It's a Wonderful Wife (25 page)

He looked out at the forty-three-foot
Spitfire
quietly sitting at anchor next to his cruiser. Jen's voyage was still on, apparently, and Mike was still going with her. In fact, they probably would have been closing in on Cape Cod right about now if they hadn't had to detour to Hundred Acre to drop off Einstein. And although they were only kids in everyone's hearts, Jesse could see everyone's minds had finally realized that two adults had stepped onto the beach this afternoon and calmly but firmly agreed to spend the night, but that they would be gone on the morning tide.

Hence his camper bursting at the seams with people—more than a few of whom were making short work of the wine, his Aberfeldy, and the case of beer Ben had found in the outside storage cubby of the camper. Only Willa wasn't drinking, although she was already on her third bottle of Moxie. Jesse chuckled, remembering seeing Ben refilling Mike's and Jen's glasses of wine. He just didn't know if it was because Ben figured that if Mike was old enough to take on the world he should be old enough to drink, or if he was hoping the boy would be too hungover in the morning to leave.

Jesse slipped his hands in his jacket pockets and turned and stared at the rise above the beach, feeling a wave of contentment wash over him at the sight of light blazing out all the camper windows. Everyone he loved—with the exception of Hank and Rose—was here, on his not-so-private and apparently not all that remote sanctuary, including the woman of his dreams. And whether Miss Glace knew it or not, he intended to—

Jesse stilled in the act of pulling out his cell phone when he caught the sound of words whispering down from the high ridge.

“You did good, boy,” a deep, familiar voice said. “I couldn't have done better if I'd picked her myself. Rose says for you to just keep on letting Cadi win your little
discussions
, you hear, and you can have what we did—what we still
do
. Well, except the one about where your house should be going. I still say it belongs up on that—Ow! Okay. Okay, woman.”

Jesse grinned when he heard the same familiar sigh that used to echo through Rosebriar on a daily basis before Grammy Rose's death eight years ago.

“The house is perfect,” Bram muttered. “And it belongs right where it is. Now, about that treehouse . . .”

“I've got it covered,” Jesse said out loud, holding up his hand. “Ben and Sam don't know it yet, but they're going to work on it with me over the summer.”

“And my grand—
our
grandbabies? You going to be working on them this summer?”

“Starting day after tomorrow,” Jesse said with a laugh, pulling his other hand out of his pocket and waggling his cell phone in the air. “So if you and Grammy will excuse me? I need to make sure I win this last
discussion
.”

“Have a good life, Jesse.” That familiar voice gruffly rolled down the ridge, causing Jesse to still again.

“Hey, you're not leaving for
good
?”

“We'll be right here, Baby Bear,” a cherished female voice whispered, making Jesse close his eyes at his grandmother's pet name for him. “Go on, make the call,” she continued. “I'm on your side on this one—
this
time.”

Jesse snapped open his eyes when he felt an unusually warm, soft gust of wind whoosh by him, making him turn to see the
Spitfire
slowly swing on its anchor line, and he grinned again when he realized Mike and Jen wouldn't exactly be sailing out on the morning tide . . . alone.

“Okay, then, that takes care of that worry,” he said in relief as he looked down and tapped an icon on his phone. “Now let's see if I'm a really confident or really desperate rascal. I need you to call Regina,” Jesse said without preamble when Nathaniel mumbled a gruff hello, “and tell her to be in Bangor with a full crew by noon tomorrow.”

There was a loud, cut-off groan—his assistant apparently not covering the phone in time—then a heavy sigh. “And the flight plan she'll need to file while waiting for you to arrive?” he managed to drawl despite still being half asleep.

“I'm leaving the destination up to you.”

“I'm going? On the
Boeing
,” Nathaniel all but shouted, suddenly wide awake. “Wait—
where
am I going? I didn't hear about any trouble brewing anywhere.”

Well, damn; he supposed mentoring a young executive should include teaching him to have a life
outside
the office. But the kid was taking a commercial flight back.

“Pack warm,” was all Jesse said. “And I also need you to find a minister and swing by and pick him up on your way to the airport.”

“Excuse me? Did you say minister? What denomination?”

“It doesn't matter, so long as he or she is licensed to marry people.”

There was a long pause, then a chuckle. “Licensed in what state? No, you said the Boeing, so make that country.”

