Her Homecoming Wish Page 14

  Nora chuckled. “We were in a half-built house on the side of the mountain when...” She winked. “One thing led to another.” Her smile faded a bit. “Mack, Dan’s one of the best guys I know. You couldn’t find a better one, other than the three we’ve already taken.” The others nodded in agreement.

  Mack ran her finger around the top of her coffee cup. “I know he’s a good guy. I just don’t know if that’s what I need right now. I’m a newly divorced woman who never took the chance to be footloose and fancy-free. I don’t even know what we’re doing. But when we’re together, it’s...wonderful. We laugh all the time, at the silliest stuff.”

  Nora’s forehead furrowed in thought. She pulled apart the last bit of croissant and popped it into her mouth, staring off into space somewhere over Mack’s shoulder. “You know, as well as I know Dan, I don’t know if I’ve heard him laugh a lot.” She tipped her head. “That’s so weird. I mean, he’s funny and kind and always smiling. But he’s had dinner with us tons of times, and I’m sure he’s laughed, or at least made us laugh, but...huh.” She frowned. “I honestly don’t think of Dan and immediately think of laughter.”

  Mack didn’t know what to say. His easy laugh was one of her favorite things about Dan. They’d laughed all the way into bed last night, giddy and breathless with the joy and adventure of the moment. Was he different when he was with her? The thought made her pulse quicken. She looked up at Nora.

  “He laughs with me. We took a motorcycle ride...” She gave Amanda a pointed look. “Where we stopped at the maple syrup stand.” Where Dan said she was hot. “Then he grilled some burgers at his place and things got crazy and funny and pretty amazing. And then last night, he’d had a rough shift, and was looking for a way to unwind...”

  Mel grinned. “Oh, is that what they’re calling it these days?”

  Mack joined the laughter. “Well, it seemed to work. For both of us. But now I don’t know where we’re going with it. He’s got an ex-wife and a little girl and a job that seems all consuming. I’ve got an ex, too, but he’s nowhere near here, and we don’t have any kids tying us together for the rest of our lives.” She drained her mug of coffee. “I’m looking to kick my heels up, but Dan’s so serious about his responsibilities. I’m not sure there’s a long-term there.”

  “You say Dan is serious, but you also say you two laugh and have fun together. So maybe you’re just what he needs.” Amanda stood, gesturing for Mel to join her. “I’ll drop you off on the way back. Zach has a Spanish-class project due tomorrow that he just told me about last night at dinner. He wants to teach the class how to cook paella. Which means he has to learn to cook it. And have me video him doing it. After I teach him the recipe. God save me from teenage boys.”

  Mack helped Nora clear the table, carrying the empty mugs and dishes to the small kitchen behind the coffee counter where Cathy was working. The older woman’s hair was usually in a braid, but today it was wound into a knot low on her neck. She used to be a lot more bohemian, with a wardrobe full of floor-length broomstick skirts and peasant-style tops. But Cathy seemed to be changing up her wardrobe. Today she was in slightly rumpled chinos and a dark green Gallant Brew polo shirt. She’d been avoiding Mack’s eyes, and that wasn’t what Mack wanted. She may not have fully embraced what her dad was up to, but she didn’t blame Cathy for that. She waited until Cathy was done filling a customer order before she spoke.

  “How’s Dad settling in at your place?”

  “Uh...fine.” Cathy sorted out the customer’s change, then broke a fresh roll of quarters open, dumping it in the drawer. “He says it’s nice and quiet there—a lot easier to sleep there than the hospital.” Cathy finally stopped moving and met Mack’s gaze. “You should come over for dinner tonight. I’m making lasagna. Well, I’m reheating lasagna from the grocery store—you know I was never much of a cook—but there’s plenty.”

  Mack nodded. Dan had said his shift wouldn’t end until after midnight. “I’d like that, Cathy. And...thanks for being there for Dad. He put us both on the spot by not wanting to tell me, but I’m okay with it. Really. If he’s happy, then I’m happy.”

