When he saw her, he smiled brightly. “Hey,” he said and hugged her, “I didn’t know you’d be here.” He left an arm around her shoulders, which she didn’t mind at the moment. She was grateful to have at least one other person, besides Blake, be nice to her.
She shrugged. “I’m on a date. He was the one who was invited.”
Josh’s eyes widened in surprise. “Good, good. Seems like you’re assimilating into the town really well. Let me introduce you to Brendan Tucker. He and his wife, Jaime, are the hosts of the party.”
Macy shook the man’s hand.
“I met your wife,” she said, searching for something polite to say.
The two men laughed. “She can be a bit much, but she’s a sweetheart once you get to know her,” Brendan said.
“I’ll have to take your word on that. Frankly, I’ve dealt with insurgents who were less scary.”
The men howled.
“So who’s your date?” Josh asked.
“I am,” a deep voice said from behind them. “And I’d appreciate it if you’d get your hands off my woman.”
“Blake,” Macy admonished. It made little sense. Why would he act so jealous? It was ridiculous. They barely knew each other and Josh was a genuine good guy.
“Who’s going to make me?” Josh said with heat in his voice.
What was happening here?
Macy ducked away from Josh’s arm and stood apart from the two men. They were glaring at each another.
“I am, jerk.” Blake stepped forward.
“Now, fellas. You know Jaime will have a fit if you break anything. Everyone calm down,” Brendan cajoled.
“Why did you have your arm around Macy?” Blake growled at Josh.
“She’s my friend. We went out a couple of times when she first came to town. What’s the big deal? You aren’t still mad at me after all this time? I wasn’t the one who made you write those letters.”
“Wait a minute,” Blake whispered harshly. “You two dated.”
His snapped around to look at Macy as if she were some kind of traitor.
She’d had enough.
“I don’t know what’s wrong with the two of you, but you’re embarrassing me.”
“Answer the question, Macy. Did you date my former best friend?”
His former best friend?
Oh. Ohhhh. This must be some male feud and she’d stepped right into the middle of it. “Two times,” she replied.
“And that was it,” Josh said. “We knew from the get-go that we weren’t right for each other. But we are friends. She volunteers at the shelter so we see each other occasionally.”
Blake’s mouth formed a thin line. He focused in on Macy. “You never mentioned that you went out with anyone in town.”
“You never asked. And anyway, nothing happened with your former best friend. You’re acting so foolish. Both of you.”
With that she stomped out in search of her dog. She would not put up with that kind of arrogant behavior from any man. She and Blake were causal. He had no right to—
She froze in midstep. Hadn’t she felt the same about him when his friend Jaime had kissed him?
I was as jealous, just not as vocal about it.
“Hey, genie, why don’t you come over here and grant me my three wishes?” a man in a Frankenstein costume called out. A crowd stood around him.
They all laughed.
She turned her back on them.
“Told you the Yankee girl was a witch.”
These people were beyond rude.
“You know what, Frankenstein, so much for that Southern hospitality you folks talk about. I’m proud to be from the North. In fact—”
“George, are you giving Macy a hard time? Because if you are, I’m going to have some serious words with you,” Jaime said as slipped her arm through Macy’s in a clear sign of solidarity. “This is Blake’s girl, so that means she’s like family. And you know how I feel about my family. You all apologize right now.”
Without hesitation, apologies were quickly issued.
“Forgive me, Macy,” George said. “I’d blame the whiskey, but sometimes I’m simply an old fool. Just ask my three ex-wives.”
The crowd chuckled, the tension evaporated instantly.
Macy looked to Jaime so they wouldn’t see her smile. “You didn’t have to do that,” she told her.
“I meant what I said. I’m sorry about before. This couldn’t have been fun for you what with friends fighting, George being his stupid self and me acting like, well, we know what I was acting like.”
Macy shrugged. “I’ve been to worse parties.”
Jaime guffawed. “You’re all right. I need to check on the caterers in the kitchen. Come with me?”
What she really wanted was to go home, but she followed Jaime.
The kitchen bustled with servers and food preparers sprinting around and shouting.
“Pietro, those mushroom caps are a hit.”
One of the guys in a chef’s hat blew Jaime a kiss before opening one of the ovens to put in a tray of what looked like hors d’oeuvres.
Walking along the kitchen island, big enough for a dozen bar stools, Jaime inspected the food. Then she grabbed a plate and took food from several of the trays. She handed the plate to Macy. “This one’s for you.”
She loaded up another plate. “This one’s for me. I never get to eat when I throw parties, but I’m starved. Come on, let’s go check on the dogs.”
“Are Blake and Josh all right, do you think?”
