Hometown Love (Love on the North Shore #2)(43)
Tony did the same before he spoke again. “Surprised O’Brien hasn’t given you hell about it.”
Sean walked back into the room and grabbed the last water bottle on the floor. “Given him hell about what?”
Tony took another swig. “Mack with Jessie. Every time I mentioned her, you acted like her brother and warned me away. Mack here seems to have the green light though.”
“That’s because I know you’re a dog, Tony. Any woman deserves better than you.”
“Glad you think so highly of me,” Tony said, a hint of anger in his voice.
Sean and Tony were close friends. Mack suspected that was the only reason Tony didn’t slug Sean for his comment. Instead, they threw a few insults back and forth. While they exchanged some choice words, Mack recalled Tony’s comment about Sean acting like a brother. “Do either of you know if Jessie has dated a lot?” He wanted to ask if she was a virgin. That would explain her uneasy behavior, but he assumed neither man would have an answer to that question.
“Don’t think so,” Tony answered. “Then again, I don’t think I would’ve noticed.”
“She dated someone for several years. I remember seeing them around town together. But that was a long time ago. Don’t recall anyone since.” Sean downed the rest of his water. “Enough rest. Let’s finish this.”
After leaving Sean’s later that afternoon, Mack picked up some steaks before returning home. While he worked out on a regular basis, his body wasn’t accustomed to swinging a sledgehammer. Already he ached from the activity, and he suspected tomorrow it would be worse. Still, taking down the wall had been enjoyable in an odd sort of way. Now, as he washed away the sweat and dust that covered him, he looked forward to having his daughter home. As wonderful as the weekend with Jessie had been, he’d noticed Grace’s absence. Although he missed her, he hoped she enjoyed her weekend because it might be several weeks before Grace saw Bethany again.
Clean and dressed, he put the steaks on the grill. With Grace due home any minute, he wanted dinner ready sooner rather than later. After two nights with her mom, she’d be overtired. With school tomorrow, it would be a good idea if he got her into bed early. That was one of the reasons he hadn’t invited Jessie for dinner. With her around, he’d have a difficult time getting Grace into bed. His other reason stemmed from the occasional glimpse of apprehension or whatever it was he saw in her. The last thing he wanted was to push her too far too fast. Even in the short time they’d been together, he’d become emotionally invested in their relationship. He didn’t want to sabotage it before it even had a chance to develop further. If that meant taking things a little on the slow side, he’d do it.
“Daddy, I’m home.” Grace walked through the front door as he checked the football score on television. “Look what Mommy bought me.” She held up a boxed dollhouse family. “She got me another house, too. It’s not as big as mine here. It’s a vacation home.”
Mack looked at Bethany. More toys were the last thing Grace needed.
“It is in the trunk. Don’t worry, it’s not as big as her other one, I promise.”
Without a comment, he accepted her car keys. It must be big enough if Bethany hadn’t carried it in herself. “Be right back.”
Judging by the size of the box, the new house was almost as big as the one already in the living room. “We’ll put this together later.”
“When it’s done, I want to invite Jessie over to show her.” Grace kneeled down to examine the picture on the box, her parents forgotten.
“I heard a lot about Jessica this weekend. She sounds sweet.” Bethany took back her car keys. “I need to get going. I’ll see you in a few weeks, okay, Grace?”
“Okay.” Grace gave her mom a quick hug and kiss and then returned to the new dollhouse.
Bethany opened the door to leave. “I’ll be in touch, Mack.”
With his ex-wife gone and his daughter home, all was once again right in his world. “Come on, buddy. Let’s check on dinner and you can tell me about your weekend.”
A little slower than usual, Grace stood and took his hand. “I loved room service.”
Chapter 9
The smell of fall hung in the air. Colorful leaves dotted every tree, the vibrant red, orange and yellow creating a rainbow of fall colors. In another few weeks, they would fall, leaving the trees bare, but right now, they helped create a picture-perfect September day in New England. A day so perfect everyone in the area had decided to take advantage of it. The parking lot at Watch Hill Orchard overflowed with cars as Mack searched for a spot. From the passenger seat, Jessie kept an eye out, as well, while in the back seat, Grace and Brianna discussed Halloween costumes.
Thanks to Jessie’s observant eyes, she spotted a minivan just as it backed out of a space and Mack got to it in the nick of time. “All right, you two. No wandering away.” He waited for both girls to get out before he spoke again so they’d both hear him. “You need to be where either Jessie or I can see you at all times. Understand?”
Both girls nodded in agreement. “Can we get ice cream here?” Grace asked.
“Can we see the animals?” Brianna asked.
Watch Hill Orchard wasn’t just a regular old apple orchard. They grew a wide variety of fruit that customers could pick, depending on the month. The orchard also had a bakery that served sandwiches as well as pie, donuts, and ice cream. A large playground had been built for the children, and not far from it, there was an animal petting area.