“You want to go sunset chasing—withme?” I asked, needing clarification.
“Yeah, why not?”
“Let me just go pay our check real quick,” I said, pulling my wallet from my back pocket.
“I can pay for myself,” she said, clearly surprised by the offer. She dug through her purse, probably searching for cash.
“It’s cute that you think I’d let that happen, but I won’t. So sit tight while I go take care of it. And don’t get yourself into any trouble in the three minutes you’ll be left unsupervised,” I added. “You’re like a cat with nine lives, and I’m pretty sure you’ve only got about three left.”
She patted the booth. “Sit. Stay. Got it.”
She woofed at me as I walked away, doing my best to hide the smirk tugging at my mouth.
I stepped up to the register, and Maggie caught me out of the corner of her eye.
“Howdy, Sheriff,” she said with a smile as I handed over our receipt.
“None of that sheriff business today, Maggie. Just Liam.”
“I heard you’ll be going by daddy before too long,” she said, punching in numbers into the outdated register.
Maggie was the heart of Silver Creek. If there was news to know, she heard it first. No surprise she already knew about the predicament I’d found myself in.
“Yes, ma’am,” I replied.
“How’s Molly?”
“So far, so good. She’s finally over the morning sickness, so she’s got a little more energy.”
“I was down at the courthouse the other day, updating my business license for this old place. I talked with Mrs. Jenny—she’s over property records and such—and she told me this weird story about someone named Liam buying the old Shirley house. She was so surprised since the place had been on the market forever. I thought it was odd because, as long as I’ve lived in this town—which has been since the day I was born, mind you—you’re the only Liam I know. I kept thinking, what would Liam need with a big ol’ run-down house and a big plot of land?”
I glanced back at Molly, her back to us. We stood far enough away that she couldn’t hear a word Maggie or me were saying.
“Then I heard a different story,” Maggie continued, “about how you really dropped the ball with Molly in the beginning. That got me thinking maybe this mystery Liam was trying to dig himself out of the hole he landed in.” She paused, eyeing me. “Crazy story, huh?”
“Sure is,” I said, though it was clear Maggie had me all figured out.
“Just hope that Liam guy I keep hearing about knows how many people are standing behind the mother of his child, ready to kick his ass if he evertreats her like that again,” she added. “I may be old, but I can still throw a mean punch.”
Even if the ass kickings were directed toward me, I loved how much Molly was loved in this town, because that meant our son would be loved too. If there ever came a time when I couldn’t be there to protect him, I knew plenty of people would be waiting in line to take my place.
“You got a name yet?” she asked, handing over my change.
“Not yet. I figure I’ll leave that up to Molly. I don’t think I’m in much of a place to make that decision.”
“Here’s my bit of old lady advice, Liam. In the midst of this changing season in your life, don’t let your brain forget this: Just because you made a mistake doesn’t mean Molly won’t still want you around to help make decisions. She likes to play independent, but being a mom is hard—even on the best days. There’s going to come a time when she’ll need help but be too afraid to ask for it. Make sure your eyes are open wide enough to see it when it happens. Understand me?”
“I understand, Maggie.”
“Now go take the pretty girl to find a pretty sunset before she changes her mind about forgiving you.”
“I don’t think she’s close to forgiving me yet, Maggie,” I replied to the wishful thinking on her part.
“My intuition is never wrong,” she said as she turned to greet a new customer.
I considered her words as I walked back to the booth.
“Oh look—she can listen,” I said to Molly. “You ready to go?”