Jaime laughed. “My husband is there, and they’re scared to death of him. They won’t get too out of hand.”
“Why are they scared of him?”
“Because he’s the only man who can tame me, so he must be one real son of a gun. And he is. I talk tough, but I’d do anything for that man. The love of my life, and he knows it.”
Next door to the kitchen was the breakfast room, which looked out over a pool area. Macy could see Harley chasing Bruno around the cabana. The two dogs stopped for a second, and then Bruno began chasing Harley.
“They’re pals already, see?” Jaime sat on one of the loungers and leaned back a heated lamp nearby. She put the plate of food on her chest and started eating.
Macy sat on a lounger next to her.
“Sorry,” Jaime said after swallowing a bite-size quiche. “I haven’t had anything but water and vegetables for a week so I’d fit in this damn costume.”
Macy grinned. “Hey, it worked. You look incredible.”
“Thanks for that. And I really am sorry about earlier. When we heard Blake was injured this time, well, we’re all kind of protective of him. He’s always been such a stand-up type of guy. And I didn’t lie, he is like my brother. He has dated in the past, obviously, but—I’ve never seen him like he is with you. I noticed him when Josh hugged you. He’d been giving you the loving eyes from across the room, and then it was like a cartoon. I was surprised steam didn’t come out of his ears when Josh put his arm around your shoulders.
“And shame on Josh for egging Blake on. That’s one of those man things, pushing each other’s buttons, I guess.”
Macy should have seen this coming. It hadn’t been that long since she’d been away from Garrison, although it sure seemed like it.
“I went on a couple of friendly dates with Josh, nothing happened,” Macy offered. “But for some reason Blake seems to think I should have been a nun before I met him. Bunch of macho nonsense, if you ask me.” Macy bit into something with bacon and cheese in the shape of a ball. It was heaven.
“Yes, it is. Things seem to be moving fast between you two.”
Macy winced. “I’m not sure what I’m supposed to say. We both agreed that this would be a casual arrangement.”
“Blake’s way past casual,” Jaime said.
“It’s only been a couple of days. I mean, I’ve known him maybe two weeks. Don’t get me wrong—I like him a lot.” More than she would admit to one of his best friends. “I’m not sure what to do. Maybe I should slow it down until we both get our bearings.”
“Good luck with that.” Jaime pointed toward the house.
“There you are,” Blake said worriedly.
“See ya, kiddies. I need to get back to my party. Blake, behave yourself. Macy, it was so nice to meet you. I mean that. I’m going to stop by the paper soon and take you to lunch.”
“I’d like that,” Macy said.
Blake took Jaime’s place on the lounger, but he sat sideways facing Macy. They sat in silence for a full thirty seconds.
“I’d like to blame it on the pain pills or too much alcohol, but the truth is I haven’t had any because I knew I’d be driving,” he said quickly.
Macy stared down at her plate, no longer hungry.
“There’s no excuse for that kind of behavior. I just saw his arm around you, and— I promise you it will never happen again.”
“You embarrassed me.”
“I embarrassed both of us. And I’m truly sorry, Macy.”
She still didn’t meet his eyes, but she noticed he wrung his hands.
Give the guy a break.
She lifted her head. “I should be flattered about the show you put on in there, but I’m not. I don’t like bullies and I’m certainly not someone’s possession. I don’t belong to you, Blake. I’m an individual. I’ve been on my own for a long, long time.”
He sighed. “You’re right. It’s a mess. Do you want me to have somebody drive you home? Or I’m happy to do it, if it’s okay with you. I just don’t want you to be afraid of me.”
Macy shook her head. “I’m not afraid of you. I could never be afraid of you. You wouldn’t hurt me, no matter what the circumstances. But it does bother me that you think I would be scared of you. You’re one of the kindest men I’ve ever met. And so gentle with Harley...and me. And I don’t think any of those guests would appreciate having a hundred-and-seventy-five-pound dog in their backseat, so yes, I’m okay with you taking us home.”
“We’re okay, then?”
“We are but you have to remember I’m not your favorite toy that you get upset when someone else touches it.” She frowned. “That didn’t come out right.”
“You kind of are,” he said under his breath.
“What?”
“Not a toy, but you are my favorite person. Ever.”
She couldn’t hide her smile. “Stop with the Mr. Charming routine. I’m supposed to be mad at you.”
He smiled back.
They said their goodbyes, found Harley and climbed into his truck.
“I was beginning to worry, though. You did seem a bit too perfect,” she finally said when they exited off the highway and turned onto her street.
“I’m a lot of things, Macy, but I’m far from perfect.”
A few minutes later they were in her driveway.