“I'm thinking Alaska this time of year. Just find a glacier we can actually stand on. Oh, and see if you can't scare up a small colony of penguins for the ceremony, and I'll make sure there's an extra zero on your bonus check this year.”

What sounded like feet hitting the floor came over the line. “Consider it done, boss.”

Jesse ended the call and headed down the dock with a snort. Hell, he wouldn't be surprised to find half a dozen penguins from the Bronx Zoo arguing over window seats when he and Cadi boarded the Boeing in Bangor tomorrow.

Keep reading for an excerpt from

CHARMED BY HIS LOVE

A Spellbound Falls novel

Available from Jove Books

 

Peg rounded a curve in the peninsula's winding lane and gasped in surprise when she spotted the strange man striding across the parking lot with Jacob thrown over his shoulder. Even from this distance she could see the sheer terror in her son's eyes as Isabel skipped backward in front of them, trying to get the man to stop. Peg started running even as she sized up her adversary: tall, athletic build, short dark hair. Yeah, well, instead of traumatizing defenseless little children, Claude the mad scientist was about to find himself on the receiving end of a healthy dose of fear.

“I swear I'll kick you if you don't put him down, mister,” Peg heard Isabel threaten. “He wasn't hurting your stupid machine none. He's just a baby!” And then the six-year-old actually did kick out when the guy didn't stop, only to stumble backward as he merely sidestepped around her. “Charlotte! Peter!” Isabel screamed as she scrambled in front of him again. “Come help me save Jacob from the scary man!”

Alarmed that the guy would go after her daughter when she saw him hesitate, Peg didn't even stop to think and lunged onto his back. “Put him down!” she shouted, wrapping her arm around the bastard's neck as she tried to pull Jacob off his shoulder with her other hand. “Or I swear I'll rip out your eyes!”

The guy gave his own shout of surprise and suddenly dropped like a stone when Peter slammed into his right knee. “You leave my brother alone, you scary bastard!” Peter shouted as he rolled out of the way, dragging Jacob with him.

Peg reared up to avoid Charlotte's foot swinging toward the guy's ribs, although she didn't dare loosen her grip or take her weight off him, fearing he'd lash out at her children. He suddenly curled into the fetal position with a grunt when Peter landed on him beside her.

“Get away from him!” she screamed over her shouting children, trying to push them off when they all started pummeling him. “Run to the—” Peg gave a startled yelp when an arm came around her waist and suddenly lifted her away.

“Sweet Zeus,” Mac muttered, dragging her up against his chest as he took several steps back. “You will calm down, Peg, and control your children,” he quietly commanded even as he tightened his grip against her struggles.

“Ohmigod, Jacob, come here!” she cried, holding out her arms. Jacob and Isabel threw themselves at her, actually making Mac step back when he didn't let her go. “You're okay, Jacob. You're safe now,” she whispered, squeezing both trembling children. “You're a brave girl, Isabel, and a good sister.”

Charlotte called out, and Peg saw the girl pull away from Mac's father just as he also released Peter. Both children ran to her, giving the bastard rising to his hands and knees a wide berth. Peg took a shuddering breath, trying to get her emotions under control. “You can let me go,” she told Mac over the pounding in her chest. Holy hell, she couldn't believe they'd all just attacked the giant!

Mac hesitated, then relaxed his hold, letting her slip free to protectively hug all four of her children. “Mind telling me what incited this little riot?” he asked the man who was now standing and wiping his bleeding cheek with the back of his hand.

The guy gestured toward the lower parking lot. “I was taking the boy to find his parents, because I caught him inside my excavator not five minutes after I'd just pulled him off it and told him to go play someplace else.” He shrugged. “I figured his mother or father could explain how dangerous earth-moving equipment is, since he didn't seem to want to listen to me.” He suddenly stiffened, his gaze darting from Jacob to Peter and then to Peg. “They're twins.” His eyes narrowed on the boys again. “Identical.”

Pushing her children behind her, Peg stepped toward him. “I don't care if they're sextuplets and were
driving
your excavator or stupid submarine.” She pointed an unsteady finger at him. “You have no business manhandling my kids. And if you ever touch one of them again, I swear to God I'll—”

“Take it easy, mama bear,” Mac said, dragging her back against him again. “He was only concerned for Jacob's safety. As well as yours, apparently,” Mac said quietly next to her ear. “Did you not notice he didn't defend himself when you and your children were attacking him? Duncan's intentions were good.”

