dates can pick you up and not have to run into your dad.”

“My last few dates I’ve actually met at a restaurant,” she countered with a grin. “And I haven’t been on a date in almost a month.”

She refused to admit, even to herself, that she’d been preoccupied with a certain Monroe brother and she’d wasted time waiting on him to make a move. Granted, he did admit he wanted to kiss her, so . . . was that a move? If so, could he scoot his fine rear end a little quicker and make said kiss happen?

“I don’t want to meddle in your love life, so I’ll just stay in my apartment. You tell me if you need me at the store, to shoot a guy, or to walk you down the aisle. I’m always here.”

Macy laughed. Her father had the driest sense of humor, but she adored him. He’d been her only stability after she returned from college a shattered teen who’d seen the cruelty of life and lost her mother all in the span of twenty-four hours. Even though her father didn’t know everything, he’d held her while she cried, he’d wiped her tears, and he’d never questioned her need to be home. He’d never acted like her turning away from the scholarship was a disappointment. No matter the decisions she made, he always stood right behind her. And he’d done every bit of it through his own grief.

“I don’t plan on walking down the aisle anytime soon,” she told him. “And I don’t really want you shooting anyone for me either. Feel free to come in to the store anytime, though. It’s our home, Dad. It always will be.”

“Speaking of home, how’s Liam working out?”

Macy resisted the urge to sigh. Crossing her arms over her chest and shifting her feet, she tried to think of the proper words. “I haven’t seen much of him.” Okay, that might be a lie. “He tends to be getting in as I’m closing up and uses the back steps.”

Well, that much was completely true. Best not to mention the whole late night escapade. In reality, she wasn’t even sure what had happened then. She’d wanted him to kiss her, to quit dancing around the friction that always stood between them. But he hadn’t. Liam Monroe was the only man she just couldn’t make herself take that first step with. She wanted him to make the leap. She wanted him to cross that line in the fiercest way . . . and the fact she was so hung up on him terrified her.

She’d promised herself she wouldn’t let another man control her. Being physically controlling was one thing, but Liam had complete emotional power over her in a way that both thrilled and terrified her.

“That poor boy never was the same after that accident,” her father muttered, shaking his head as if talking to himself. “Maybe now that he’s back home he can put those demons to rest and move on. Family is the best medicine for healing.”

She wouldn’t bank on Liam recovering. From what she’d witnessed, he had enclosed himself behind a self-erected steel wall. What would it take for him to remove that outer shell and let someone in? He was loyal to his family, that much was obvious, but he even kept them at somewhat of a distance.

“I’m his landlord, not his therapist.” There. That sounded convincing. “Besides, I’ve heard what an amazing chef he is. Bella Vous is one busy little resort, and between Cora’s magical hands and Liam’s dishes, Chelsea’s vision is really exploding.”

Raking a hand over his still thick, now silver hair, her father laughed. “A women-only resort. I’ll be the first to admit the concept sounded crazy when I first heard it, but I know the determination of those Monroe boys. They were raised right, once they came to Haven. They may have had their share of hard times—they’re human. But they’ve moved on and made something of themselves. Ed and Carol would be proud of their boys.”

Each of the brothers, and Chelsea, had come from foster care when they’d been sent to Haven. Macy didn’t know much about their lives before they came to town, before she met them at school, but those early years couldn’t have been good considering none of the boys ever talked about their pasts.

She wondered what all Liam had endured before the accident, before he ever came to Haven. Were his only good years the brief window from when he came to live with the Monroes? Did he ever have an actual happy memory? Macy physically ached for him. She couldn’t even imagine how much pain he carried around. What had happened with his biological parents? She had so many questions she wanted to ask, yet she had absolutely no right.

“The resort has definitely brought quite a bit of new tourists to the area,” she added. “Especially those day trippers from Savannah who are just nosing around and want to know what all the buzz is about. They’ve been open since the beginning of the year and have more bookings than they expected right off the bat.”

“A smart business plan is what it takes,” he said with a firm nod. “Perseverance and motivation, too. Those boys had everything on their side from the beginning.”

Macy’s phone vibrated on the counter behind her once again. Someone clearly wanted to talk to her.

“I better get back home,” her father sighed once again. “If you don’t have plans for Saturday night, I’d like to take my favorite girl out to dinner.”

Macy smiled. His favorite girl used to be the position of her mother, and now Macy held that title. She was honored.

“I have no plans and

I’d cancel them for my favorite guy,” she said, then remembered the game on Saturday she was invited to. An early game. “Would you mind watching the store for a bit on Saturday? Maybe from ten-thirty to noon?”

He cocked his head. “Something going on?”

She didn’t want to discuss the position she was offered, but she didn’t want to lie to him, either. “I need to check something out. Can I wait and tell you about it later? It’s still new to me and I’m not sure how I feel, yet.”

He eyed her another minute, then finally nodded. “Sure. I’ve got nothing else going on.”

In all likelihood he would’ve been at the store anyway. “I know that’s a busy time, so I’ll try not to be gone too long.”

Maybe if she just went and watched an inning or two she’d get a good sense of where her head was. Macy would no doubt know the second she walked up to the stadium if she could handle being there or not.

“You forget I used to work at that store alone when your mother had to run errands and you were too little to help,” he reminded her. “I think I can handle an hour and a half. I’m more interested in what’s pulling you away, though, but I’ll be patient.”

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