“Thanks for the ride,” she said. As he went to switch off the truck, she stopped him. “I’m really tired. I think Harley and I will say good-night here.”
That emotionless mask slipped over his face, he nodded. “I understand.”
“No,” she said, as she opened the door for Harley, “I don’t think you do. It’s as much my fault as it is yours that this thing between us has been moving at the speed of light. You were the one who suggested wooing. I haven’t forgotten that. A little space would be good so we can both think about what it is we want.”
“You,” he said. “I just want you.”
She stepped up and leaned into the truck to kiss him lightly on the lips. “I want you, too. But with our recent histories, it’s not such a bad idea to take a break.”
He gave her a brief nod.
Harley ran over to the gate Macy used regularly to get into the house. It was the closest entrance to the driveway. The truck didn’t move until she’d gone in and put on the lights.
He slowly backed out of the driveway and she sighed when the headlights hit the road.
Picking up her phone, she dialed Cherie.
“I’m the biggest idiot in the world,” she said.
“Tell me something I don’t know,” her friend replied.
11
“I’
M
AN
IDIOT
.”
Blake stomped upstairs to his bedroom. “Certifiable.” Stripping, he turned on the shower as hot as he could stand it. He’d gone and lost the best thing that had ever happened to him.
As much as he wanted to blame Josh, it was his fault for acting like a jealous goof. For the life of him, he didn’t understand why he’d lost his cool.
That wasn’t true.
He stuck his head under the water.
The woman tied him in knots; she was unlike anyone he’d ever met before. And he didn’t know what to do with himself.
Hell, he couldn’t even remember what he’d said to Josh. And for a few seconds, when he found out they’d been on a date, he’d been furious. The image of his friend possibly kissing her—or worse—had made him livid.
Because she was his.
He slammed a fist against the tile.
Get a grip, man.
You break something in your mother’s house there really will be something to answer for.
Leaning both arms forward, he let the hot water run down his back.
She’d just gotten out of a relationship with an idiot, and here he was acting like one. He didn’t treat women that way, and if his mother ever found out she’d be so disappointed.
That was the answer. He had to talk to his mom. She’d know how he could persuade his favorite journalist to give him another chance. It meant confessing what he’d done, and she wouldn’t be happy. But she’d give him good advice; she was always wise when it came to relationships. Until the day his dad died, his parents had had one of the best marriages he’d ever seen.
He wanted that with Macy. It was too fast, and his head knew it. But his heart told him she was the one.
Now he had to convince her of that.
After finishing the shower and checking close to make sure he hadn’t broken one of the tiles, Blake picked up the phone.
“What were you thinking?” his mother bellowed, she didn’t even bother to say hello. “I did not raise you to act that way!”
Someone, probably Jaime, must have already called her to say what a moron he’d been at the party.
“Yes, ma’am. I don’t have an excuse.”
“I agree, young man. If I were there I’d box your ears. That poor girl, in a house full of people she didn’t know, and then you went all King Kong on her.”
“Shame on you,” he heard his grandmother say.
Why did I call?
He glanced at the heavens.
“You aren’t telling me anything I don’t already know. I feel like the world’s biggest jerk. And I swear it will never happen again.”
“What have I told you about swearing?”
“Yes, ma’am. Please, tell me how to fix this.”
“
That’s
the most sensible thing you’ve said all night.”
“Halleluiah!” shouted a chorus of women.
“Mom, am I on speaker? And who else is there?”
“Yes, and just a few ladies from Momma’s quilting circle.”
Blake palmed his face.
“You listen to what we have to say, boy,” Momma D shouted. She didn’t seem too sick to him. “We’ll explain to you how to set things right with that Yankee, and you don’t mess it up again. You hear me?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Now get a pencil, this is going to be a long list,” his mother ordered.
And a very long night.
* * *
T
HREE
DAYS
HAD
gone by, and except for two texts, she hadn’t heard from Blake or even seen him and it wasn’t for a lack of trying. Twice she’d gone to the feed store to pick up food for Harley, and then later some nails that she didn’t need, but he wasn’t there.
The first text had been an apology. She’d already forgiven him so it wasn’t necessary. At the end he had asked about the types of questions he could ask the servicemen and -women for the story. He’d said that he’d meant to tell her the night he worked on her books, that he wanted to do the articles, but he’d been distracted by other things.
By her throwing herself at him, she was certain.
She sent him a text back explaining that he didn’t have to apologize, and she was looking forward to seeing him soon. She also emailed him a bunch of questions for the interviews and offered to help him in any way necessary.
He’d replied with, “Thank you.”
That was it.
She reread her email again to make sure she hadn’t said anything he could misconstrue, but she hadn’t.
