Page 87 of Protecting Addison
She wasn’t pregnant yet but he wasn’t worried. Was simply enjoying the journey to get there.
Yana was the first to arrive, looking sleepy but dressed for school. She sat at the table in the dining room and stared at MacGyver.
He raised a brow at her. “Good morning, Yana. You hungry?”
She nodded.
He smiled. “Then you need to come over here and get your plate and silverware. I’m not a waiter in this house. You can get your own dishes, then bring them to the dishwasher when you’re done.” Even though she was only five, she was perfectly capable of helping with simple tasks for breakfast.
She shrugged and slipped out of the chair and into the kitchen. She got a fork out of the drawer, took a plate off the stack waiting on the counter, then carried them to her seat at the table. She returned to the kitchen and got a cup and carefully filled it with orange juice from the refrigerator.
Artem and Borysko arrived a few minutes later and, without prompting, got their plates and forks. Ellory had just entered the room when MacGyver put a heaping pile of pancakes in the middle of the table.
All three kids stood up and reached for the stack.
“What do you say?” MacGyver warned.
They turned their heads toward him and said at the same time, “Thank you!”
“You’re welcome. Enjoy.”
They were like little jackals with a fresh kill. It didn’t take long for the huge stack to become a tiny one.
“Morning,” Ellory said quietly as she got her protein shake out of the fridge.
“Morning. How did you sleep?” MacGyver asked.
“Good. Where’s Mom?”
“She’ll be up soon, I’m sure. I let her sleep in a little this morning.”
“Oh. Okay.”
“I know I told you already, but I wanted to say it again. You were great this weekend. The lighting in the play wasperfect.”
“I messed up in the second act but recovered pretty quickly.”
“I didn’t even notice. But Ididnotice that you seem…happier lately.”
Ellory leaned against the counter and took a sip of her shake. “I am. I love my mom and we had a good life. But having you and the kids here…I really love it. Spending time with you in the garage, and having you show me some of the stuff you’ve done on your missions, and playing with the electronics and stuff…it’s fun. My mom is an amazing baker, but I’ve never really been into that. So it’s nice to have something else to do with someone. And some of the things you’ve shown me have come in handy, especially in tinkering with some of the electronics in theater class.”
“I’m glad,” MacGyver said, feeling warm inside.
“And the self-defense stuff you’ve taught me and Mom has been both fun and makes me feel better in general. The world isn’t safe, people can be awful, and I feel more confident knowing some things to help protect myself, and the kids too.”
MacGyver hated that she felt that way about the world, but she wasn’t exactly wrong. “Speaking of which, we need to have another lesson. Soon.”
“Yeah. And lastly…things with Chrys have all but stopped. The brainstorming you did with me about smartass comebacks has really helped.” She grinned at him. “She doesn’t seem to know what to say when I come back at her, and shehatesthat. So she’s stopped picking on me so much. All that to say…yeah. Iamhappier.”
“Which makesmehappy. And your mom talked to you about us having a baby?”
Ellory beamed. “Yes! Is she pregnant?”
“Not yet. But I wanted to be sure you knew that even if we had a hundred babies, you’ll still always be your mom’s first and favorite child.”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”
MacGyver didn’t want to bring it up, but he felt as if he needed to. “And your bio-dad? How are things with him?”
