Free Reclaim Me (The Jaded Series Book 2) by Alex Grayson, Karen McAndrews, Toj Publishing Page B

lovingly at Amari.
    He looks up at me and smiles tenderly.
    “She’s beautiful,” he says and looks back down to the baby.
    I don’t say anything to him because my throat is so tight that I’m sure nothing would come out except for a croak. Tears sting my eyes and I have to blink to make sure none fall. The picture of Mac holding a baby is something I’ve imagined hundreds of times, except the images I always conjured up were of him holding our baby.
    He made damn sure that dream will never come to fruition.
    Shaking my head to rid me of my depressing thoughts, I turn on my heel and head into the kitchen. Grabbing a pot out of the cabinet, I fill it with water and put it on medium on the stove. Next, I grab an already filled bottle out of the fridge, and place it in the water and wait for it to heat up. When I turn around, I see Mac standing in the doorway watching me.
    “How hard was it to get Jaxon and Bailey to leave?” He asks.
    I roll my eyes and lean against the counter. “I pretty much had to shove them out the door. Bailey was terrible.”
    He chuckles and says, “Figured. After everything they’ve been through and everything that Bailey’s lost, I can’t say that I blame her for being reluctant to leave her child.”
    I broach the subject that I’ve been meaning to talk to him about. I’ve put it off because there was never the right time. Of course, the right time probably never came because I’ve avoided Mac like the plague. However, since he’s here now, I may as well get it over with.
    “I haven’t thanked you yet for saving Jaxon and Bailey’s life,” I tell him quietly.
    He stares at me for a minute before replying, “No thanks necessary, Pix. The bastard needed putting down. No way was I going to let him hurt them anymore than what he already had.”
    “Yeah, well, I’m still thankful,” I mutter back to him. I hate being grateful for anything that he’s done, but no matter how much I may hate Mac, I will forever be grateful for what he did that day.
    Turning my back to him, I pull the bottle from the hot water on the stove. I give the bottle a good shake before tipping it over to test the milk on my wrist. Deeming it warm, enough I unscrew the cap and drop in a drop of the gas medicine before replacing the lid. I walk over to Mac to get Amari back from him. After Mac carefully deposits her back into my arms, I walk into the living room and sit on the end of the couch. I grab a cloth from the diaper bag that’s beside the couch for accidental burp up purposes. By this time, Amari’s whimpering is getting louder. I settle her in my arms and plop the bottle in her mouth. She immediately latches on and starts to suck. It’s amazing how every time a baby feeds they act like they’re starving.
    I feel Mac settle on the other end of the couch and I look over to him. The expression he is wearing makes my breath catch. He’s watching me feed Amari with such reverence in his eyes. I see a small smile tip up the corners of his lips.
    “You’re a natural at this.”
    “Only because I used to watch Aunt Tricia’s kids.” I look down at Amari and wipe the dribble of milk that’s sliding out the corner of her mouth.
    “Why haven’t you settled down and had kids of your own?” His question is so quiet that I barely hear him. But I do hear him and it sends a sharp pain straight to my heart.
    When I look at him, I know he sees the hurt in my eyes from his question. There is no hiding it from him, even if I wanted to.
    “Why ask me that, Mac? You know the answer.” My voice is quiet.
    Mac leans over and places his elbows on his knees with his head bent down. When he pulls his head back up, I see his jaw clench before he speaks again, like what he’s about to say he doesn’t really want to say it.
    “Just because things didn’t work out for us doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have kids, Mia. You would make a wonderful mother. I know that was a big dream of yours. Don’t let what