  Cathy’s smile brightened. “Thank you, Mack. I told him keeping it secret was a bonehead move, but your dad can be stubborn. What about the store? Are you going to take over?”

  “I don’t have a choice at this point. It’s the family business, and Ryan doesn’t seem interested. If Dad really wants to retire, I’m the last one left.”

  She’d texted her brother after Dad’s bombshell announcement on Thursday but hadn’t heard from him yet. That wasn’t all that uncommon. He was working as a firefighter out west, and he’d texted a week ago that his team was headed to a fire in Arizona and might be off the grid for a while. Ryan had his hands full just surviving, and she was sure he’d be happy with whatever decision she made. Gallant Lake didn’t hold warm, fuzzy memories for her brother.

  He’d called Dad right after the accident, and again after the surgery. But he hadn’t called his sister. Just because he was sober these days didn’t mean he couldn’t still be a jerk. He’d told Dad this was a bad time of year for him to get away, when the wildfires were just getting started out there. Dad told him not to worry. He was proud of Ryan for pulling his life back together.

  Cathy’s hand rested on Mack’s arm. “That’s going to make your dad really happy, Mack. He was having a hard time imagining that store leaving the family, but he really wants to retire.”

  Mack nodded absently. One more thing her father hadn’t mentioned in their regular calls. What was he afraid she’d do? Cry? Get mad? Refuse to come home?

  She walked back to her place, unable to avoid the truth. All of those things were possible. If Dad had asked her to come home while she and Mason were married, she’d have been horrified. It wasn’t until she’d lost everything that she’d come back into Dad’s world. He knew that as well as she did.

  * * *

  The sting was no less painful that night, when her dad confirmed it over dinner.

  “I’ve been ready to cut back for a few years, Mackie.” He scooped an enormous mound of lasagna onto her plate and handed it over. “I didn’t want to pressure you or Ryan to take over the business,” he said, “but I didn’t want to sell it, either. It was great timing when you ended up getting...well...”

  “Great timing for me to get divorced, Dad?” Mack smirked. “Yeah, I thought so, too.” Dad’s face went red. He didn’t like talking about the failure of her marriage. He and her mother had had a forever kind of love, and it was tough for him to understand that not every marriage was like that. He cleared his throat awkwardly but didn’t argue, so she pressed ahead. “I get it. If my marriage had lasted, I wouldn’t be here helping you. Just like Ryan finding the firefighter team and finally figuring out who he was meant to be. Your kids are late bloomers, Dad. But we’re figuring it out.”

  He mulled her words for a moment.

  “So you’re saying you’ll take it on?”

  She huffed out a laugh. She hadn’t known what she was going to do until that moment.

  “Sure, Dad. I’ve got nothing else to do.”

  He stared at his plate, frowning. “Not exactly the enthusiasm I was looking for.”

  “Give me a break, Dad. I’m here, aren’t I? Isn’t that what you want?”

  Cathy cut in. “Your dad is very proud of both of you, Mack. You and Ryan. He says it all the time.”

  Mack’s fork rattled against her plate. He did? Her father wasn’t one to talk about feelings or affection, although she’d always felt he supported her and Ryan. And loved them in his quiet way. To hear that he talked about his feelings with other people—with his girlfriend—stirred some mixed emotions. On one hand, it was nice to think he was so proud of her that he’d say it out loud to someone. On the other hand, it hurt more than a little that he couldn’t say it to her. She looked across the table at him and rea
lized she needed to hear the words.

  “Are you, Dad? Proud of us?”

  The only other time she’d seen his face this red was when he told her he was moving in with Cathy. His jaw worked back and forth a few times, and he gave Cathy an annoyed look for starting this. Cathy cupped her chin in her hand and stared right back at him in mock innocence. The corner of her father’s mouth lifted in a smile that had warmth and—uh-oh, was that heat?—in it. If she’d had any doubt about whether or not her father and Cathy were more than just friends, that silent exchange between them confirmed it. And Mack was surprisingly okay with it. Her dad shook his head and turned to Mack.

  “Of course I’m proud of you. Both of you. You were always a good girl, of course. And Ryan? Well, Ryan worked hard to get himself right.”

