Fool for Love (29 page)

"What was?"

"You must know the answer to that by
now."

"Oh … the painting!" She sat up
so she could see him better. "Have you seen his work?"

Mac nodded. "Quite something, isn't
it?"

"I couldn't believe it! Why didn't he
go to art school?"

"He was on his way. He'd gotten into
one of the best schools in the country, the Savannah College of Art."

"So what happened? Why didn't he
go?"

Mac tilted his head, and his mouth twisted
into an ironic smile.

"Oh, God. His grandfather died, and
he felt obligated to keep the company in the family." Her heart ached when
she realized the enormous responsibility he'd inherited at the tender age of
eighteen.

"It was never his dream, Janey. He's
had a very satisfying life doing something he truly enjoys, but it wasn't his
first love."

"I've known him all my life, and yet
there's so much about him I don't know."

"He loves you more than anything. You
have to know that by now. Is there any chance at all that you might love him,
too? Even a little?"

Janey blinked back more tears, bit her lip
and nodded. "I love him so much."

"But are you
in love
with
him?"

"Yes," she whispered, wiping her
face. Any final doubts had disappeared the second he walked out her door
earlier. "Very much so."

"It's not fair for you to make these
decisions on his behalf. He's had his choices taken away before. It's really
the worst thing you could do to him."

Moaning, she said, "I thought I was
doing the
right thing
for him!"

"What would you say to letting your
buttinsky big brother fix this fine mess for you?"

She leaned her head on his shoulder.
"I'd say please, by all means, do what you do best and butt in."

Mac laughed and kissed the top of her
head. "Don't worry, brat. It'll all be fine. I'll make sure of it."

Mac's wedding day dawned clear and sunny. He took a cup of coffee to the deck
to look out over the yard and the tent that had been erected the day before. It
didn't pay to gamble with New England weather, and Mac was taking no chances
that this day would be anything less than perfect. He'd certainly waited long
enough to find Maddie. In just a few hours, she'd finally be his wife. And with
her came a son who Mac couldn't have loved any more if he'd been his biological
child.

Maddie and Thomas had spent the night at
Janey's, and Mac couldn't wait to see them later. He'd grown used to his
mornings with Thomas and had missed waking up to baby chatter. Mac had arranged
for a horse-drawn carriage to pick them up for the wedding. He looked forward
to hearing about Thomas's reaction to that.

A hand landed on Mac's shoulder, and he
turned to find Joe holding a mug.

"Hey, did you sleep okay?" Mac
asked.

"Like a dead man. The boys are still
out cold." Joe referred to Mac's brothers.

Mac studied his good friend and saw none
of the agitation and despair that had marked his features earlier in the week,
before Mac had cued him into Janey's news. Today he saw nothing but serenity
and determination on Joe's face.

"Ready for all this?" Joe asked,
gesturing to the tent and the arrangement of chairs to the right of the tent
where the exchange of vows would take place at two o'clock.

"Absolutely. How about you?"

"Operation Janey is ready to roll."

Mac smiled. "You've thrown her all
off kilter with four days of total silence, you know."

"That's the very least of what she
deserves after what she's put me through—for years. Yeah, a few days of
suffering is
just
what she needed."

"You two are well matched," Mac
said, laughing. "Very well matched indeed."

"You really think so?" Joe
asked, showing a hint of vulnerability that tugged at Mac's heart. Hell,
everything tugged at his heart these days.

"You know I do." Mac took a long
swig of coffee. "So what's the plan?"

"You'll just have to wait and
see," Joe said with a smug grin.

"Come on! You can tell
me
. I
won't say anything."

"Nope."

"Oh, this is going to be good,"
Mac said, chuckling.

"You bet it is."

Janey had no doubt that she was far more nervous than the bride. While Maddie
had been calm and cool all day, Janey felt like she was coming out of her own
skin while she waited to see Joe. She knew for a fact that Mac had told him her
news days ago, and yet she hadn't heard a word from Joe since then. If he was
trying to punish her, he was doing a damned good job of it.

Night after night she had lain awake
wondering where he was, what he was thinking, why he didn't call, why he didn't
come over, why he didn't do
something
. The tension had turned her into a
basket case as she tried her best to provide steady support to the bride.

The guys had cleared out of Mac and
Maddie's house hours ago so the women could finish getting ready, but now Janey
heard their voices out on the lawn. She glanced out the window, and her breath
caught at the sight of Mac and Joe standing together in black tuxedos. Mac held
Thomas, who wore a tiny tux for the occasion. Her other brothers, dressed in
dark suits, talked and laughed and joked with them. What a handsome bunch of
guys, Janey thought with a smile.

She checked her watch. Ten minutes to show
time. Gathering the skirt of her periwinkle gown, she rushed upstairs and
knocked on the bedroom door.

"Come in," Maddie called. She
had requested a half an hour alone to finish getting ready.

Janey opened the door and stopped short.
"Wow." The dress was simple, elegant and utterly perfect.
"Seriously.
Wow
."

Maddie released a nervous laugh.
"Really?"

"Mac won't be able to remember his
own name when he sees you."

Maddie flashed a saucy smile. "That
was kind of the goal." She reached for Janey's hand. "How are you
holding up?"

"I'm a mess." She rested her
free hand over her churning belly. "I have no idea if Joe will even speak
to me."

"Of course he will."

"I wouldn't blame him if he
didn't." Janey shook off that unpleasant thought. "Anyway, it's not
about me today. This is your day. My dad should be here any minute to give away
the bride. Are you ready?"

