Raising an eyebrow, Momma asked, “You mean when you’re helpin’ those kids who are so much less fortunate than you’ve ever been a day in your life?”
“Wha—” Mac’s jaw dropped open as she stared at her mom with wide eyes. “How’d you know about that? Did Will tell you?”
“Oh, please, like I need your sister to tell me anything. You girls never give me enough credit. There isn’t much y’all’ve done that I don’t know about—including that dent in our car when you were seventeen,” she added with a raised brow.
You could’ve blown Mac over with a well-timed breeze. She just stared at her mom, having no idea what to say.
Finally, she managed, “So, you mean to tell me you’re…” But she couldn’t finish the sentence, mortified to find a knot in her throat and her nose suddenly tingling.
Momma squeezed her hand, a fond smile tipping the corners of her mouth. “Proud of you? Immensely.” She wrapped her arm around Mac’s shoulders and squeezed her into her side. “Oh, sweetheart, I had no idea how badly you needed to hear that. I thought you wouldn’twantto. I’m sorry. I might not have said it, but I’ve felt it. Every day of your life.”
Mac had cried enough over the past few weeks to last a lifetime, and her eyes were stinging even now. She cleared her throat and blinked fast, trying to get a handle on herself. “Thank you.”
“Momma!” Rory called from across the Square, waving their mom over.
“Always,” Momma said quietly. With a squeeze and a kiss pressed to Mac’s temple, she stepped away, almost immediately engulfed by the sea of people currently milling about.
The fastest celebration in the history of Havenbrook had been put together when news of Ella’s disappearance and subsequent rescue had spread around town. Edna and Gran had been on the phone, coordinating everything, and by the time Ella had been cleared by the EMTs, tents draped with Christmas lights already stood in the Square, heat lamps placed every twenty yards or so to ward off the early December chill.
The Willow Tree had set up a stand in front of their location, serving hot chocolate—spiked for the adults, natch, with mix-ins for the children. Next to it, in front of The Sweet Spot, was the old stand Mac had helped Hudson paint back in high school. One of the teenagers Lilah had hired in deference to their increased business was handing out fresh mini donuts to the crowd while Lilah was completely wrapped up in Caleb.
Her arms were around his waist as he stared into her eyes before leaning down to press a kiss to her lips. Mac blinked at the sight. Holy shit, she must’ve really been in her own world not to have seen that coming.
She looked away, searching out the one person she was desperate to lay eyes on, finding Hudson talking to his momma. He squeezed her tight, saying something that made her smile. They both glanced down to a doting CB, sitting at Hudson’s feet, her tail wagging at their sudden attention.
Fuck, Mac’s heart ached. There stood the only man she’d ever loved, and he was leaving. Again. And there was nothing she could do about it.
But…well…she might not have been able to do anything aboutthat, but she could do something about him leaving without knowing she loved him. Loved him with every ounce of her being. She was filled to the brim with it—had been nearly her whole life—and it was time he knew.
Without thought, she strode toward them, taking a quick detour to offer her thanks to Caleb before she spoke to Hudson.
The new couple pulled apart as she approached, and Lilah turned to her with a smile. “You did great today, Mac. Nice job.”
“Thanks.” She forced a grin that she prayed didn’t look like a grimace. She’d been getting better at receiving the compliments that had been showered upon her all day. She hoped.
She turned her attention to Caleb. “Thanks for your help in the helicopter.”
Tipping his head in acknowledgment, he said, “Anytime.” And then he pressed a kiss to Lilah’s temple and murmured, “Find me after you two talk.”
Lilah nodded and watched him leave, a fond smile on her lips.
“So…you and Caleb, huh?”
“Me and Caleb,” Lilah confirmed with a grin.
Mac didn’t know the ins and outs of their relationship, but she was pretty sure it was brand-new. She thought back to when they’d come into The Willow Tree that night when Hudson and Caleb had first arrived. And while there’d been some sexual tension between them, they definitely hadn’t been a couple. So, weeks-old, then. If that. And here she’d been worried about maintaining something with Hudson when they had the foundation of a lifetime of friendship under them.
“How’re y’all gonna manage that?” she asked, her curiosity getting the best of her.
Lilah lifted a shoulder. “We’re just gonna.”
Just like that. No worry. No stress. No second-guessing. “Won’t it be hard?”
“Of course,” Lilah answered on a laugh. “But what relationship isn’t? This is just a different kind of hard.” She lifted a single shoulder. “But it’ll be worth it if I get him out of the deal. Besides, I know more than most that life is too short. You never know when your last day is gonna be.”
The thought stopped Mac cold, urgency suddenly choking her. She’d been approaching this all wrong. Since the first time Hudson had left, and then when she’d cut off communication with him after his accident, she’d done it allwrong. She’d been so fucking stupid. So stupid and…scared.
Worse than Hudson being distracted by Mac’s love was if his time was up, regardless, and he didn’t even know he had it. Worse would be if she never got to tell him in the first place.