  The words were the ones she’d wanted to hear. But then he’d ruined it.

  “Was it just because I didn’t cause problems that you were proud, Dad? Compared to Ryan?”

  He gave Cathy a quick glance, looking for help. But Cathy sat back in silence, her face carefully blank. He was on his own with this one. He harrumphed a few times, but eventually he leaned forward and looked straight into Mack’s eyes.

  “Mackenzie Elizabeth Wallace, your mother and I were always proud of you. Not because you behaved. That’s a pretty low bar, don’t you think? We were proud because of why you were such a sweet girl. At twelve, you decided to do that for us because Ryan was getting in so much trouble. We tried to get you to ease up on yourself, but you just became such a driven kid. And when Mary got sick, you stepped up again. We worried, but there was no stopping you.” He took a long drink of water, as if this much personal conversation was exhausting him. “When you and Mason got married, I was relieved. I figured you’d finally relax and live your own life.” He gave her a sheepish look. “I guess I was wrong, huh?”

  She started to answer, but he waved her off.

  “And now you’re back. And I have a feeling you’re finally starting to live for yourself. So don’t take on the store only to please me. I’ll be proud of you no matter what, Mackie.”

  A thick silence fell on the table. Mack’s throat was so full of emotion that she wouldn’t have been able to speak if she wanted to. Dad looked like he’d just run a marathon and was ready to collapse of exhaustion. His glance darted around the room for a safe place to land. Cathy was biting her lip, her eyes shining with tears. She started to nod and kept nodding as she stood.

  “I almost forgot dessert!” Cathy spoke rapidly. “I bought strawberries and angel food cake today. Let me just clear this...”

  Mack got up to help, and as she passed behind her father, she patted his shoulder, still not trusting herself to say anything. He nodded, and she almost laughed. The three of them looked like a bunch of bobblehead dolls right now.

  Wait until she told Dan about this later... His was the very first name that came to mind. Not her brother. Not her new friends. Dan Adams.

  She checked her watch. Still a few more hours until he’d be at her place. Her heart jumped in anticipation. Good thing she’d grabbed a nap that afternoon.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Sundays tended to be quieter on-duty days. Not always, but usually. Dan’s biggest challenge that day had been exhaustion and impatience to get back to Mackenzie. He’d texted her to let her know he was headed her way, just in case she’d fallen asleep. Or changed her mind. But her response came back almost instantly.

  I’ll pour the scotch.

  When she opened the door and saw the box in his hand, she started to laugh. He’d missed that sound all day. He’d missed her.

  “You brought a pizza?” She looked at her watch. “At twelve thirty in the morning?” She stepped aside to let him in. He gave her a quick kiss as he passed.

  “Don’t be too impressed. It’s cold and half of it’s been eaten. A pizzeria dropped half a dozen of them off at the station tonight. One of those thanks-for-your-service things. I haven’t had dinner, and it smelled too good to leave it there.” He took his jacket off and went to toss it on the chair, then stopped cold when an orange pillow started to move. “Damn, I forgot you had that mutant cat.”

  The cat was curled up on the chair seat, but a cat that large couldn’t curl up enough to hide his gargantuan size. He studied Dan with tawny eyes the same color as his thick coat. Dan reached down, and those eyes narrowed dangerously. Then he stretched just enough to brush his head against Dan’s fingers.

  “Ooh, you should feel honored.” Mack put a slice of pizza on a plate. “That’s almost a sign of approval.”

  “What’s his name again?”

  “Rory.”

  “Right.” He moved his fingers against the cat’s head. Rory tolerated it for a minute, then reached up and put his teeth on Dan’s finger. He didn’t bite, just held him there. Dan waited until Rory released him, then slowly pulled his hand back. There was no malice in the cat’s expression, and he finally lost interest and started cleaning his paws. Dan wasn’t much of a cat guy, so he’d accept this truce as a win.

  He took his glass of scotch and sat. “There’s enough pizza for two in there if you want to join me.”

