Page 106 of Always Be Mine
“People like Lucy?”
Craig swallowed hard. “There are a lot of people like Lucy who have so much love to give.”
Meri was quiet for a moment. She lifted her unicorn to her nose and held it there before lowering it again. “Okay,” she said.
“Okay?”
Meri nodded.
“You know we can talk about this whenever you want to, okay? I promise I’ll always answer your questions as honestly as I can. Deal?”
“Deal.” She nodded again, and Craig gave her a hug and kiss.
He held her in his arms and let all the love he had flow into her, hoping she felt it. That she always felt his love.
When Craig finally sat back, there was a new question on Meri’s lips. “Dad?”
“What’s up?”
“Can Lucy be my mom?”
Craig sat back with a chuckle and shook his head. He was about to open his mouth to tell Meri that it wasn’t that easy, but he stopped himself.
Maybe it wasn’tthateasy. But why did it have to be hard?
He’d already screwed things up by complicating everything, keeping secrets and not being totally upfront with the woman he loved and the people he cared about. Maybe it was time to try a new approach.
“I would like that very much,” he answered honestly.
Garfield jumped up on the bed and threaded his orange, fluffy body between them, giving him an idea.
“Meri? You know what? I think you’ve both given me an idea, because if we want Lucy to be your mom, we’re going to have to ask her.”
Meri bounced up and down on the bed.
He put a hand on her knee to calm her. “But we can’t get ahead of ourselves, because first things first. Lucy’s still, well…I think Lucy’s pretty upset with me. And I need to?—”
“What did you do?” Meri tilted her head, pressed her lips together, and looked so stern that Craig couldn’t help but laugh. “Dad?”
“I made a mistake,” he admitted. “But I’m going to fix it. At least, I’m going to try my hardest. I need you to know that even if she doesn’t forgive me, that won’t change how she feels about you, okay? Lucy loves you, and that won’t change no matter what.”
ChapterTwenty-Seven
After his conversation with Meri,everything became clear. His only regret was that it had taken him so long to get out of his own way and see things for what they were.
He loved Lucy.
He was in love with Lucy.
That was all that mattered.
It was that simple.
His dad was right. Life was meant to be shared. And that’s exactly what he intended to do, if she would forgive him.
After he’d tucked Meri into bed for the night, he’d called her, but it went straight to voicemail. He tried again. On the third attempt, he left a voicemail.
Lucy. It’s Craig.
