“You could go—”
Again Rush interrupted him. “No, I couldn’t. You need me here, and that’s exactly where I’m going to be.”
Tad looked as though he was going to object, and Rush’s mouth took on a mulish expression.
“Don’t you give me a hard time over this, Thaddeus Jackson! You’ve stood by me and backed me up more times than I can count, and now you’re goddamned well going to let me do that for you!”
Mopp was a little surprised, not only because Tad always seemed so self-confident, but also because Rush was usually such a quiet guy. This was the first time he’d ever heard him yell, let alone swear.
“You’re right, babe.” Tad scrubbed a hand over his face.
“I’m so sorry, Tad.” Mopp knew, better than he wanted to know, that there were times when you loved your family because they were fam
