“I don’t want you to go. Ever. I’m…I’m sorry. It’s not easy for me to talk about this, and I promise we will later. But right now I’m sorry for almost wrecking this surprise you and Lillie-bug made for me.”
“Why do you call me that?” Lillie stood before him, demanding an answer like a little queen. “Bugs are gross.”
“But ladybugs are cute, and they bring good luck.” He brushed the hair off her face. “And I’m thinking you and your uncle Ty have made me a very lucky man.”
“Can we go back to the kitchen? I’m hungry, and Uncle Ty said the muffins should be cool enough by now, and I want a taste.”
“How about a little hug first?” He held out his arms, and she flung herself into his chest. His arms closed around her sturdy little body, but it was Tyler’s eyes he sought over her shoulder. Amazed and somewhat shocked, Tyler’s eyes gleamed, like he knew a secret but was intent on keeping it to himself for now.
“Okay, let’s go and get you something to eat and get ready.”
Lillie ran ahead of them to the kitchen, and he caught Tyler by the shoulder before he walked out of reach.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For coming after me and forcing me to see what’s real.”
Tyler met his gaze. “I don’t know what’s real or not. But it sounds to me as though you’re fighting a battle with your past and how it relates to your future. And that’s a difficult thing to come to terms with.”
Marcus nodded. “And the realization that you’ve become the one person you’ve despised the most.” He huffed out a self-conscious laugh.
“Don’t beat yourself up about it. The people who love you see the real person and know who you are.”
Tyler’s words hung between them, but Marcus wouldn’t, hecouldn’ttake that step. And knowing Tyler wouldn’t push him, he chose the easy way out.
“The guys will be here soon. Let’s get ready for them.”
*
“She’s a littlecharmer, isn’t she?” With his ever-present sketchpad in hand, Julian had been sitting and watching Lillie perform the little dance routine she and the other children at the preschool had learned from Tyler. “And it’s obvious she’s crazy about you.”
Watching Lillie’s fierce concentration on her steps, Marcus grinned. “The child has excellent taste, what can I say?”
“Either that or you’ve bribed her, which is more your style.”
Zach sat by Sam on the sofa, and from the tender expression on his face as he too watched Lillie, Marcus knew once his friend and Sam got married, the next step would be to have a child. If ever anyone was made to be a father, it was Zach.
Observing both of his friends with their lovers, Marcus marveled at the changes their relationships had brought to them, though in opposite ways.
Julian’s sharp edges had smoothed, and while he always dressed like only moments before he’d stepped off a fashion runway with his models, the overbearing, slightly intense attitude had quieted. Marcus knew it had to do with Julian’s good-looking burly husband, Nick, who no longer harbored his dark secrets and was finally free to live life again with a smile in his dark-blue eyes.
Zach too had changed, but in a different way. The awkward and diffident personality faded; he’d become more assertive, voicing his opinions often. He’d filled out some and dressed more like an adult rather than slopping around in faded tee shirts and jeans like an overgrown teenager hiding out from the world in his mother’s basement. Zach hadn’t lost his inherent sweetness and kind nature, yet he now carried himself with a self-confidence that only heightened his overall appeal. Sam, who Marcus could see wore the smile of a man well satisfied by his lover, had found the way to bring Zach’s best qualities to the forefront.
How ironic that he was the one to end up in a relationship with a man who had a child. But Lillie was special. He narrowed his eyes, waiting as she performed a complicated step she’d had trouble with, and clapped as she got it right. When she’d finished and gotten a hug from Tyler, she ran right over to him.
“Did you see me? I got it right.”
Marcus gave her a hug. “I sure did, Lillie-bug. I think after you change, you deserve a cookie.”
“Two cookies.” She smiled up into his face.
If she could bottle that charm, she’d make a million dollars. “Maybe.”
She sidled up to Julian, peeking at the open sketchpad on his knee. “Is that me?” She pointed to the drawings.
Julian studied her for a moment. “Yes. Do you like them?” He held out the pad to her, and she took it, cocking her head one way and then the other.
