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My stomach fluttered at his casual reference to dads. Did he consider himself to be a father figure? I liked that a lot. To cover my reaction, I said to Delaney, “It’s time for bed. Why don’t you get changed and brush your teeth.”
Not wanting Mac to leave just yet, I said, “You want a beer while I tuck her in? I want to hear all about it.”
He waved me off. “I’ll get it. You take care of our girl.”
Our girl.I bit my lip against the smile that threatened to spread over my face as I followed Delaney to her room. I waited while she changed in the bathroom, then tucked her in. “Was it everything you hoped for?”
“It was so much better. He took me to a fancy dinner and let me order whatever I wanted. He didn’t ask whether I was really going to eat it or worry about me wasting it.”
I winced at her reference to Carter. He had money, but he was stingy with it and never failed to complain when we wasted it on frivolous things. But I was proud of her for eating healthy, even if salmon was expensive. “Good for you for ordering what you want. How was the dance?”
“My favorite part was dancing with Mac.” She fell silent for a few seconds before she asked, “You don’t think Dad will be jealous, do you?”
“Why would he?” I felt uneasy because Alice had posted it on my account, and there might be questions.
Her eyes fluttered closed. “I don’t know. I’m tired.”
I leaned over and kissed her forehead. “I love you.”
“Love you too,” she murmured before turning to her side.
I turned off the light and walked the short distance to the living room.
In the living room, Mac had taken off his suit jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his button-down shirt, beer bottle in hand. He looked sexy working in his jeans and T-shirt, but in a suit, he was irresistible. I wanted to straddle him, but that was a line he might not be ready to cross.
Mac stood when I entered the room. “You want to sit in front of the fire in the main living room? You only have a little longer to have it for yourself.”
“I’d love that.” It wasn’t late, and I was energized now that I knew Delaney was okay.
I grabbed a couple of water bottles and followed him through the door between the spaces and sat on the couch while he threw some logs onto the fire. “These won’t burn too long.”
“I’m always afraid to start one because I’m not sure how long it would take to burn out.”
Mac gave me a look before he sat next to me. “We’ll find out.”
“Tell me everything,” I said, excited to hear the details. “It looked like she was having fun.”
Mac met my gaze and nodded. “She had the best time.”
What if Mac was her father? The feeling was so strong I had to look away.
He rubbed his chin. “I felt like another dad. It wasn’t awkward at all.”
My shoulders lowered at his admission. “Oh good. I was a little worried about that.”
“No one asked who I was, and I didn’t say anything. We just did our thing.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“I loved that I was the one who got to take her. That probably makes me the bad guy.”
My mouth dropped open as my attention turned to him. “Why would you say that?”
“Her father should be here.” Mac’s voice lowered to a hush, even though we’d closed the door between the two spaces.
It would be unlikely that Delaney would get up in the middle of the night and come looking for me, but I loved being in the B&B space and imagining everything it could be.
I pressed my lips into a straight line. “He made it clear he didn’t want to be. Did Delaney seem upset?”
