Mack Daddy(54)

Victor hadn’t mentioned anything but finally turned to me. “That’s him in the dunking tank, right?”

I nodded. “Yes.” Even though I was trying to sound calm and nonchalant, in reality my nerves were shot. I was sure my face was probably red.

Victor was onto me, and I truly didn’t know how to handle it.

“The line seems to be getting a little shorter. Mind if I have a try at it?” he asked.

“What?”

“I want to dunk him. When else will I get this opportunity?” He got up without waiting for my approval.

Oh, no.

My heart was beating out of control as I raced to follow Victor over there. Mack hadn’t spotted us yet as he continued to clap his hands and heckle the people in line—mostly women, of course—who were trying to hit the target.

When Mack noticed that Victor and I were among the crowd, the expression on his face changed dramatically. His eyes met Victor’s, and his body stilled.

When it was finally Victor’s turn, Mack was no longer joking around. Tension filled the air as his eyes seared into mine before moving over to meet Victor’s incendiary stare. A full thirty seconds must have passed, and it felt like forever. Mack’s body remained still as he just sat there waiting for what he knew good and well was coming.

Victor grabbed the ball and in a sudden and swift movement, whipped it toward the target, hitting it smack dab in the middle in one shot. It surprised me that the contraption didn’t break from the impact. Mack plunged into the water below.

When he came up, he looked even more pissed than before. All of the noise in the gymnasium seemed to fade away. At least, that was my perception as my ears throbbed louder with each second that I stood there gauging Mack’s reaction. He stared at Victor with daggers in his eyes.

Victor turned to me. “Are you going to be alright handling that table alone if I go home and catch some shut eye? The jet lag seems to be catching up to me all of a sudden.” He didn’t acknowledge what he’d just done; he didn’t have to.

I swallowed, barely able to speak. “Of course.”

He simply walked away without saying anything further. I opted to let him go because I knew there was nothing I could say that would make it better, especially given the realization I had this morning.

My heart felt like it was breaking as I looked over at Mack, who was still staring at me. The next woman in line was already trying her hand at dunking him, but he wasn’t paying attention. He just kept looking straight at me like he wanted to say something.

“I’m sorry,” I mouthed, not really even sure what I was apologizing for. Before he could respond, his body dropped down into the water; someone had managed to hit the target.

It was then that I spotted Jonah sitting alone on a corner bench nearby.

Mack had mentioned Torrie was supposed to be at the event; I wondered where she was. Most of the kids were just running around, playing with each other while the parents mingled at the various display tables. But as was typical, Jonah had separated himself from the crowd. I’d wanted to go talk to him but realized I needed to get back to the pastry table.

Some time later, I noticed a few boys surrounding Jonah. While I couldn’t hear what they were saying, it seemed like they were trying to stir up trouble. When I spotted one of them grabbing a fistful of Jonah’s curls and yanking his hair, I flew up out of my seat.

Before I could get to him, I noticed Mack charging toward his son. He was soaking wet, his hair dripping. He must have noticed what was going on from the dunk tank and jumped out. When the kids saw him coming, they scurried away like bats out of hell.

He knelt down, placing his palms around Jonah’s face. Mack’s hands were shaking. “Are you okay, son?”

Noticing a crowed of bystanders starting to congregate, he grabbed Jonah by the hand. “Come on.” He whisked him away down a hallway into an empty function room. I followed them but stayed in the doorway to give them space.

“What happened, Jonah?”

The boy sniffled as he answered his father. “They were calling me ugly and making fun of my hair. They started pulling on it. My head hurts.”

Mack closed his eyes momentarily in an attempt to gather his thoughts before blowing out a breath. “You have to understand something. Those boys were picking on you because they know it affects you. Mean people won’t change. The only thing you have control over is your reaction to them. I promise you, if you don’t let them see you’re upset, or if you act like you don’t care, they won’t want to pick on you anymore.”

“But I do care.”

“I know. I know, son. But you have to try to pretend like it doesn’t bother you, even if it does. It’s not easy. You know what I want you to do next time something like that happens?”

“What?”

“I want you to walk away.”

“What if they run after me?”

“They won’t. You just walk away and pretend you don’t care about what they have to say. Just trust me on that, okay? And if by some chance anyone ever hurts you, Jonah, they’ll have to deal with me. I have one job now and that’s to protect you. I’m not gonna let anyone hurt you. I promise.” He pulled his son into a hug. “You trust me?”

Jonah nodded.

“I love you, son.”

My ovaries nearly exploded, and my heart felt like it was ready to burst. What an amazing feeling to witness what a loving father he was. I was almost envious of Jonah for getting to experience the love of a father like Mack. Then, it hit me that I, too, got to experience what it was like to be loved by this man—in a different way. I reminded myself that he’d told me he loved me just a couple of days ago.