Lacey said nothing for a count of three, then admitted grudgingly, "Well. Okay. That is a tough one."
"But I—"
"Yeah?"
"I'm willing to do without children. I do love him, Lacey. I think I'll always love him. And since last night, I've started to see that there are other ways to contribute to the raising of children than to have them yourself."
"What happened last night?"
"Remember that boy who found Byron?"
"I remember."
"Well, last night, while you were working, his mother dropped by. She told me that Mack has set up a trust fund for her, five thousand a month for the next twenty years—as well as college funds for each of her children."
Lacey gave a low whistle. "What did I say? Not the same S.O.B. he used to be. Not the same S.O.B. at all."
"That's right. And it's got me thinking. He's contributing to those children's lives, contributing in a very big way. And that's … important. It's, well, it could be enough for me, what we might do, together, to help other people's children grow up. And … I still love him. I'll always love him. And I miss him. And I don't want to live without him."
"Then don't. Track him down and tell him. Tell him again and again. Until he finally gives up and admits that you're the only woman in the world for him. Until he comes to his senses and confesses that he can't wait to start spending the rest of his life at your side."
Jenna stared at her sister. "You know," she said. "That's good advice."
"So take it."
Jenna dropped to the end of the sofa bed. "All right," she said. "I believe that I will."
* * *
Chapter 18
« ^
Jenna and Lacey did a lot of talking that weekend. Lacey confessed that if Jenna wanted to sell the house their mother had left them, she would be more than glad for the extra cash. As soon as she could walk again, she intended to return to L.A. Maybe love had not worked out for her. But she was more determined than ever to fulfill her career dreams.
So they agreed. They would sell the house. They settled on a fairly low asking price, reasoning that neither of them wanted to wait forever to get on with the next phase of their lives.
Monday, Jenna visited a Realtor. She also placed an ad in the Meadow Valley Sun, putting her store up for sale.
Five weeks later, they got a solid offer on the house. By then it had been seven weeks since Lacey's surgery. She got a clean bill of health from her orthopedic surgeon and immediately called a friend in L.A., who invited her to stay there until she found something of her own. The next day she made arrangements to ship the painting of Logan to the artist friend with whom she'd previously shared the downtown L.A. loft.
And on Thursday, November 19, Jenna drove her sister to Sacramento International Airport.
"You don't have me to worry about anymore," Lacey said before she boarded the plane. "The house is sold and Marla can manage the store for a while. I think you'd better take a little trip to Florida. Time's passing. You need to start breaking down Mack's defenses so you can get going on the rest of your lives."
"You're absolutely right." Jenna hugged her sister.
"So? When are you leaving?"
"I'm making a plane reservation as soon as I get home."
"I'll call you the minute I get a new place—and you'd better call me and keep me posted on your love life."
"You know that I will."
"Did I tell you that you're the best sister this ex-juvenile delinquent ever had?"
"You did. So keep painting and making me proud, will you?"
"I will, I promise. I love you."
"Oh, Lace. I love you, too…"
* * *
That evening Erin Kettleman brought the kids over. They cooked hot dogs on the grill in the backyard in the rain and ate them at the breakfast nook table. Little Lissa fussed through most of the visit and Tina and the younger boy, Will, got into a spat or two. But Riley declared the meal the best he'd ever had, and all the children were thrilled to see Byron again. The cat sat in one small lap after another, purring loudly the whole time.
Before they left, Jenna told Erin that she and her cat were headed for Florida on Monday.
Erin's smile was one of pure delight. "You're getting back together with Mr. McGarrity?"
"Yes, I am," Jenna answered without a second's hesitation.
* * *
The next day, Jenna let both Marla and her other clerk have the morning off. Business was brisk, but she could handle it. In a couple of days, they'd be on their own for a while. They might as well have it a little easy until then.
At a quarter to twelve she was showing a regular customer a set of café curtains and the linens to match when she heard the bleat of the door buzzer.
She turned with her best smile ready.
And the whole world stood still.
It was Mack.
Mack.
In chinos and that sexy brown leather jacket, hands in his pockets, looking at her as if he'd like to grab her and hold her and never in a million years let her go.
"Hon?" said her customer, a thin redhead with a penchant for crinkle skirts and silver jewelry. "Hon? Are you feeling all right?"
Jenna reached out and put her hand on a nearby display rack to steady herself. "I'm just fine. Would you … excuse me?"
"Sure enough. You take your time," her customer said, though Jenna hardly heard her. She was already walking along the towel aisle toward the man who stood a few feet from the door.
"Mack," she said when she reached him. The name had everything in it. Her love. Her longing. Her joy at the sight of him. "Hello."
He took her left hand, on which her plain wedding band gleamed, and then gently touched the cat-shaped diamond pin she wore near her heart. He smiled. Lord, how had she lived without his smile? "You're glad to see me," he said.
"Glad doesn't cover it. There isn't a word big enough to cover it." She drew her shoulders back. "I was coming to get you, Mack."
The light in his eyes was beautiful to see. "You were?"
"Yes. On Monday. I'm still your wife, Mack. I never took those papers in. Because I intend to remain your wife."
He said her name then, "Jenna," in a whisper, from the heart. And then he reached for her.
There were two other customers in the store besides the redhead with the silver jewelry. One of them gasped, the other said, "Ahh…" And the redhead murmured, "How sweet."
Neither Mack nor Jenna cared what her customers thought. They kissed for a long time, a kiss of true reunion, a kiss between man and wife.
At last he lifted his head, but he still held her close, right against his heart.
He said, "I did it, Jenna. I went to see both of my sisters."
"Oh, Mack…"
"And they are two very nice women. Bridget has three happy, loud, normal kids. And Claire is pregnant with her first baby. It's going to be a girl. I … well, I think if they can do it, maybe I can do it, too."
"Mack. Are you saying…?"
He nodded. "I'm terrified, scared out of my wits. But yes. I'll do it. I'll have a family with you. It feels like the biggest damn chance I'll ever take in my life. But I'm good at taking risks … right?"
"You are, Mack. You take chances. And those chances pay off."
"You really didn't file the papers?"
"No."
"And you really want to stay my wife?"
"Yes."
"I don't even have to beg you or get down on my knees?"
"Well, a little begging would be nice…"
He yanked her close again and called her a naughty name. Then he kissed her for the second time.
And he said, "I love you."
And she said, "I love you, too. So much. So very much…"
And right then the buzzer rang again. It was Marla, ready for work.
"Do you think you could handle things here on your own for a while?" Jenna asked.
Marla said that she could. So Jen
na grabbed her purse and her coat and she and Mack left the store. They walked hand in hand to the Queen Anne Victorian at the top of West Broad Street
.
Byron was waiting just inside the front door. Mack scooped Jenna up and carried her straight to the master bedroom on the first floor. The cat followed behind them, purring quite loudly, his long black tail held high and proud.
* * *
A few weeks later, Mack and Jenna renewed their vows, in Florida, aboard Mack's boat, The Shady Deal. Mack flew the guests in. Lacey was there, and Mack's sisters and their families, and Alec and Lois, and the entire Kettleman clan.
After the ceremony Jenna and Mack left for a second honeymoon. They went to Wyoming. Jenna met the children of her grandfather's brother. And in the years to come, she always insisted that they conceived their first child there, on the ranch that had been in the Bravo family for five generations.
* * * * *
THE MILLIONAIRE SHE MARRIED Page 19