Page 35 of Protecting Addison
“You really think they’ll be back tomorrow?”
“I do.”
“Okay. I trust you.” Then she put a hand on his cheek and leaned in once more. This time the kiss was chaste, but MacGyver still felt it down to his toes. Addison smiled at him, then headed into the kitchen.
He had no choice but to let go of her, even though he didn’t want to. When she was gone, MacGyver leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. He could feel his lips tingling, and his fists opened and closed at his sides, the silky feeling of her hair still echoing in one, and the other remembering how perfectly it fit in the curve of her waist.
He had no idea what was to come, but married to Addison, he suddenly knew he could overcome whatever life threw at them.
* * *
Addison had no time to contemplate what had just happened. Her emotions were seesawing all over the place. She was terrified about what was happening with Artem, Borysko, and Yana. Hated that they were probably scared and wondering why they were with strangers. She was also pissed at the system that had taken them away in the first place. It wasn’t as if they were being abused in their home. If someone needed to look into the legalities of the kids being in the US, they could’ve done that without taking them out of their current home.
And then there was Ricky. Never in a million years would she think they would’ve ended up making out in their foyer. But it had been good. No, it had been great. Life-changing. This relationship was a dream come true for her. Sure, it wouldn’t be easy, and they’d probably have some rocky times ahead, simply because of how they’d started out. But he was worth fighting for. She knew that without a doubt.
“Are you all right?” Remi asked as soon as she entered the kitchen.
Addison donned an oven mitt to take out the brownies. They were a tad bit overdone, but nothing a little more icing wouldn’t fix.
She put the pan on the stovetop and turned to her new friend. “Yeah, I think so.”
“Tex is amazing. Josie told us all about him. How he tracks SEAL teams and other special forces guys all the time when they’re on missions. Blink had a tracker in his underwear, and that’s how they were rescued from that prison in Iran.”
“Really?”
“Uh-huh. And Caroline and her friends have all directly been helped by him over the years too,” Wren said. “If anyone can light a fire under CPS, it’s Tex.”
“That’s good.”
Remi tilted her head and lowered her voice. “Did something else happen when you and MacGyver were talking?”
Addison felt herself blush, and she nodded. She wasn’t sure about telling all her secrets to these women, but she liked the idea of having such close girlfriends. “He kissed me,” she whispered.
“Yeah?” Remi asked with a grin.
“Wait, you guys are married. You haven’t kissed before?” Wren asked in confusion.
Then Addison found herself telling them about her marriage of convenience, and how, despite sharing a bed, they were more like roommates than man and wife.
“So, this is good,” Wren deduced, when she was done explaining.
“I think so…”
“Girl, you should see the way that man looks at you. It’s definitely a good thing,” Remi said firmly.
Addison hoped so. She really,reallyhoped so.
CHAPTERSEVEN
“Mom?!”
The second Ellory entered the house, she was hollering for Addison.
She turned from the tower of brownies she’d made into a cake and hurriedly wiped her hands on a towel before Ellory ran into the kitchen.
“Is it true? Did they take Artem, Borysko, and Yana? Are they coming back? What happened?”
Addison hugged her daughter tightly. It was times like this when she was reminded that she was still basically a child herself. She was visibly overcome with worry about her brothers and sister.