Peg stilled, a feeling of dread clenching her stomach. “D-Duncan?” she whispered, craning to look at Mac. “He . . . he's not Claude, the scientist?” She lifted her hands to cover her face. “Ohmigod, I thought he was the guy who scolded Jacob for climbing on the submarine yesterday.”

She peeked through her fingers at the man she and her kids had just attacked, horror washing through her when she saw the blood on his cheek and scratches on his neck. “Ohmigod, I'm
sorry
,” she cried, jerking away from Mac and rushing to her children. Even though he was over half as tall as she was, Peg picked up Jacob and set him on her hip as she herded the others ahead of her, wanting to flee the scene of their crime before she burst into tears. “C-come on, guys,” she whispered roughly, her heart pounding so hard it hurt. “Let's go to the van.”

Mac's father plucked Jacob out of her arms and settled him against his chest, giving the boy a warm smile as he smoothed down his hair. “That was quite a battle you waged, young Mr. Thompson,” Titus Oceanus said jovially, shooting Peg a wink as he took over herding her children away when Mac pulled her to a stop. “I'll have to remember to call on you young people if I ever find myself in a scary situation,” Titus continued, his voice trailing off as he redirected them toward the main lodge.

Damn. Why couldn't Mac let her slink away like the humiliated idiot she was?

“It will be easier to face him now rather than later,” Mac said, giving her trembling hand a squeeze as he led her back to the scene of her crime. “Duncan's a good man, Peg, and you're going to be seeing a lot of him in the next couple of years.”

Wonderful. How pleasant for the
both
of them.

“Duncan,” Mac said as he stopped in front of the battered and bleeding giant. “This beautiful, protective mama bear is Peg Thompson.”

God, she wished he'd quit calling her that
.

“She's not only Olivia's good friend, but Peg is in charge of keeping the chaos to a minimum here at Inglenook.” He chuckled. “That is, when she's not creating it. Peg, this is Duncan MacKeage. First thing Monday morning, he and his crew are going to start building a road up the mountain to the site of our new resort.”

MacKeage. MacKeage. Why did that name sound familiar to her?

All Peg could do was stare at the hand her victim was holding out to her, feeling her cheeks fill with heat when she saw the blood on it. Which he obviously only just noticed, since he suddenly wiped his hand on his pants, then held it out again.

Peg finally found the nerve to reach out, saw his blood on
her
hand, and immediately tucked both her hands behind her back. “I'm sorry,” she whispered, unable to lift her gaze above the second button on his shirt—which she noticed was missing. “We . . . I thought you were the man who scared Jacob yesterday. He had nightmares all night and I barely got him back here today.”

He dropped his hand to his side. “I'm the one who needs to apologize, Mrs. Thompson, as I believe you're correct that I shouldn't have touched your son.” She saw him shift his weight to one leg and noticed the dirt on his pants and small tear on one knee. “I assumed he was the boy I'd just told to get off the excavator. And having a large family of young cousins, I thought nothing of lugging him off in search of his mother or father.” He held out his hand again. “So I guess I deserved that thrashing.”

Damn. She was going to have to touch him or risk looking petty. Mac nudged her with his elbow. After wiping her fingers on her pants, Peg finally reached out, and then watched her hand disappear when Duncan MacKeage gently folded his long, calloused fingers around it.

Oh yeah; she had been a raving lunatic to attack this giant of a man. Not that she wouldn't do it again if she thought her kids were being threatened.

Okay, maybe she
was
a protective mama bear.

It seemed he had no intention of giving back her hand until she said something. But what?
Nice to meet you? I look forward to bumping into you again?
Have we met before? Because I'm sure I know someone named MacKeage.

Damn. She should at least look him in the eye when she apologized—again.

But Peg figured the first three times hadn't counted, since she'd mostly been sorry that she'd made a complete fool of herself trying to gouge out his eyes with her
bare
hands. But looking any higher than that missing shirt button was beyond her. “I'm sorry!” she cried, jerking her hand from his and bolting for the main lodge, her face blistering with shame when she heard Mac's heavy sigh.

