Free Leave it to Max (Lori's Classic Love Stories Volume 1) by Lori Handeland

the hang of being a
gentleman. But there seemed to be nuances to it that a border
Yankee like himself couldn’t quite fathom.
    In the silence that followed, Garrett heard a
tiny hitch in Livy’s breath that was almost a sob—would have been a
sob for any other woman.
    He inched forward, encouraged when she didn’t
move away. He wanted to touch her so badly his hands hurt. Or maybe
they hurt because he was fisting them too tightly in an attempt to
keep himself from touching her. Because if he did, he wouldn’t be
able to stop.
    Gentling his voice, Garrett spoke just above
a whisper. “I want to see Max. I want to know him. Why is that so
hard to believe?”
    “You didn’t want me, why do you want
him?”
    ‘‘I did want you. Too much. You consumed me,
Livy.”
    “Stop!” She raised her hand, palm out in
front of her face. “I don’t want to hear this. We’re talking about
Max.”
    “Are we?”
    She didn’t answer. Garrett hadn’t really
expected her to.
    “You can’t love him. You barely know
him.”
    “You’re telling me you didn’t love him the
minute you looked into his eyes?”
    “I’m his mother.”
    “And I’m his father. He’s you and he’s
me—equally.”
    “I carried him. I bore him. I cried every
time he hurt himself. I sweated each time I thought I might lose
him.”
    “I’m sorry. I wish I’d been here then. But
I’m here now. He’s us, Livy.” Garrett could no longer stop
himself. He grabbed her by the arms and dragged her close. Even
when she struggled, even when she finally did kick him in the
shins, he didn’t let go. Instead, he gave her a tiny shake so she’d
listen. “Can’t you remember what we were like? The magic we made.
The magic is Max.”
    “Shut up!” Her voice shook with anger and
pain. Her body fairly vibrated beneath his hands. He’d finally
pushed her too far, though he wasn’t sure how. “Magic isn’t
real.”
    “Oh, how could I forget? No Santa, no bunny,
no tooth fairy.” He let her go, mad now himself. “I’m not going to
let you raise my son to doubt magic. To doubt all the beauty there
is in being a child. He’s a kid. He deserves make-believe. Hell, I
deserve it, and you could certainly use some.”
    “Grow up, J.J.”
    “If being grown up means losing sight of what
shines in this world, everything that’s a mystery, a maybe or a
might, I’ll pass. We made Max. You and I. Don’t tell me that
wasn’t magic, because I refuse to believe you.”
    “And I refuse to let you see my son. If you
love him as you say, you’ll leave him alone. If you ever cared for
me at all, you’ll go away.”
    “No.”
    Her lip trembled. He stepped forward, hand
outstretched, but she flinched from his touch and fled down the
steps.
    “Don’t take this to court. Savannah might be
bigger than most small towns, but at heart it’s smaller than small.
Bring this out, J.J., and you’ll only hurt Max.”
    She turned away, just as his father always
had when he’d expected J.J. to fall into line without question.
Annoyance rose sharp and bitter. “Don’t call me J.J.,” he said to
her back.
    She didn’t even turn around. “Don’t call me
at all.” Livy marched away.
    Everything about her confused Garrett. He’d
once known her intimately, understood her completely. With Livy
he’d never felt lacking. At least, until she’d told him she loved
him and he’d been unable to say the same.
    Back then he’d believed he could not love.
Love was for other men. Men who knew how to love back.
    But from the moment he’d seen his son,
Garrett had known there was something special about Max. There’d
been an instant connection, a recognition deeper than he’d ever
felt before—perhaps that magic both he and Max believed in so
deeply.
    In Garrett’s life, in his work, he’d come to
the conclusion that magic was something that happened when you were
looking the other way. No explanation, no rules, you couldn’t make it be. Magic just was.
    So even if