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Ava wasn’t sure how long they sat there with Mac see to ponder her words before finally he squeezed her hand and said, "I’ll try, baby Watching over you is what I do, but I understand what you’re saying and I’ll dokills htly, he whispered against her neck, "Does this hter burst froainst hih she knehat she had asked was killing hied to joke to entle lion
Chapter Twenty-one
Mac was pacing in his office restlessly when Do up security for another Oceanix location The hotel chain was fast beco one of their most profitable customers It had been alone on exactly two dates The first was a late dinner, since they were swamped at work, and the second was dinner and a movie where they had made out like a couple of kids and missed most of the story Both times, he had done as Ava requested and left her on the doorstep after a kiss that had the
He had pulled security fro and had been a basket case, especially the first few nights He’d gotten in his Tahoe o check on her hi as she asked had ly apparent--he didn’t kno to cut the cord and stop worrying over her safety It had been ingrained in hi on hisIt wasn’t that he didn’t think she was strong enough to take care of herself His probleain Her safety had been his obsession for so long that he wasn’t sure how to have a norh he knew she needed that She needed hi to layer her in bubble wrap every time she walked out the door He just wasn’t sure how
Now she and as at a big annual trade show It was a testa here in Myrtle Beach while she was so far away The only thing that gave him any comfort was the fact that Brant, Emma, and Declan were there as well as Jason, Claire, Gray, Suzy, Nick, and Beth Ella had stayed behind since she’d had a baby so recently Apparently, her sister Crystal was going through a divorce and was staying with Ella until Declan returned If he knew the otherhim to leave his new family
"Well, you look all kinds of pissy today," Dominic remarked as he dropped into a chair in Mac’s office
"Yeah, whatever," Mac snapped He raised an irritated brow as Do to settle in for the long haul "Was there so you needed?"
"Nope" Do Who shit in your cornflakes today? I’d go with the usual guess and say Gage, but he’s off soirl So I’ht you two finally had your shit together?"
Mac gnashed his teeth, wanting to make some crude comment about Dominic’s lack of success with the object of his affection, but out of respect for Gwen, he just couldn’t do it Instead he took a cal breath and completely unloaded all his proble up with "So you can see why I’h the office like a happy ray of fucking sunshine, yeah?"
Do matter-of-factly, "Sexual frustration will sure do that to you It’s even worse when you actually get it, then get it pulled right back out from under you, pun intended, of course"
"You’re an asshole," Mac deadpanned, wondering what he had really expected fro his hands over his face "Okay, seriously, I feel you,fro a fixer-upper project At some point, the renovation needs to end"
"She’s notto convince Dominic or himself of that fact
"But that’s just it, buddy You don’t even realize it I’ve known you for a long time now, and while you’ve had your fair share of feht-only variety, it’s always been Ava who’s kept you walking the floors or pacing the fucking desert in Afghanistan You’re the most focused, intense person I’ve ever known Fro up, I don’t think that’s always been who you were" S, he added, "No doubt you were born an anal perfectionist, but the rest I believe you picked up after Ava’s attack" Dominic plowed on when Mac would have protested "If you really think about it, you two never got to just be young and crazy From the moment that happened, the course of your lives was altered You both grew up the hard way and you’ve spent years being weighed down by a guilt for so his desk in anger, Mac growled, "I should have fucking known it! If I hadn’t been so busy trying to stay away froh for us to consider dating, I would have been with her that night She was so young, though, and I wanted her to enjoy high school before overwheluess what, man? You’re human You can’t predict the future and neither of you had a fucking clue ould happen that night Saying it’s your fault that you didn’t go with her is like saying it’s her fault for going without you It’s over It was a shitty, fucked-up twist of fate that no one had any clue would happen Now if you want a life with the woman who has kept you tied in knots for years, then it’s tiain and stop being her protector and start just being her man Show her that you can check your OCD where she’s concerned at the door and just be the guy she originally fell in love with all those years ago I ht? Buried deepdeep, really deep"
"All right! Shit, please stop" Glaring in annoyance, Mac said, "I don’t think Ava’s idea of a fun guy is one in prison because he strangled his se beco in next for his part of the co on"