MacKenzie Fire(97)

TEXT MESSAGE ALERTS START BEEPING as soon as the plane lands and I turn on my phone. Jorge has sent me four messages in the last half hour.

R U HERE YET?

WE NEED U NOW.

I’M SERIOUS, C, COME TO THE SALON ASAP

R U IGNORING ME?

“Is there something wrong?” Ian asks me from the seat to my left.

My boobs bounce uncomfortably as we taxi up to the gate. Why do they always have such bumpy airports around here?

I text Jorge back and tell him to keep his pants on. We’re at least a half hour from the big reveal. The entire salon is freaking out about me bringing a man back with me, a cowboy no less. They made me ask Ian to wear his cowboy hat. I have to admit, it still gives me the chills to see him standing there in ass-hugging jeans and a black hat.

I sigh. “You never know with Jorge. He could be serious, he could be having a dramatic moment.”

“A dramatic moment?”

I try to smile. “My partner is prone to drama. He’s very … high energy.”

“Sounds like my kind of guy.”

“Heh, heh … well, he’s not … exactly.”

Ian frowns. “I don’t get it.”

I decide to just put it out there and see what happens. “Jorge is gay.”

Ian sits there doing nothing.

I lift my eyebrows at him.

“Am I supposed to say something now?” he asks.

“I kind of expected you to, yes.”

He looks like he’s thinking hard. “Okay, how about if I saaaay … good for him? Does that work?”

I nudge him, some of my stress leaving my chest. At least I know he’s not homophobic. “That works. But I’m warning you … he’s not just a little gay, he’s very gay.”

“I wasn’t aware that there were levels of gayness. What level is he?”

I know he’s messing with me, but I play along anyway. “He’s a level eleven out of ten.”

Ian smiles. “I can’t wait to meet him.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m gay too.”

My heart stops for a split second until I see his expression. I laugh out of relief. “You’re ridiculous.”

“No, you’re ridiculous. You’re so worried about everything. I can’t wait to meet Jorge because Jorge is your partner. He’s been with you for over ten years, most of the hours of the day. If I’m going to convince you to fall in love with me, he’ll know how to make that happen. I’m counting on him to save my love life.”

I cuddle his arm and rest my head on his thick shoulder. “I am in love with you, silly.”

“You might love me a little, but I need you to love me all the way.”

I have no response for that. I know all of him but he only knows a piece of me, the vacation Candice. Will he still want to be with me when he knows the real me, the every-other-week-of-the-year Candice? That still remains to be seen.

I’m not doing it on purpose, but a piece of my heart is holding itself back, waiting to see if it’s worth the risk to totally let go and hand itself over to Ian for the taking. It’s been crushed too many times to believe that two-way love really exists.

The plane finally stops bumping along and we’re able to get off and find our luggage in the baggage claim. My car is covered in dust from local construction, but it starts up without a problem and gets us on the highway in no time.

“I like your car,” Ian says. “I’ve always wanted a sports car like this. And it’s black too, my favorite.”

Last year I splurged and bought myself a midlife crisis car, even though I’m still at least fifteen years away from that event, hopefully. “Do you want to drive it?” I ask.

“Later. When I get the lay of the land a little. Besides,” he reaches over and rubs my thigh, “I kind of like watching you shift those gears.”

A flash of Hannah Banana comes to mind and I smile. That poor misguided girl. She ended up with no friends by the time we departed. Ginny cut her out and so did all those other girls who are now buddying up to Andie. She’s going to have to leave town to find someone who will give her the time of day.

“Hey, what was that secret you had on Hannah?” I ask, as the showdown in the diner memory surfaces and dances around in my head.

“What?”

“Remember when we were in the diner and you threatened to tell her secret? Something about the fourth of July? Was it about Boog?”

“Nah. It was about Tate Montgomery. Boog is Hannah’s half-brother and he gives her tons of shit, so she didn’t want him knowing about Tate. She doesn’t want anyone knowing about him. I guess he’s her super secret love crush or whatever. She told me about it when she was wasted at a picnic.”

I’m frowning trying to work that out in my mind. “I thought she was hot for Mack.”

“She was, but after Andie came to town, she abandoned that fantasy. Apparently one night Tate and her shared a kiss or some such nonsense.”

“Aw, poor girl. Tate seems like a nice guy.”

“Tate’s all right. He needs to keep his hands off my girl, though.”

I smile. I’m Ian’s girl. It’s official. It thrills me and panics me in equal measure.

I spend the rest of the drive pointing out exits or places of interest, things I want him to see before he leaves. He bought a round trip ticket so there wouldn’t be any pressure on us, or so he claims. I’m not sure that it’s working, but whatever makes him happy. The closer we get to the salon, the more nervous I become.