Page 39 of Comeback
I showed Mackenzie the guest room with the bunk beds. “Look, Mack. If you get sleepy, you can take a nap in here.”
“I’mnotsleepy,” she said adamantly. I guess my inexperience with kids showed—I thought she’d be excited to sleep in the top bunk, but even the suggestion of a nap had made her surly.
I laughed. “Good. You better not be, because we’ve still got a whole day ahead of us.”
There was a large window that ran along the hull behind the couch. Mack climbed onto the couch, stood on the cushions, and pressed her forehead against the glass to stare out at the lake. “Woooow.”
I led Emma to the forward stateroom. With Mack in the saloon, we had a few precious seconds alone.
“And ifyouget sleepy,” I said, showing Emma the double bed, “you can take a nap in here.”
Emma folded her arms with the defiance of a toddler. “Well,I’mnot sleepy, either.”
“Well, maybe later, you’ll just want to lay down for a little while,” I whispered, as I grabbed her by the waist and pressed her up against the wall with a softthump.“And maybe I’ll join you for a little lay down, too.”
Her sparkling eyes widened. “Shh,” she whispered, a finger held to her lips.
I cupped her face and leaned in, trying not to make a sound as our lips locked, knowing we were one curious kid away from getting caught. Her juicy lips melted against mine in a fiery heat, and I wanted to kiss her deeper, longer—but the second I tried to give her my tongue, she broke free and escaped my grasp.
She left me reeling, the strawberry scent of her hair still clinging to the air all around me.
Fuck,I wanted her so bad.
I left the stateroom and found Emma with her daughter. Emma was kneeling on the couch, staring out the window behind it, with her arm around Mack. The two girls pointed out the boats they could see across the water. One second ago, she was kissing me, but you’d never know it by the way she talked with Mack. It was obvious that Emma was a great mom—kind, patient, loving.
And she knew I was watching. She tossed her hair over her shoulder, her golden curls spilling down the arch of her back. Slowly, she peeked over her shoulder and gave me her smoky, almond-shaped eyes.
Wow.
That woman.
I could only stand and stare, helpless to do anything else but appreciate her beauty.
“See that, Jack?” she asked.
“Sure do,” I growled, running my eyes lower, over her round, plump ass.
“No,” she teased, tugging the hem of her sundress lower, “there’s a group of people doing yoga on paddleboards. Look,look! That girl just started doing a handstand!”
“Wow!” Mackenzie gushed.
I joined the girls on the couch and peeked out the window. Sure enough, a girl on a paddleboard floated in the distance, balancing perfectly on her head and forearms. Her body was as straight as an arrow.
“Pretty impressive,” I said.
Emma snuck me a look and our eyes locked for a brief second. This was a special kind of torture—how badly I wanted to put an arm around her and pull her near, kiss her, tell her she was mine. But I knew I couldn’t, because Mack had to come first. Emma broke eye contact and gently bumped her hip against mine. I knew she was thinking the same thing, and I couldn’twaitto get my hands on her, but that small touch had to tide me over …
I pushed off the couch and went into the galley, opened the fridge, and pulled out a tray.
“Hey, Mackenzie,” I said, returning to show off the rack of marinating meat. “I heard you like ribs.”
Mack stared at the raw meat, her eyes big and troubled.
“Er … youdolike ribs, don’t you?” I asked.
She shook her head and quietly said, “No.”
“Yes you do, Mack. You love ribs,” Emma said. She softly laughed and turned to me. “Trust me, she’ll eat them once they’re cooked and slathered with sauce. She’s not old enough to appreciate raw meat just yet.”
