Shine Not Burn(79)

“What’s that got to do with Ginny?”

“I’m getting to that.” He sighed, looking off into the distance. “Ginny was at a store in town and overheard someone talking about how Ian’s bachelor party was a bust because one of the guys disappeared with some woman and caused a big fuss. She asked who they were talking about and no one could tell her.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’d sworn them all to secrecy. They did it - kept their mouths shut - for me. Mostly shut, anyway.”

“What? I’m sorry, but I’m completely lost. Are we still talking about Ginny?”

He sighed heavily. “Yes, in a roundabout way, we are. What happened is that the guys found me in the lobby where I was waiting for you, and they took me to get our stuff, and we went home. On the way back I told them everything and made them swear not to tell a soul. I wanted to surprise our parents when I introduced you.” His voice got rough at the end.

“I don’t get it. I’m sorry, Mack. I know I sound like an idiot and I sure feel like one, but I think I’m missing parts of the story.”

He looked at me, his expression tortured. “You really don’t remember?”

“No, I swear to God, I don’t.” I put my hand in his large one, holding it gently. “I’m sure it’s not because I wasn’t really feeling whatever it was I was feeling at the time. I just … drank way too much, I think.”

He nodded once, walking back towards the horses and pulling me along with him gently. I tried to take my hand back, but he just held tighter.

“Do you want me to tell you the story the way I remember it? Start to finish?”

“Yes,” I said, “please do that. And what I remember, I’ll fill in too.” The anticipation of learning the truth was great, but so was the fear that I wasn’t going to like what I heard.





Chapter Thirty-Four





“COME SIT ON THE BLANKET with me and we’ll talk while we eat the lunch my mom made for us.”

“Aww, she made lunch for us? That’s so cute.” I never used that word for moms, but there was something about Maeve that made it the only word that would fit.

“She likes you a lot.”

I felt ashamed about that … having her like me when I was just going to break her son’s heart. “How could she like me? She doesn’t even know me.”

“I think she can tell how much I care about you, and that means something to her.”

I had no response for that, so I kept my mouth shut. I wanted it to be true, as implausible as it seemed.

I settled onto the blanket and Mack did something to tie the horses up so they could eat too. He joined me, lying down on his side next to me as I sat up with my legs crossed. I took a long blade of grass from nearby and played with it as he told me his story, keeping my eyes on my task so he could recount our shared past without feeling embarrassed.

“Okay, so here’s how I remember it. I was sitting there minding my own business at the blackjack tables, trying to win a little money to give to my brother for his wedding gift. He and Ginny were planning to go to Hawaii and it was taking a pretty big chunk of change from his savings.”

“Your mom told me.”

“I was up about a grand when a pretty little girl in a tight dress came over and threw a drink on me.”

“Guilty.” I raised a finger for a few seconds before letting it drop. I found that I liked being called the pretty little girl in a tight dress for some reason.

“After spending a little time with her and thinking about nothing but wanting to know her better in every way, we went up to her room where I did just that. I got to know her, and for the first time in my life, I felt like I was with someone I could really relax with. Be with.” He rolled over onto his back, lacing his hands behind his head. “It sounds crazy to say it out loud, but I distinctly remember thinking when I saw you sitting at that blackjack table that you were the girl for me.” He shifted his head to look in my direction, so I lifted my face to look at him too. “Maybe even before that. When you threw the drink on me … I think I knew it then.” His piercing blue eyes slayed me, sending a heat right into my veins to warm up my whole body.

“That’s crazy,” I said in a slightly breathless voice. “That doesn’t happen in real life.”

“It does in mine.” He looked back at the sky. “Anyway, I fell for you like a ton of bricks and we made love, which only sealed the deal for me.” He got a weird grin on his face. “And then we laid there and talked.” He sounded like he didn’t believe it himself. “Everything you said just spoke to me on a really deep level.” He looked at me again. “You might find this hard to believe, but I generally don’t have conversations like that with people.”

I smiled sadly. “I got that impression.” I loved knowing I was special in his life, but I hated knowing it was only temporary. It sucks more than anything in the world to see a dream of who you could be and know you have to walk away from it to be something less. Living up to the expectations of others was beginning to feel like it was the path to destroying my soul.

“So I got this wild hair up my … hat … and asked you to come on an adventure with me. We went to a bar where I flirted outrageously with you and then asked you to marry me.”