He continued to stare at the kid who looked up at him with so much faith and encouragement, he knew he wasn’t going to be capable of turning him down.
Unfortunately, the noodles in the pan got stuck to the bottom after they boiled too long. Bridger didn’t seem to notice that some of his bowl had only bits of macaroni noodles. He dug into his meal with the energy of someone who hadn’t been fed for at least a week.
To say Mack was intrigued with the kid would have been an understatement. Bridger had proven to be interesting from the moment they’d officially been introduced. For the most part, he was quiet. But that didn’t mean he was shy. Bridger was more than capable of speaking his mind or asking the hard questions. There was a lot about him that reminded Mack of Lacey.
The best part about Bridger was that whenever he looked at Mack, he appeared to be in awe of him, if that was even possible. Mack wouldn’t go so far as to say that Bridger looked up to him. But the way Bridger had made him feel like he could do something he’d never attempted before did something inside his chest.
Mack rubbed at the spot, finding it aching slightly.
After dinner, they watched a movie. Of course, Bridger wanted a repeat of the movie night they’d shared when he was sick. They settled on the couch, and the next thing Mack knew, the soft click of a door closing roused him from his sleep.
He started, his eyes shifting to the boy who’d fallen asleep against his side. Then he lifted his gaze to find a weary Lacey pulling her jacket from her shoulders. There was something in her eyes that he couldn’t read. Maybe it was the dimness of the room. Or perhaps he could blame his sleep riddled brain. Either way, their eyes locked, and all he could do was smile.
Carefully, Mack shifted to gather Bridger into his arms. “I’ll get him to his bed.”
Lacey nodded, an appreciative smile lighting her face.
When he returned to the front room, she was seated on the couch, her elbows on her knees and her face in her hands.
“Hey,” he murmured. “How was your shift?”
Lacey lifted her eyes to meet his. “Same old, same old.” She got to her feet and moved closer to him, one hand grasping her upper arm. “Thank you. For everything.”
Mack’s fingers twitched to reach out and touch her, to caress her skin. “I’d do anything for you,” he all but whispered. He didn’t care if it sounded too serious to admit such a thing. It was true, and he needed her to know it.
She gave him a pained smile and looked away.
“What’s the matter?” he asked, this time grasping her chin with his finger and thumb. “Talk to me.”
She shook her head. “It’s… It’s complicated.”
He attempted to look nonplussed as he quirked a brow. “I’m good with complicated. Maybe I can help.”
For a moment, he thought she might actually tell him something. She even opened her mouth, but then she shut it and shook her head. “It’s late.”
He watched her for several moments but inevitably chose to let her drop the subject. “Yeah. It is,” he conceded.
Lacey stared up at him, her eyes swimming with an emotion he couldn’t read, and all he wanted was to pull her into his arms and kiss her.
He’d settle for something alittleless intimate. Placing his hands on either side of her face, he pulled her close. Her eyes widened as if she understood his intentions. Then he placed a kiss to her forehead and released her. Lacey blinked up at him, her lips forming a perfect ‘o’. But she didn’t say anything.
After tossing one last fleeting look in her direction, he strode toward the door.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“Where were you last night?”Caleb asked with a grunt as he grabbed a bag of feed and threw it over his shoulder. “I thought everyone was going to hang out at our place and play some board games.”
Mack tossed a sidelong glance at Noah. So, his brother hadn’t ratted him out. Whatever the reason, Mack was grateful. He wasn’t sure where everything stood between himself and Lacey. She’d been so good at keeping her walls in place.
“Something came up.”
“Seems a lot is coming up lately,” Caleb mused, giving Noah a similar look that Mack had just sent his way. Perhaps they had been discussing something that didn’t apply to what Mack had going on with Lacey.
Mack rolled his eyes. “I’m still getting my work done. Just because I find an interest in other things and I’m not constantly hanging around the ranch doesn’t mean I’m up to no good.”
“No one said you were up to no good,” Caleb prodded, tossing the bag at his feet and turning to get another one. “I was simplystating a fact. You’re not around as much as you used to be. You’re not hanging out with the family as much. If I had to wager a guess, I’d say that something is going on between you and someone else.”
Mack glowered at Noah. There was no way he hadn’t mentioned something about Lacey.