•   •   •

Duncan stood leaning against the wall of Inglenook's crowded dining hall, shifting his weight off his wrenched knee as he took another sip of the foulest kick-in-the-ass ale he'd ever had the misfortune to taste, even as he wondered if Mac was trying to impress his guests by serving the rotgut or was making sure they never darkened his doorstep again. He did have to admit the ancient mead certainly took some of the sting out of the claw marks on his neck, although it did nothing to soothe his dented pride at being blindsided by a mere slip of a woman and her kids.

Hell, if Mac and Titus hadn't intervened, he'd probably still be getting pummeled.

Duncan slid his gaze to the bridesmaid sitting at one of the side tables with her four perfectly behaved children, and watched another poor chump looking for a dance walk away empty-handed. Peg Thompson appeared to be a study of innate grace, quiet poise, and an understated beauty of wavy blond hair framing a delicate face and dark blue eyes—which was one hell of a disguise, he'd discovered this morning. He couldn't remember the last time a woman had left her mark on him, much less taken him by surprise, which perversely made him wonder what the hellcat was like in bed.

She was a local woman and a widow, raising her four children single-handedly for the last three years, Mac had told Duncan just before leaving him standing in the parking lot bleeding all over his good shirt. After, that is, Mac had subtly explained that he also felt quite protective of his wife's friend. A warning Duncan didn't take lightly, considering Maximilian Oceanus had the power to move mountains, create inland seas, and alter the very fabric of life for anyone foolish enough to piss him off.

But having been raised with the magic, Duncan wasn't inclined to let the powerful wizard intimidate him overly much. He was a MacKeage, after all, born into a clan of twelfth-century highland warriors brought to modern-day Maine by a bumbling and now—thank God—powerless old drùidh.

And since his father, Callum, was one of the original five displaced warriors, not only had Duncan been raised to respect the magic, he'd been taught from birth not to fear it, either. In fact, the sons and daughters and now the grandchildren of the original MacKeage and MacBain time-travelers had learned to use the magic to their advantage even while discovering many of them had some rather unique gifts of their own.

Hell, his cousin, Winter, was an actual drùidh married to Matt Gregor, also known as Cùram de Gairn, who was one of the most powerful magic-makers ever to exist. And Robbie MacBain, another cousin whose father had also come from twelfth-century Scotland, was Guardian of their clans and could actually travel through time at will. In fact, all his MacKeage and MacBain and Gregor cousins, whose numbers were increasing exponentially with each passing year, had varying degrees of magical powers. For some it might only be the ability to light a candle with their finger, whereas others could heal, control the power of mountains, and even shape-shift.

Duncan had spent the last thirty-five years wondering what his particular gift was. Not that he was in any hurry to find out, having several childhood scars from when more than one cousin's attempts to work the magic had backfired.

That's why what had happened here last week wasn't the least bit of a mystery to the clans, just an unpleasant shock to realize that Maximilian Oceanus had decided to make his home in Maine when the wizard had started rearranging the mountains and lakes to satisfy his desire to be near salt water and the woman he loved.

Duncan sure as hell wasn't complaining, since he was benefiting financially. Mac was building his bride a fancy resort up on one of the mountains he'd moved and had hired MacKeage Construction to do a little earth-moving of its own by building the road and prepping the resort site. Duncan figured the project would keep his fifteen-man crew and machinery working for at least two years.

And in this economy, that was
true
magic.

Spellbound Falls and Turtleback Station would certainly reap the rewards of Mac's epic stunt, since there wasn't much else around to bolster people's standard of living. Not only would the resort keep the locals employed, but stores and restaurants and artisan shops would soon follow the influx of tourists.

It would be much like what the MacKeage family business, TarStone Mountain Ski Resort, had done for Pine Creek, which was another small town about a hundred miles south as the crow flies. Only it was too bad Mac hadn't parted a few more mountains to make a direct route from Pine Creek to Spellbound, so Duncan wouldn't have to build a temporary camp for his crew to stay at through the week. As it was now, they had to drive halfway to Bangor before turning north and west again, making it a three-hour trip.

Then again, maybe Mac didn't want a direct route, since the clans had recently learned the wizard was actually allergic to the energy the drùidhs he commanded gave off. And that had everyone wondering why Mac had decided to live so close to Matt and Winter Gregor, who were two of the most powerful drùidhs on earth.