  “I had lasagna with Dad and Cathy.” She sat next to him and propped her chin in her hand. “You had an okay day?”

  “Blissfully boring. How did your dinner go?”

  “Um...not boring, but not bad.” It was nice, sitting there discussing their day. She told him about her conversation with her dad while he ate. When she said she was ready to take over the liquor store, he set his pizza slice down and stared. Something weird fluttered inside him at the thought of spending more evenings unwinding with Mack.

  “So you’re really staying in Gallant Lake?”

  Her mouth twitched. “Would that be a problem, Officer?”

  “Not for me.” He leaned over and kissed her lips, pulling back quickly to avoid being pulled into the kiss vortex that tended to spin the two of them out of control.

  They chatted more as he devoured the rest of the pizza. As always, Mack was easy to be with. As he drained the last of his scotch, he said so. She tipped her head, and her honey-colored hair tumbled over her shoulders.

  “You’re pretty nice to be around, too.”

  They continued chatting as they cleaned up. She told him about her father’s unexpected declaration that he was proud of her. To Dan, that seemed obvious. But when he saw how much the words meant to Mack, he wondered if maybe it was a guy thing to assume people knew your thoughts. It was a damned shame Mack had gone all these years not knowing for sure how much her father cared. The next time Dan saw his daughter, he’d be sure to tell Chloe how proud of her he was.

  Dan put the empty pizza box into her recycle bin. They were being so very domestic at one o’clock in the morning. After this weekend, he should be exhausted, but being with Mack energized him.

  “So you’re going to run the liquor store. I’d have never guessed that one twenty years ago. Is that part of Mackie’s adventurous new leaf?” Another question rose up before he had time to think it through. “For that matter, am I?”

  They stared at each other for a long moment. He wanted to kick himself for taking the conversation in such a serious direction. He had no right to press her for a declaration of her feelings about them when he hadn’t examined his own yet.

  She blew out a quick breath. “I guess it is. And you could be. We haven’t really talked about what it is you and I...” She gestured between them. “...whatever this is we’re doing...”

  He took the towel from her hands and set it aside, tugging her close. “I didn’t mean to be such a wet blanket. Sorry, babe.”

  She considered his words, frowning. “It wasn’t a bad question, though. What are we doing? Is this a relationship now? Is it serious or just for fun?”

  He had no idea how to answer.

  “Can�
�t we figure that out as we go? Take it a day at a time? No strings...”

  “No strings?” She pulled back and looked up at him, her brows furrowed. “You don’t think we’ve already created strings?”

  Yeah, they had. Strings slicing right through the center of his heart. He released her and scrubbed his hands down his face.

  “I don’t know, Mack. I haven’t had a serious relationship since my divorce, and I’m guessing you haven’t, either.”

  She laughed. “Turns out I didn’t have a serious one before my divorce, either. This is new territory for both of us.” She shrugged. “Maybe we should stick to that one-day-at-a-time plan for a while.”

  “If nothing else, I need to make sure Chloe’s okay with it before anything gets serious.” He gave her a wink and ran her fingers down her arm. He loved the way her skin trembled at his touch. “But we don’t have to worry about any of that tonight.”

  Mack started walking backward, taking his fingers in her hand and pulling him along. “Agreed. And just because I didn’t want any pizza doesn’t mean I’m not hungry for something else.”

  That was all the invitation Dan needed. They were upstairs, undressed and in bed in less than a minute, but then he took his time exploring her. He hadn’t seen her naked body in almost twenty-four hours, and he wanted to memorize every inch of it. He didn’t just explore with his hands, either. He kissed her from her toes to her thighs and beyond. Just as dangerous to handle as ever, she came fast and loud when his mouth found her. And again when he sank into her.

  They moved together in perfect time, whispering and pleading and saying very naughty words. But it was her name he cried out when he came, right after she’d shuddered in his arms with another orgasm. She had a hair trigger, and he’d never realized how exciting that could be. How exciting she could be. He pulled her in close, their hearts and their breathing falling into sync. She was asleep in seconds, but Dan lay there wide-awake, trying to make sense of it all.