“There’s a bottle of Knob Creek smoked maple in the cabinet. It was there when I moved in, and I’ve had a shot on the past five New Year’s Eves,” he admitted.

“That was Mama’s favorite. Daddy would hold up his beer bottle on New Year’s Eve, and Mama would touch her shot glass to it,” Lily told him. “When I got married, Mama and I had a shot just before I walked down the aisle. It might be the same bottle since she only had a drink once a year.”

“Well, then, I’d say it’s very well aged.” Mack took a drink from the bottle and offered her another one. He loved spending time with her and listening to her husky voice confide in him. He felt as if he was really part of a family.

She shook her head. “Fourteen is way too young to be drinking or having sex.”

“We have a sophomore who had a baby last year when she was just a freshman, and there are also two seniors who will be mothers before they graduate. It can’t be blamed on race, color, creed, or social standing. They come from all walks of life,” Mack said. “You’re a good mother. Holly talked to you rather than listening to her friends.”

“Most days I feel like the meanest mama in the whole state.” She pulled a quilt down from the back of the sofa, stretched her legs out, and wrapped the quilt around her body.

“You shouldn’t.” Mack tucked the quilt around her feet. “You’ve been tough on them for a reason, and it’s plain as the horns on a billy goat that it’s paying off.”

“I appreciate you saying that,” she said, and pointed toward the television. “I haven’t seen this episode. Ziva is still on the show. I missed her when she left.”

“If you leave this summer, I’ll miss you, Lily.” His drawl seemed even deeper than usual.

She looked up into his eyes. “I promised the kids that if they stayed out of trouble, we’d go back to Austin.”

“I understand that, but what if they decided they wanted to stay here?” he asked.

“Then I’d sure be willing to give up the Austin apartment,” she replied.

Lily woke to the sound of the NCIS theme song playing at the end of the episode. She could hardly believe that it was ten o’clock, or that her feet were now in Mack’s lap. She started to pull them away, but he threw back the quilt and began to give her a foot massage. She all but purred when his big calloused hands gently worked on her toes and then worked their way up to her ankles. He finished her left foot, covered it back up, and started on the right one.