Home to Harmony
Page 22
“I’m sure you’ll make the best of it.”
“Whatever,” he said, standing. “If that’s it, I’ll go.”
“That’s it from me.”
“Yeah, so here’s what I want to say. I know I messed you up with my mom and all. She’s a good person, even if she freaks over every little thing. So give her another chance, so it’s not, like, forever my fault.”
Marcus was so moved he had to swallow to get his voice under control. “It wasn’t your fault, David. We care for each other, but we ended things for our own reasons.”
“Like what reasons?” David was as nosy as his mother.
“It’s complex, but basically, we’re not compatible.”
“So fix it. You were always after me to be a better person. Why not you?”
Marcus smiled. “It’s not that simple, David.”
“That’s just bullshit.”
Marcus burst out laughing. The boy had the same stubborn set to his jaw as Christine and the same way of locking on with his gaze. Marcus realize he loved this boy. And his mother.
And he wanted another chance with them both.
“You make a good point. I’ll talk to her when I can.”
“Soon, okay? I need her in a good mood so she’ll take me to get my driver’s permit. She’s too grumpy.”
“I’ll see what I can do. Tell you what. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll take you myself. How’s that?” Lady barked, as if in full approval.
Marcus felt like his chest would burst open. Why couldn’t he try to be better? Carlos had mentioned he seemed different with Christine. Maybe he could be.
What was he afraid of? Hurting her. Failing. Getting hurt himself. Maybe that was just bullshit, like David said.
FROM HER SPOT IN THE HAMMOCK, Christine saw Marcus and David coming down the stairs, Lady beside them. They looked so right together, the three of them, that her heart throbbed.
She found herself standing, then bounding down the porch stairs toward them. When Marcus saw her, his eyes lit up.
“You’re back,” she said, breathless.
“It’s good to see you,” he said, holding her with his gaze.
“You, too.” She felt grounded, suddenly in the right place at the right time.
“David tells me you’re staying.” He smiled.
“It feels right. I’ve done a lot of thinking and sorting things out and…” How she loved this man.
“As it turns out, I’ll be staying in New Mirage myself.” He explained about a foundation for health care he was working on with his friend Carlos, some travel, how excited he was, but she wasn’t really listening. She was simply taking him in.
“So, the point is, we’ll both be around,” he said, studying her with his intense gaze. When she’d first met him, his eyes had pulled her in and warned her away, too. Not now. Now they held on tight. “It’s so good to see you.”
“You already said that,” David said. “This is so gross. Come on, Lady.” The boy and his dog took off toward the cottonwoods, leaving Christine and Marcus grinning at each other like a pair of idiots.
“Your son gave me quite a talking-to just now,” Marcus said.
“He did?”
“Oh, yes. He told me I should give you another chance, even though you freak out over every little thing.”
“He said that, did he? And what did you tell him?”
“That we weren’t compatible.”
“That’s true.” She’d thought she’d be too much for him. He’d thought he wouldn’t be enough for her. Was it possible they could both be wrong?
“David said we should fix it.”
“But that’s not as easy as it sounds.”
“That’s what I told him. But he said that was, well, bullshit.”
“Such language. What kind of mother lets her son talk like that?”
“One who loves and accepts him, swear words and all. And he made another good point, that I expected him to be a better person, so why shouldn’t I make the same effort?”
“Good one, David.”
Marcus cupped her face. “I need you in my life, Christine. To keep me awake and alive.”
“I’ll make you crazy, you know,” she said, her heart in her throat.
“No doubt. And I’ll disappoint you.”
“Possibly. But it won’t be because you aren’t trying. You never let me down. Not once. You’ve been there for me with David, Aurora, even Bogie. And the rest of it…that’s my job. I can stand on my own two feet and lean on you, too.”
“So we’ll fix it then? Like David suggested?”
“Start where we are and build from there, yeah.” She smiled. “I can’t believe I just quoted my mother.”
“And I’m taking relationship advice from a teenage boy.”
“If it works, it works.” She smiled at him. “I’ve figured out a few things lately—mainly, that holding too tight to what you think about people makes you miss them altogether. If you let them be, who they are will shine like the sun. Bogie always did. And so did David. And you, Marcus. Definitely you.”
“No one shines like you, Christine. You’re the sun and all the stars to me.” He kissed her, long and slow, as if they had all the time in the world. And maybe they did.
She would enjoy every minute, see it all through fresh eyes. She had a mother she’d begun to understand and a father she’d loved without knowing who he was. Never again would she miss what was in front of her because it didn’t fit her picture of perfection.
She would hold on to this, her new life, her man, her family, with both hands and all her heart. Christine Waters had come home at last.
ISBN: 978-1-4268-7983-8
HOME TO HARMONY
Copyright © 2011 by Daphne Atkeson
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Table of Contents
Letter to Reader
Title Page
About the Author
Books by Dawn Atkins
Dedication
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
CONTENTS
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Copyright
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