Page 89 of Lost in You (The Monroes 3)

Of course people cooed over the sweet baby, making Macy’s heart soar. She already loved this little girl. There was no way to detach from all the feelings that accompanied being her caregiver.

Macy set the tiny, bite-sized pieces on the high-chair tray. Lucy immediately grabbed one and shoved it into her mouth. Once she chewed that, her slobbery hand reached for another.

“We have a winner,” Macy muttered as she cut off a chunk of fruit for herself.

The green beans earlier had been a big, giant no. The green mess might never be fully cleaned from her office at the store. Macy had brought in some leftovers for her lunch and decided to get some veggies into Lucy. Clearly this girl was all about her fruits and the greens could take a hike.

Macy had just sliced up more tiny bites when her doorbell rang. She threw a glance to the clock on the oven and realized it was a little later than she’d thought. She’d actually left the store early when her father decided he’d help show Brock how to close out the register. Macy had been hesitant, but figured her father wanted that time with Brock. It was good for the teen to be working for someone other than his adoptive family. He was a remarkable kid, and from what she’d seen so far, he was going to be quite an asset to her business.

She felt silly calling Brock a kid. He was practically an adult, with life experiences nobody should have had to endure.

Macy grabbed a towel and wiped her hands. The sticky juice from the peaches clung to her fingers, but she’d wash them in a bit.

Time to greet her guest.

When she pulled the door open, Liam stood there with his arm wrapped around a huge box. Macy quickly went to take it.

“I’ve got it.”

Fine. She wasn’t going to argue. She moved back, opening the door wider as she gestured for him to come in.

“I wasn’t sure what all you had, so I tried to grab everything I could think of.”

He headed straight for the island. Lucy’s eyes widened when she saw him. Immediately, Macy went to her and picked up a piece of the peach to show her that everything was just fine and normal.

Liam sat the box on the counter and glanced around. “I can get most of this started. I’ll just yell when I need you.”

“That’s fine. She’s had dinner. I just wanted to give her a snack. She seems a little more content when she’s preoccupied with something.”

Liam stared at the little girl. “Is she . . . has she been okay?”

There was no hiding the hurt in his tone. The hurt of losing his mother, then the years that followed, had clearly shaped the man who stood before her. Did anyone ever recover from such a tragedy?

“She’s done considerably well.”

Macy picked up another piece and held it to Lucy’s lips. She’d yet to take her eyes off the new guest. Macy understood where she was coming from. Liam was a hard man to ignore.

“And you?” he asked, his eyes meeting hers. “How have you been with her?”

“We survived our first day at the store,” Macy told him with a smile. “Having Dad and Brock helped, though.”

“You didn’t tell me Brock was going to work for you when I was here yesterday.”

With his good hand propped on the counter, that scar, and those dark eyes, Liam looked every bit the hard man he wanted to portray. Macy knew better. She knew it bugged him that he hadn’t known what was going on in his own family.

“It didn’t come up,” she said, shrugging.

He started to say something else, but just shook his head and started unloading the box. Macy finished feeding Lucy, and by the time she was done, they were both sticky with the combination of peach juice and drool.

“I need to wash her off.” She pulled the tray off and sat it in the farm-style sink. “Will you need me in the next ten minutes?”

Liam had already pulled out a huge mixing bowl and was tossing in ingredients like a champ with his one hand. “I’m okay for now.”

The tension between them rattled her. The sexual tension they’d initially started with was at least something she could handle, like a stepping stone, because she knew where they’d been heading. Right now? She had no clue what was going on. Part of her wanted to hold out some sliver of hope that he’d stay, but in her heart she knew he wouldn’t.

And even knowing all of that, she couldn’t just turn off her feelings for him. She’d never felt this way about another man in her entire life. He was everything; he’d shown her everything. How could he think what they had wasn’t special enough to fight for?

After stripping Lucy, Macy sat her in the tub and ran the smallest amount of lukewarm water. She tossed in a few toys and let her splash around for a bit. Macy squatted down, picked up a plastic fish and filled it with water. Squeezing the toy, water shot out the fish’s mouth and onto Lucy’s belly. The little girl giggled, warming Macy’s heart. She wanted her to keep smiling, to play and have as normal a childhood as possible.

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