Page 126 of This Life and All the Rest
“You never should have had to go through what you did, Lennon,” my dad says. “I should have forced the issue when I heard you hadn’t come home. I knew something wasn’t right, but I—”
“No.” I cut my dad off. “You believed I had the whole story and trusted me to make my own decisions. You gave me the space I thought I needed. It’s not your fault Claire did what she did.”
I bite my tongue, halting more words from spilling out. I take a deep breath, then turn to Claire.
“I’d really appreciate it if you left right now,” I say calmly. “I’d like to talk to my dad and Drea alone.”
“Okay,” Claire says timidly. She stands and grabs her bag, looks over her shoulder, and walks toward the door with Eric trailing her. Just before she steps out into the hall, she turns around to face me.
“Lennon, I’m—”
“I don’t want to hear it right now, Claire,” I say, cutting her off. I don’t even turn to look at her. “Go to the house. I’ll be there in a bit.”
I hear her whisperokay, then she and Eric disappear into the hallway.
The room is quiet, and I wait, dreading the moment someone brings up Claire. But instead, Andrea brings up a different topic.
“So, are you a couple, then?”
When I look at her, she’s smiling softly. When I glance at my dad, he’s doing the same. I look up at Macon to find he’s already looking at me, and I smile too.
“Yeah. We are.”
“What’s the plan, then?” my dad asks. “For the distance. Are you coming home, or is Macon moving to Paris?”
My throat goes tight.
We haven’t talked about this. I don’t even know what to say. I know what I want, but I haven’t broached the topic with Macon yet.
“We haven’t talk about it,” Macon says, speaking my thoughts out loud. “But I imagine Lennon has to go back to Paris for some stuff. Pack her things, take care of business, say goodbye to her friends. And then she’s going to move in with me.”
I can’t stop my smile. It stretches so wide my cheeks hurt.
“Really?”
He rolls his eyes and shakes his head, then hits me with that stupidly sexy smirk.
“Yeah, Len, really. We’ve got four years to make up for. Can’t do that living separately.”
The giddy giggle that slips from my lips makes his smile grow, and then I hear Andrea laugh. I look to find her and Dad watching us with smiles matching Macon’s, and for the first time in a long time, almost everything feels right.
Maconand I drive back to Dad and Drea’s house in Macon’s car.
He hasn’t stopped touching me. One hand on the wheel, one on my thigh. Or threaded through my fingers. Or cupping the back of my neck. I never want his hands to leave my body.
“What are you going to tell the Frenchman?” Macon asks randomly, and I gasp.
“Shit. I forgot about Franco.” I look at the clock. “You think he’s still here?”
“That man isn’t leaving you willingly,” Macon says, his words laced with jealousy, and I shake my head.
I’m not going to argue with him. He’ll see soon enough.
The moment we pull up to the house, my skin prickles with adrenaline. It takes all my strength not to jump out of the car, run into the house, and land a jab right on Claire’s nose. Instead, I take a deep breath and walk calmly to the house holding Macon’s hand.
Franco is the first person I see when we walk through the front door. He stands from the kitchen stool where he was sitting, and his eyes search mine. He’s no doubt able to tell I’ve been crying, and his face falls.
“Told ya.” Macon lets go of my hand and presses a kiss to my head. “Go easy on him.” He pushes past Franco. “Sorry, Frankie, but you never stood a chance.”
