Page 68 of Meet Me on Lilac Lane

“You all wet.” Maggie’s giggles almost masked her words, but he had gotten good at toddler speak in the past few weeks.

“I was out in the rain.” He set the kids down, his words for them, but he kept his eyes on Mia, an apology in them. “Out on my boat.”

“Cool!” Finn propped his hands on his hips in a gesture Cody recognized as pure Mia. “My dad used to go on a boat.”

“Then he died.” Maggie punctuated her matter-of-fact tone with a nod.

Mia flinched and his gut tightened. “Kids?—”

“No,” she said. “It’s okay. It’s true. Troy used to go out on a boat, and he died.” She hugged her arms to her chest. He saw Matt reach a hand to her, but she went to the kids and knelt between them. “But that doesn’t mean we are scared of boats, right?”

“We are brave,” Finn said. “Like Dad.”

Mia hugged both kids.

Outside, thunder ripped through the air. Mia flinched and pulled the kids closer.

“Hey guys, you know what my dad used to tell me about thunder?” Three pale faces turned up to him. He reached for Maggie again, tucking her onto his hip. Then rested his hand on Finn’s head. “He told me that the thunder was a mother sheep running around in the sky, protecting her lambs. Just like your mom always does for you.” He met Mia’s eyes. “So, the next time the thunder booms really loudly, you can just remember how much your mom loves you, even if sometimes she’s really noisy about it.” He winked at Mia. Maggie giggled.

Matt cleared his throat. “Okay. Well, I’ll be taking off now. Unless you still need me, Mia?”

“No, I think I’m good. Thanks. I’ve got everything I need right here.” Her gaze found Cody’s, and his throat went dry. Mia stood and faced Matt again. “Are you sure you don’t want to wait out the storm?”

“Nah.” Matt checked his watch. “I have a call in a few minutes. I’ll just make a dash for it. Cody.” Matt stuck his hand out and Cody shook it. The other man tightened his grip, but Cody wasn’t going to be intimidated. Matt let go first then turned to Mia. He gave her a brief hug and an air kiss. “See you later, Mia.”

She waved him off with an indifference that almost had Cody doing a fist pump. “See ya, Matt.”

A cold breeze washed over them as he walked out of the building, but the heat inside soon wiped it away. Finn and Maggie went back to playing on an iPad near the wall.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here to help.” Cody motioned at the boxes. “This couldn’t have been easy.”

“I was grateful Matt showed up when he did.” Mia put her hands on her hips before stretching out her back. “But I understand. Sounds like you had an eventful morning. And you showed up right on time. Matt was…being pushy.”

Heat flared through him. If Matt had hurt Mia…

“I see that look in your eye.” Mia reached out a hand and grabbed his wrist. A heat of a different sort ran up his arm. “It wasn’t like that. He just wants more than I can give him. I was feeling a little cornered, and then you came and made me feel safe. You always make me feel safe, Cody.” She started to say something more, but then her eyes hooded. She pulled her hand away and turned from him. “Tell me about your morning.”

What? No. He wasn’t going to let her off that easy. There had been something more, he was sure of it. If he was going to fight for her, it started now. “What aren’t you saying?”

“Nothing.”

“Stop. I know you. I’ve known you almost your whole life. I know when you’re not telling me something.”

“It’s just that, I’m worried about how you make me feel.” She kept her gaze on the ground.

“Um. Okay?”

“Being with you feels good, safe.” A blush crept up her cheeks. “I like being with you. But I think I’m afraid to depend on anyone else because I’ve found out the hard way that life can be short. I relied too much on Troy, and now I’m struggling to provide for my kids. But with you…I want to depend on you. I just don’t know how.” She swept her hand toward the kids. “I need to be able to take care of us on my own. I realized that while I waited for you to show today.” She glanced his way quickly then back to the ground.

“Look, Mia. I know you’re not sure if you want more than friendship with me—and I’ll accept whatever you decide—but I need you to know something.” He plowed right through her quick intake of breath. “First, I’m not going anywhere. And second, it’s not good for you to try to do everything on your own. God made us to be dependent on each other.”

“It just makes me feel so weak.”

“Stop. It’s not a weakness. In fact, it can be our greatest strength.” Cody put a hand on her shoulder and waited until she met his eyes. “I know I didn’t do a good job of showing up for you today, but I will always be here for you. You can trust me.”

“My heart knows I can trust you. I’m just having a hard time convincing my head.” She looked away for a second then back again. “I guess it’s not just about trust. It’s also about needing to prove that I can make good choices for myself. To prove to this island that I’m not just that pregnant teen. I’m not just a widow. I’m a survivor.”

“You have nothing to prove.” He ached to hold her closer, but that right wasn’t his. Not yet. “You have two great kids, you’re making a life for them. You’re doing a great job. No one judges you for your past except you.”

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