Page 25 of Almost Love

“Dig, we had a deal. Rinse out the dishes and you can have a cookie,” Mack told his kid who was pouting and stomping around the kitchen.

Clementine watched in fascination as Indigo begrudgingly climbed onto the stool in front of the kitchen sink and got down to work. Mack was a damn good father, even when he was running on fumes. Years ago, when they’d moved to Wildes, they made a plan to take turns hosting each other every two weeks. Between raising a nine-year-old and working through his artist’s block, her best friend was clearly stretched too thin. When she called earlier in the day to see if he wanted a raincheck, Mack insisted she come by. And to bring Indigo’s favorite cookies.

“Are you okay, buddy?”

Mack groaned from the other side of the kitchen table before knocking back a large gulp of his beer. His nail beds were crusted with paint, flecks of red and yellow decorated his arms and there was some in his hair.

“I sort of had a breakthrough. But it also kept me up all night.”

She gasped, sitting up in her chair with wide eyes. “What?!”

“Wanna see?”

“Does the Pope shit in the woods?” she asked with a snort.

“Ew, Tiny, that’s gross. The Pope shi—poops on a gold toilet,” Indigo announced, wincing at Mack’s glare. “Dad, I’m done. Can I have a cookie now?”

He hesitated, pretending to look over Indigo’s work and then nodded. “Yes. And thank you for doing the dishes, Dig.”

“You’re welcome. Thanks for the cookies, Tiny.”

“It’s my pleasure, you little rascal.”

Indigo grinned, snagging a cookie and then a second one before they ran off to watch television. She laughed at Mack’s exasperated expression, but followed him to his studio.

“We should probably stop talking about the Pope shitting in the woods around them.” Mack sighed, pushing the door to his studio open. “Their teacher called me the other day and said that Indigo’s got some weird sayings and she’s concerned that they might be watching too much television.”

The teacher wasn’t wrong, because while she and Mack were careful not to curse in front of Indigo, they picked up a lot from what they watched. “Well, they watchedThe Big Lebowski. Which now that I think about it was probably not a good movie for Indigo to be watching. “

Mack shrugged and flipped on the lights in the room, drawing her attention to the covered canvas in the center. The floor was littered with drop cloths and old newspaper, paint covering almost every inch. Stepping towards the canvas, he glanced at her with a nervous smile.

“Be gentle with me, okay?”

She rolled her eyes and when he ripped the cloth off, her eyebrows flew up into her hairline. The background was a mix of blues and greens, thick and textured, and all she wanted to know was how Mack had done it. Her eyes moved to the figure in the center—the face was incomplete, but the slim naked body with dark wavy hair tumbling down shoulders was half-turned towards the background. In all the years she’d known Mack, he’d never drawn people before. By the looks of it, he’d found a new muse.

“This is stunning.”

“I know,” he admitted softly and she glanced at her best friend to find his eyes fixed on the painting as well. “I saw her atthe park the other day, she was alone and smiling as she stared at the sky. Hooked me instantly.”

“Are you planning on keeping her faceless?”

“Haven’t decided yet. Not sure I’m talented enough to capture her beauty, you know.” He rubbed a hand over his stubbled jaw and she watched him closely. With a heavy sigh, he covered the canvas and offered her a small smile.

“I hope you’ll finish it, because it’s gorgeous.”

“Thanks, Tiny,” Mack mumbled, pink tinting his cheeks.

“I’m glad you found something to get you back into the groove. I was starting to worry about you.”

Mack laughed, turning off the lights and leading her out of the room. Indigo was in the middle of stealing another cookie when they returned to the kitchen. Before they could stop the kid, they were running off with a loud cackle. She snorted at the joy and then helped Mack clean up.

“Maybe I don’t bring cookies next time,” she said. A mix between a sigh and a laugh came out of Mack and he dragged a hand through his hair. “Why don’t you get some sleep. I’ll get Dig into bed.”

“You sure?”

“I’ve been doing this since they were two, I think I can handle our cookie thief.”

Mack smiled and wrapped his arms around her. “Don’t know what we’d do without you, Tiny.”

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