“That’s them,” he said quietly.
Mac nodded.
Mac’s whole face softened. “Cute little girl,” he said.
“If you say so.”
“Oh, here we go.” Mac didn’t take his gaze off Juniper. “You don’t like kids.”
“I never said I didn’t like them.”I don’t do kidswas a different thing entirely and Mac of all people knew it. “We’ve got a working system. I leave them alone, they leave me alone, everybody comes out happy.”
“That’s not a system. That’s avoidance.”
“It’s a system.”
At that moment Juniper looked up.
She’d been absorbed in the puppy in Jodie’s arms—leaning in to scratch its ear, chattering happily—and then some instinct pulled her head up and her silver-gray eyes found Colin across the yard.
She gave him a small, careful smile. Unmistakably for him. She lifted her hand and waved.
His heart squeezed. He nodded back because he didn’t know what else to do.
Maren was looking at him too. She gave him a warm smile and now his heart was definitely doing things it shouldn’t.
She’s just grateful you let her in and didn’t turn her away. Don’t read anything else into it.
Mac was already moving toward them.
“Hey.” Colin straightened off the rail. “Hey, man…What are you doing?”
“Being polite.” Mac didn’t slow down. “My mama raised me not to stand on the other side of a yard from a kid who waved at me.” He glanced back at Colin, grinning. “Are you coming? The aunt gave you a nice smile.”
“I’m busy working.”
“I think that’s a fib, friend.”
Mac walked across the yard with the loose, cheerful stride of a man approaching a group of friends at a summer barbecue. Colin fell in a half-step behind because not following would have drawn more attention than following. At least that’s what he told himself, and not that Maren’s smile was pulling him in like steel to a magnet.
“Ladies,” Mac said, with a tip of an imaginary hat that was somehow not cheesy when he did it. “Looks like you have a puppy situation. Thought we’d better come investigate.”
Jodie’s cheeks pinked up and she quickly looked back down at the puppy trying desperately to lick her chin. “Situation is ongoing,” Jodie said. “Report: very cute but squirmy.”
“I can see that.” Mac reached out to scratch the puppy’s ears and he tried very hard to lick Mac’s fingers. Then he squatted down in front of Juniper and gentled his voice, dialing it down about three notches. “Hi. I’m Mac. What do you think of that guy?” He nodded at the puppy in Jodie’s arms.
Juniper considered Mac, then the puppy. Then she went back to watching Colin.
“She thinks he’s cool enough to name,” Maren said, when it became clear her niece wasn’t going to answer. “Pretzel.”
“Pretzel’s a solid choice,” Mac said, returning his gaze to the puppy. “FromBluey, am I right?” Mac smiled big.
Juni’s mouth twitched. Just barely.
She still didn’t look at him. She kept her gaze on Colin. He felt that silver-eyed gaze like a hand pressing on his sternum and he had no idea what to do with it except stand still and let himself be scrutinized by a preschooler.
Mac glanced up at Colin with barely concealed amusement. “Well,” he said under his breath, “looks like somebody’s got a fan.”
“Don’t,” Colin muttered.
