mitch

Heifer.___ich man__ whore!___t least mine can cook the food he eats. And replaces it, too.___ow see, Dee-Ann Smith. That was just mean!

Sissy Mae Smith...stumbled into the room loaded down with even more bags. "You pack like a woman," she snarled when she finally dropped the luggage to the floor. "How can one man have so much conditioner?"His mouth filled with French toast, Mitch pointed at his hair and snarled, "Tawny mane! Do you think this shit stays this beautiful on its own? It needs care and love! Which is more than I'm getting from you!

I__e shared more breakfasts with you thanany woman I__e dated in the last year and a half,_ Mitch returned.__ know what you look like in the morning. I know what you act likewhen you come home tired after work. I know that you pick the leastexpensive thing on the menu either to be nice or to be annoying inorder to put me off. But I think it__ to be nice because youare nice and also both times you thought you__ be spendingtime with just me, you dressed in a way that would not, in any way,put me off. I know you cuddle when you__e sleeping. I know you takeonly milk in your coffee and you make coffee strong. I know you__ereally good with kids. And I know that you use music and scents toregulate your mood. So I__ thinking this is not a first date. Thisis more like us hittin_ the six month mark. And the six month markis when you stop talkin_ about shit that really doesn__ matter andstart talkin_ about shit that means everything.

Mara,_ his arms gave me a squeeze, __aby, you__e got to live in the now. Not in your head. Not controlled by your fears. You can__ live for what might happen five months in the future. You got issues you gotta face today. You gotta deal with them now. You got two kids who count on you and their lives aren__ gonna go perfect every day because you weigh every decision you make and tread cautiously. Those options are no longer available to you. You__e gonna have to live day to day and make decisions on the fly. And I__ tellin_ you I__ here to help. You need it and they need it. Are you honestly gonna say no?

The man who gets Mara gets you and Billie. I__ that man. What you gotta get is, while fallin_ in love with Mara, I fell in love with you and your sister. Straight up, Bud, no lie. The feelings I feel for Mara are hers, the feelings I feel for Billie are hers and the feelings I feel for you are yours. You all have my love, not collectively, individually. Do you understand me?_ __itch nodded. __ight. What I mean is, I didn__ fall in love with you all as a whole. I fell in love with each of you because of who you are. I don__ care about you because you come with Mara. I care about you because you__e a good kid. You__e smart. You__e loyal. And you love and look out for your sister and Mara. I know grown men who do not have a character as fine as yours. Those are the reasons I love you. There are different reasons I love Billie. And there are different reasons I love Mara. Today, what we had together was good. But the feelings I feel for you aren__ feelings I have to have in order to have Mara. They__e feelings you earned. Now, you with me?

You sleep okay, sweetie?_ __iss my teddy,_ Billie replied. Personally, I thought Detective Mitch Lawson was far superior to a tiny pink teddy bear but I wasn__ six years old.