Stupid marine. She missed him. As much as she didn’t want to admit it to herself, she had become quite attached to him.
More than likely she’d wounded his pride. What if he decided she was too much trouble and had moved on? She thought about the women at the café who were so enamored with the half-naked marine. He was bright, gentlemanly and as hot as they came.
And she’d been upset because why? Oh, yeah, because he’d cared for her so much that he went all crazy macho for her.
Cherie was right. She was a class A idiot.
“Some guy beats his chest for you, and you have to be all I’m Miss Independence and don’t you dare like me too much,” Cherie had chastised.
“But men should not be allowed to—”
“What? Be men. He was staking his territory. It’s classic male behavior. Could he have handled it better? Yes. But they don’t call them male rivalries for nothing, doll. There’s history there. Probably a lot of crap you know nothing about. He apologized profusely and you came back with you needed a break. How else is he supposed to interpret that?”
“But he got so weird when he found out Josh and I dated a couple of times. It was strange.”
“Macy,” Cherie scolded, “you are not this dense. Oh, wait, you were attached to that boss of yours.”
“Geez. All right. I get it. But explain to me how I can feel so much for him so fast. I thought I was in love with Garrison, but it doesn’t come close to what I feel for Blake. It scares me. And it’s hot and wonderful now, well, it was. But doesn’t that kind of thing burn out fast. Isn’t it better to slow it down before we both get hurt?”
Cherie barked out a loud laugh. “Honey, when you feel what you do, there’s no meaningful reason to slow things down. You said it yourself, you’re afraid. And you’ve been hurt, so your defenses are up. That’s actually a good thing. But from everything you’ve told me, this guy’s the real deal. If you get your heart broken, at least it was by a guy who deserved you. Oh, and the sex is great. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find a guy like your marine?
“I haven’t found a single one and I’ve been looking. Trust me. You need to be a grown-up and reach out to him.”
Pursing her lips, she tried to forget the rest of her conversation with Cherie and focus on the story in front of her. It was deadline day and she didn’t have any more time to waste. An hour later, she’d edited two pieces and had all but the ad pages ready to go.
The quality of talent in a town as small as Tranquil Waters had genuinely surprised her. It was full of artists and writers. Many of whom liked the idea of more reporting about the community writ large. She’d even found a good photographer to cover local sports.
High school football was a religion to many in this region and state. She’d discovered that if she had sports photos on the front page, then circulation went up. In turn, she’d hired a couple of freelancers to do personal stories on the most popular players and their families and neighbors. Next on her to-do list was to tap into other important local hobbies and interests.
Now when she went into the café, people actually smiled and waved at her. All it took was a little effort.
Everything at work seemed to be falling into place. Meanwhile, her heart was breaking.
This wasn’t the first time and it probably wouldn’t be the last that the aspects of her life would not be in harmony all at once.
Blake’s friend Jaime had even called to find out whether she was okay. That was how Macy found out he was in a foul mood and that no one wanted to be around him. She’d advised Macy to sit tight and wait for him to realize what he’d done wrong, which was the exact opposite of what Cherie had said.
Amanda knocked on the door frame of Macy’s office. “I’m running down to the diner to get a cheeseburger and some caffeine. Do you want anything?”
Turned out Amanda was a darn good writer. She made a lot of grammatical errors, but those were easy to correct. Teaching someone to have a voice that comes through in his or her writing was something else.
Amanda had it, and had created a column geared for students. It covered everything from homework tips to saving for proms to how to graduate without a load of debt. She referenced students of all ages and backgrounds, and even added personal tidbits from things that her family did and said.
“Yes, if you don’t mind. And I’ll treat.”
Sweets were necessary if she wanted to survive the afternoon. She might as well wallow and get fat since she had abysmal luck with men. And really, after all the friendly advice she was more confused than ever about what she should do.
“I’ll take a cheeseburger, as well. But get me whatever kind of ice cream they have. If they have pints or whatever, that will work. I just need something gooey and full of sugar.”
Amanda smiled. “Have you ever had the chocolate fudge ripple from Dory’s Dairyland?”
She shook her head.
“I’ve got you covered. Oh, by the way, your friend—the hot marine—dropped this by.” She handed Macy a flash drive.
Macy gulped hard. “Did he say anything?”
Amanda thought for a minute. “Just that this was a sample, and if you didn’t like it you can email him with changes.” She turned to walk away, and then stuck her head back in the office. “And, Harley. He said to tell her that he missed her. A lot.”
With that, Amanda was gone.
“Hmm, at least he misses one of us,” she said as she plugged the flash drive into the USB port.
I just wish it were me.