The pain in her words tore at him. “No. It’s nothing like that.” He glanced up at Sky, hoping she’d offer some clue as to how he should proceed.
“Then what is it?” She looked at her mother. “Am I in trouble about what I told Mr. Jackson?”
“No, sweetie.” Sky chewed her lower lip, looked at Max. “It’s…complicated.”
Raw hurt glittered in soulful blue eyes as Maddie looked at him. “You’re not gonna leave us, are you?”
His heart gave a painful jump. The knot in his stomach tightened, and his lungs constricted. His tongue suddenly seemed too big for his mouth, making his voice thick. Unsettled, he took a deep breath. “No, Tink. I’m not going anywhere.” He paused, picking the words with great care. “Your mom told me you overheard something Mr. Jackson said.”
She sniffed. “I don’t like him. He’s a big poopie head.”
“Maddie.”
At Sky’s soft rebuke, the child cut her eyes toward her mother, then back to Max. “Well he is.”
Max bit back a grin. I love this kid. But time to be the adult. “Remember our talk about people calling other people names?”
She ducked her head. “Yes, sir. I won’t do it again.”
“Good. Now. What did you hear that you don’t understand?”
“He said you hit a woman named Anna, but I know that’s not true.”
“You do?”
“Of course. You would never hurt a woman.”
It took a moment to realize the child thought he had hit Anna Sue. “You’re right, Tink. I’d never intentionally hurt anyone. Especially a woman.” He racked his brain for a simple explanation to an extremely complicated topic. “Remember our talk about bad words and how sometimes people call other people names?”
She nodded. “The bullies.”
“That’s right. The bullies. They call other people names and like to say things about them that aren’t true.”
“’Cause it makes them feel big.”
“Right.”
“And Mr. Jackson doesn’t like you, so he said you hit that woman.”
Once again, her intuitiveness surprised him. “Something like that.” He faced Maddie and took her small hands in his. “I know this is hard for you to understand, but you might hear some things about me soon, about stuff I’ve done. Some of it may upset you. But, please, know this. Not everything you hear will be true.”
One dainty brow shot upward, and she gave a mild snort. “I know that.”
“I know you do, but I wanted you to hear me say it.”
Maddie scooted up on the couch where she could lean against his side, and he instinctively draped his arm over the back of the couch.
“Heroes don’t hurt people,” Maddie said softly.
Max flinched and jerked his gaze to Sky, who silently watched the exchange, her features softened by a tender smile.
“Hero?”
Maddie yawned and snuggled against him, earnest blue eyes radiating unconditional love as she looked up at him. “Miss Gail said you got a purple medal for being a soldier. That makes you a hero.”
“Tink…” Hero? She thinks I’m a hero? What should he say? How could he explain to a child what it meant to receive a Purple Heart? What it meant to be a soldier on a bloody battlefield? Way out of his comfort zone, he didn’t immediately reply.
“I think being a soldier is really hard,” said Maddie, her voice soft and gentle. “And sometimes it makes you sad when you think about it.” She glanced at her mother, then nestled closer to him, completely at ease. “So, anytime you feel sad, just let us know, and we’ll make it all better again.” After another long yawn, she continued. “’Cause we love you just the way you are.”
Sky watched in loving fascination as Maddie effortlessly curled Max around her little finger. What surprised her even more, though, was the seamless way Max slipped into father-figure mode and wondered if he even realized he did so.
He visibly relaxed when he gazed down at the child burrowed against him. The tightness in his face was replaced by the sweetest smile she’d ever seen. Hazelnut eyes glistened brightly as he looked toward Sky.
“Just the way you are,” she murmured. “No matter what anyone says.”
He sucked in a long breath. “Thank you.” He looked down at Maddie, who snored softly beside him. “Now what?”
“Would you mind carrying her back to bed?”
His eyes widened briefly before he said, “Um, yeah. Sure.” He shifted on the couch until he could lift the sleeping child without waking her. “Which way?”
Sky led the way to Maddie’s room and watched as Max gently placed her on the bed and pulled the quilt up to her chin. Her heart melted when he hesitated then placed a soft kiss on her forehead.
“Sleep tight, Tinkerbell,” he whispered. “Only pleasant dreams tonight.”
The softly spoken words held such tenderness, Sky bit her lip for control.
