Total pages in book: 149
Estimated words: 147967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 740(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147967 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 740(@200wpm)___ 592(@250wpm)___ 493(@300wpm)
Well, she wasn’t sure she’d put it quite like that. But if Millie wanted to call herself a godmother, then who was she to stop her?
“Well, yes.”
“This is epic!”
“Are you sure? Because if something happened to me, you’d end up with a lot of animals. You see I—”
“Nothing will happen to you,” Matthieu interrupted in a hard voice.
“I . . . well, it could,” she said.
“We have had this conversation, Maya. I cannot believe we need to have it again. Nothing is going to happen to you. Because I will not allow it. Understand?”
People started to trickle in for her next class. Which was probably a good thing since everyone in this room seemed to be losing their minds.
“Wow. That’s sexy,” Livvy said. Then she blushed slightly. “Don’t anyone tell Sav I said that. He might get jealous.”
“How many animals?” Millie asked loudly as she bounced on her toes. “I’m going to need names. And birth dates. And to meet them all, of course.”
Birth dates?
That was an odd thing to ask for.
“Well, that’s the thing. I have a lot of pets so you might want to think about it before you say yes. Maybe ask Spike.”
“Pfft. I’m not going to do that.” Millie waved a hand through the air. “This is the first time I’ve been asked to be a godmother. And it’s an honor. A total honor. I need a new dress.”
“I have three dogs, four chickens, a cat, a pig and a farting hamster,” she said quickly.
She waited for Millie to reply. To tell her no. Because that was going to happen, right?
“That. Is. Awesome!” Millie cried, clapping her hands. “I have to go work on presents for them. Such an honor, thank you!” She threw her arms around Maya before rushing off.
“You’ve made her day,” Livvy said. “Maybe even her year.”
“I wasn’t really expecting that sort of reaction,” she confessed. “I thought she’d say no if I’m honest.”
“Not Millie. She really is the most amazing friend and the thing is . . . she means every word. Your pets are about to get a crazy, loving, fun godmother.” Livvy squeezed her hand and said goodbye to Matthieu before following Millie out.
Well.
That happened.
And it was weird and amazing all at once.
Which was apt. Because she thought that was likely a good description of Millie.
20
Matthieu followed Captain around as he showed him the new system.
“It all looks good, my friend.”
Captain shot him a look. He wasn’t certain if that look was about him calling him his friend or that he was insulted that Matthieu had ever thought it might not be good.
Matthieu decided it was prudent not to ask him.
“And the cameras capture images from the street?” He’d asked for that specifically after learning about Maya’s stalker.
Brody was currently compiling a background report on him. But so far there was nothing of interest.
Ryan Straun seemed like an ordinary guy. Worked in investment. He had his own company and he made good money. Paid all his bills on time. Didn’t gamble or drink excessively.
The only red flag in his background check was the fact that he still lived with his mother. That was a big one considering that he was forty-three and had never been married.
But it wasn’t enough to do anything with. So he’d told Brody to dig deeper.
Captain grunted an affirmative and sent him another look. Right, he got it. He was pushing the other man’s patience.
“Thanks. I appreciate all your work and the fact that you stayed until we got home.”
Captain shot a look at the closed bedroom door and his face darkened. Matthieu had told him about how Tank had been abused and didn’t trust humans anymore.
It was easy to see that made Captain mad.
When he left, Matthieu headed into the kitchen. Maya was with her babies. She’d been quiet since they got home. But not tired or sad, more contemplative.
As he was cooking, she walked in.
“Oh, you really don’t have to cook,” she told him.
“Do you cook?”
“Um.” She grimaced. “Not very well. But I can bake. My mom taught me before she . . . before she . . .”
“It was cancer?” he asked gently as he checked on the homemade fries in the oven. Closing the oven door, he turned and leaned against the counter to study her.
It was obvious to him that she still felt the pain of her mother’s death acutely. That was something he understood. He still missed his parents.
“Yes. Skin cancer. She had this mole that she kept meaning to get checked but by the time she did . . . it was too late. The cancer had spread. She fought really hard. I know she did. But it took its toll on her. My mom was amazing. She was beautiful and courageous. I hated seeing her in pain. Weak. Fading away.”