"I'm so ready." Maddie's
caramel-colored eyes glowed. "I've never been happier in my life. I kept
waiting for something to happen to mess it up…"

"I told you nothing would
happen." Janey hugged her. "Don't start or we'll both be bawling like
babies."

"Only happy tears today." Maddie
extended her hand. "Deal?"

Janey shook on it, hoping she could hold
up her end of the bargain.

Following Maddie's sister Tiffany down the stairs to
the lawn, Janey looked everywhere but at Joe. She was too afraid of what she
might see if she made contact with those hot hazel eyes of his. Instead, she
watched her brother's mouth fall open at the first glimpse of Maddie on his
father's arm. Janey held Maddie's bouquet during the emotional exchange of vows
and took the arm Joe silently offered so they could follow the newly married couple
down the aisle.

And still she hadn't dared to look
directly at him.

Her stomach twisted and turned, her heart
raced and she couldn't seem to get enough air to her lungs. Despite being
riddled with tension, she managed to smile for the photographer before they
moved into the tent. Luckily, she was seated next to Maddie and Joe was next to
Mac during dinner, which Janey only picked at.

Joe gave a beautiful toast about Mac
finding the exact perfect partner that brought tears to Janey's eyes. While Mac
and Maddie were cutting their cake, Janey finally ventured a glance at Joe's
handsome face and found him staring right back at her. Her heart soared with
hope at the heated look he sent her, and she couldn't seem to tear her eyes off
him. The DJ ended the moment when he announced the bride and groom's first
dance as Mr. and Mrs. Mac McCarthy.

Janey startled a few minutes later when
Joe's warm hand landed on her bare shoulder, setting off a reaction that
rippled through her body like a live wire.

"Our turn," he said.

Looking up at him, she took the hand he
offered and let him lead her to the dance floor. As he took her into his arms,
Janey breathed him in, flooded with relief at being close to him again.
Suddenly, all the tension she'd carried for days faded away, and she relaxed
into his embrace.

He didn't say anything, but his fingers
lightly skimmed her back as they moved to the music. Later, Janey wouldn't
remember the song or the soft summer breeze that drifted through the open sides
of the tent. She wouldn't remember her parents dabbing at tears as they watched
the four of them from the edge of the dance floor. She wouldn't remember
Maddie's mother play-dancing with a giggling Thomas on the sideline or her
other brothers watching her and Joe with thinly veiled interest.

Janey would, however, remember the sense
of absolute rightness that came over her as Joe held her close to him. She'd
remember the distinctive scent of the sea and cloves, the heat of his hand
branding her sensitive skin and the brush of his lips over her hair. And she
would remember the moment, the
exact moment
when she realized he was
holding her the way a man holds the woman he loves. Right then she knew
somehow, some way, this was going to be okay.
They
were going to be
okay.

"Have you done everything you need to
do for Maddie?" he asked as the song came to an end.

Janey looked over at her brother and his
new wife, who were totally absorbed in each other. "I doubt she'll be
needing me for anything."

"Great," Joe said.

The next thing Janey knew, she had been
tossed over his shoulder and was looking at the floor rushing by as he carried
her out of the tent.

"
What are you doing?
Put me
down!"

"Be quiet or I might be tempted to
paddle your ass while I have you right where I want you."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Wanna try me?"

Janey bit back another retort because she
was afraid he would, in fact, spank her with everyone in the tent no doubt
watching as they crossed the lawn and headed for the driveway. Over the blood
rushing to her head, Janey was certain she heard her brothers hooting and
hollering. She'd take care of them later.

"Joe, come on, I'm going to throw
up!"

"Throw up what? You didn't eat a bite
of your dinner."

She should've known he'd be watching her
every move the way he always had.

"
Please
put me down?" she
asked, affecting the sweetest tone she owned, since being a shrew had gotten
her nowhere.

"And risk you running away from me
again? No way."

She'd resigned herself to hanging upside
down for a while, so it came as a shock to her when he suddenly stopped walking
and put her down. As the blood rushed from her head, his hands on her shoulders
steadied her.

Janey twisted out of his grasp.
"You're a Neanderthal."

That seemed to please him. "Whatever
it takes." He gestured to the horse and carriage Mac had sent for Maddie
earlier. "Madame?"

Reaching up, she attempted to bring order
to hair that had broken loose from the pins she'd used to hold it up for the
wedding. She didn't want to think about how scary she must look with a red face
and crazy hair. "What if I don't want to go with you?" she asked,
giving him some of his own medicine.

"I can still spank your ass, so you'd
better stop talking and get in the carriage." His brows narrowed over
those amazing eyes. "
Now
." The last word was uttered with such
uncharacteristic menace that Janey did as she was told, even though she'd much
rather keep fighting with him.

"This whole caveman act is highly
unattractive," she huffed. While that was true, Joe in a tuxedo was among
the most attractive sights she'd ever beheld.

He got in behind her and signaled to the
driver. "You know what's unattractive? You. Lying to me, blowing me off,
making decisions for me. That's
really
unattractive."

"I did what I thought was
best
for you!"

"Who are you to decide that?"

Janey stared at him, shocked by the
outburst. "So you're mad."

"Seriously pissed is more like
it."

"Joe—"

"Don't talk to me right now, Janey. I
don't know if I can trust myself to not give you that spanking you so richly
deserve."

While she didn't think for a minute he'd
do any such thing, she'd never seen him quite so furious. She was appalled, in
fact, to realize she was rather turned on at the moment.