Faith thumped her fists on the tray of her high chair.

“I hope you’re not too full,” Mac said.

“There’s always room for pie.” But Stella couldn’t manage the ice cream.

When the coffee and pie were finished, Mac tugged her from her chair. “Let’s take a walk.” Outside, he inhaled as if he couldn’t get enough fresh air.

Mac took Stella’s hand and pulled her toward the side yard. The simple, old-fashioned gesture sent a jolt of warmth through her. He made her feel more than heat, whether he was making passionate love to her or simply looking at her.

“How many biology lessons have you given your nephew?” she asked.

“Every visit turns into a thousand questions. The kid remembers everything.” His face beamed with pride.

“Do you spend a lot of time with him?”

“Not as much as I should.” Mac frowned. “The travel gets in the way, and I was afraid the kids would get too attached and then if something happened to me . . .”

“It would devastate him. He clearly loves you very much.” Stella’s heart hiccupped. So did she.

“I know. I’ve been rethinking my career.”

“You’re not going back to the DEA?” Stopping, she tugged on his hand until he faced her. The thought of another drug trafficker’s bullet finding him, of him dying in a far-away jungle, sent a wave of fear careening through her. She didn’t want him to leave again. “Carson wouldn’t be the only one devastated if anything happened to you.”

“Good to know.” Pleasure lit his eyes. “In the beginning, it felt like I was doing my share to fight the drug trade. Grant was off fighting the war. I wanted to contribute something.”

She squeezed his hand. “There’s more than one way to contribute to society. I can think of dozens. Most of them don’t even require getting shot at or having people try to lop off your limbs with a machete.”

“I’m not going back to Brazil. I’m leaving the DEA.”

“Really?” She threw her arms around his neck.

His arms closed around her, holding tight, as if he didn’t want to let her go. He whispered into her hair, “Really. I gave them all the information I had on Freddie’s gang. The raid went off without a hitch yesterday.”

“What about the contract he put on you?” Stella asked. “Can’t he still orchestrate that from prison?” Criminals did it all the time.

“There’s nothing I can do about that.” Mac looked away. “Freddie and Rafe were both taken into custody. Their assets were seized. Hopefully they won’t have any funds to pay a would-be assassin. Killers don’t work for free.”

“That’s not the tidy answer I was hoping for.”

“Sorry. I promised you no more secrets.”