I love that little guy, and I love his mother too.
They areitfor me.
Although I can imagine how blissful our life would be if we worked standard hours and didn’t have the weight of thousands of missing women on our shoulders, that isn’t our reality.
This is us. We’re the change the world needs to get better, and I’m honored to be a part of something bigger.
As Macy prepares for her first undercover sting since becoming a mother, I hover, feeling as useless as tits on a bull. I made sure Macy was mic’d up correctly and that her comms were clear, but that was the only task on my agenda. This is Macy’s baby.
Despite the trawler’s net being too far south, the bureau’s finest are working on tonight’s sting. We’re family. When one of our own needs help, we band together.
The remembrance won’t stop me from issuing a final warning, though. “If anything goes wrong tonight, you’ll answer to me. Understood?”
A chorus of “Yes, Agent Rogers” bellows out of the comms system on the desk in the suite. Only one person is brave enough to refer to me by my first name.
“Yes, Grayson.”
Adeline is working decoy tonight. Should Macy appear uncomfortable, Adeline will do whatever is necessary to get her out. A spilled drink, an irate ex-girlfriend. She will play any role required to ensure the safe evacuation of the lead agent.
I have confidence in our team and the woman leading them, but there’s no harm in making sure Macy knows she can change her mind at any time. She’s still technically on medical leave, so no one would bat an eye at her sitting this one out.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to take point on this, Mace? You can stay here with Mason and order room service. It will be on Crew’s dime, and we both know he doesn’t work doubles because he needs the money.”
Macy shoots me a look that shows love, but also that she thinks I’m an idiot. “We agreed that our son needs one parent with him at all times. We didn’t become parents at our age to hand his care over to someone else.” As I dip my chin in complete agreement, her smoky eyes rake my body. “And as sexy as you’d look in a dress, I remember how loudly you whined the last time I strapped a makeshift extender to your midsection.”
A splutter vibrates my lips as I waggle my brows. “I think I could pull it off.”
She grins before she presses her red-painted lips to my mouth. Her fake stomach folds when it digs into my belt buckle. “You’re a lot of things, Malfoy, but an undercover presenting as a soon-to-be single mother isn’t one of them.”
The briefest glimpse of determination in her eyes ends my campaign. “Fine. But if anything feels off, pull out. No heroics.”
She agrees, already in agent mode. “Understood.”
I scoop up Mason, who’s fussing in his travel bassinet. Even though he doesn’t have my blood, I tell anyone who will listen the origin of his name. It’s half of Macy’s name and half of mine—because that is precisely what he is. Ours.
While Macy straps her gun to her specially ordered thigh holster, I settle into an oversized armchair in the living room to feed Mason. Even though he doesn’t drink every hour now, his greedy gulps make you think he hasn’t been fed for days. He drinks hungrily, his tiny fingers curling around my index finger more than his bottle.
Macy’s admiring glance shifts to shock when he slams down half a bottle in a matter of minutes, barely coming up for air. I burp him as taught by the nurses during the two weeks I took care of him when Macy couldn’t.
Chuckles boom through comms when his burp rattles through Macy’s listening device, and then he rewards my efforts with a sleepy smile. Macy says his grins are wind smiles, but his enormous burp before it reveals what it’s really about.
He loves me almost as much as I love him and his mother.
As I offer Mason more of his bottle, Macy’s phone rings. She glances at the screen, frowns, and then enters the primary bedroom to take her call in private. I only catch fragments of her conversation since Mason’s gulps are loud, but the parts I hear disclose a snippet of worry in her words.
Though the urge to fret over her hasn’t weakened a smidge since the minute we reached the hospital, I keep my ass planted in my seat. Macy is a damn good agent, but she is an even better mother and partner. I trust that she’d never put herself in a situation that would risk her losing those titles, which means I also trust that she’ll ask for help if she needs it.
I play it cool when Macy returns to the living room. It is a fucking hard feat. Though her face is composed, her eyes show trouble.
She bobs down to kiss Mason’s milk-dotted cheek before she brushes her mouth against mine. “Love you, boys. See you soon.”
“Be careful,” I plead before demanding another sample of her lip gloss with an arrogant grunt.
She rolls her eyes, faking annoyance of my arrogance. It is all a lie. She loves my cockiness. It is on par with my admiration of her strength.
Only two months ago, she was on her deathbed. Now, she’s about to lead an undercover operative.
Fuck, my girl is strong.
