by Tina Leonard
“True,” Justin conceded.
“It’s just a charity event in which you’re determined to beat out the Donovans,” Suz said. “Which is all very noble except that my sister’s heart is at stake. What will happen if you pick Daisy’s lane? Just because you don’t believe in the legend doesn’t mean everybody else in Bridesmaids Creek doesn’t. Very strange things happen on that road, and there’s a reason those superstitions have come to pass. You’ve heard the saying, where’s there’s smoke, there’s fire?” She studied Justin. “For every action, there’s a reaction. It would be a bad reaction if you end up as Daisy’s trophy.”
“Won’t happen.”
“Because you think it’s dumb. Because you don’t believe,” Suz argued. “In that case, I’ll just take my sister’s place.”
“Hey!” Frog exclaimed. “Suz on one side, Daisy on the other side? Perforce the road not taken?” He looked distinctly uncomfortable. “In that case, I’ll kneecap Justin.”
Justin sighed, ignoring Frog’s outburst. “That would work, Suz. You’re a Hawthorne. Technically, you’re single, a never-married bachelorette. It would work.” He shook his head. “Anyway, it’s not that I don’t believe. I’m a participant, a bystander, new to this town. I don’t have to embrace everything. I just play along.”
Mackenzie walked in, and just the sight of her made Justin smile. “What are you guys doing?” she asked.
“Justin’s trying to weasel,” Suz said. “Who’s watching the babies?”
“Jade and her mom came over,” Mackenzie said, glancing around. “If you’re going to play cards, you’re welcome to do it at the house.” She looked at Justin, and it felt like someone hit him with a bag of rocks.
He was in love with this woman.
“Are you being a weasel about something?” Mackenzie asked.
“I don’t think so,” he said. “We’re trying to figure out how to win this race and stay inside the rules.”
“He’s sandbagging the race by having these three doofs run with him,” Suz explained. “That way, he’s inoculated from the whole wedding-in-thirty-days issue of the run, but he gets to be the big hero, too.”
Mackenzie met Justin’s gaze. “The way the Best Man’s Fork run works is that one man makes a run to find a woman with whom he’s truly in love. If he picks the right path and she’s waiting at the end of the race for him, they’re meant to be together. If he picks the road with no woman at the end, he might as well just keep on running.”
Justin laughed. “I like my way better. The purpose is to win this thing, right? I don’t want to win Daisy. So you’re going to be on the other side. These three guys are going to run with me.”
“On account of Justin’s wonky leg,” Suz explained. “Here’s the thing he’s not saying about this whole deal. Justin doesn’t believe in the legend, but he wants to give it a trial run, you might say. Just in case it’s true. But no one will ever know who is meant to be with you—or Daisy—because there’ll be four runners. So basically it’s just a charity run on a pretty day.”
Mackenzie smiled. “Sounds fair to me.”
Justin perked up. “Really?”
“Yeah. Let’s do it Justin’s way. No matter what happens, we win.” She glanced at Justin. “Although you realize you’re taking a terrible chance, Justin. You could end up married in thirty days. To Daisy. Fifty-fifty chance.”
“Nope.” He shook his head. “That’s the good part about these goofs running with me. The curse will land on one of them. Probably Sam.”
“Hey!” Squint sat up. “Who said it would be a curse?”
“I’m going up to the house to talk to Jade,” Sam said. “She hasn’t been around in a while, and I think she might have a little thing for me and is trying not to show it.”
He departed. Justin glanced at Suz and Mackenzie. “Does she have a thing for Sam?”
“I doubt it very seriously.” Suz stretched. “None of the four of you are long-timers here. Big S’s on your foreheads that stand for short-timers.” She got up and whacked Frog lightly on the arm. “I’m going to be at that race. And if you run down the road where Daisy is, you might as well just keep on running, Rodriguez. Because you won’t like what you get from Crazy Daisy.”
She went out the door.
“Wow,” Frog said. “Your sister scares me a little. In a good way. Pretty sure I like it.”
Justin had had enough. He took Mackenzie’s arm and pulled her outside, walking her away from the house. “Since it’s about time to milk the cows—”
“We don’t have dairy cows.”
“Since it’s about time to get up and drink our morning coffee,” Justin said, “can you spare five minutes before you have to get back to the babies?”
“Maybe. Why?” Mackenzie asked.
“Mainly I want to make out with you.” He pulled her into his arms, kissing her long and slow and deep. Sighed when she wrapped her arms around him, inhaled the sweet perfume of her hair and the softness of her skin.
“Suz says you’re trying to rig the game your way,” Mackenzie said.
“She’s right. Every game has a better way to win it, you know. I’m not going to let the Donovans win.”
“What’s it to you?”
“What’s it to me? I think BC’s starting to weave its spell around me, that’s what. And I happen to know a beautiful woman I feel like slaying dragons for.”
“Very romantic.” She cuddled up to him. She felt like part of his own body, his own breath. Justin closed his eyes, felt her trace his lips with her fingertips.
“So, listen. How does this end, when I win?” Justin asked.
Mackenzie smiled. “When you win, the Donovans slink off to figure out their next move. It’s the never-ending chess game.”
“I mean me and you. I try not to make too many moves on you, because of a thousand different reasons, not the least of which is you’re the boss lady and everything else, although I think I’m past that. But how does this end?”
“Everything else?” She studied him. “What does that mean?”
“You’ve got the ex-husband trying to sue you, et cetera, et cetera, and being a general pain in the ass.” Justin didn’t stop himself when his hands somehow wandered down to her waist. “I guess I’ve figured you might not be interested in a—”
She kissed him. “Win the race. Then we’ll find out how this ends.”
Chapter Eighteen
The day of the race dawned clear and beautiful; the sun warming everything in its path with rich, soft rays. Justin felt good about today. Really good.
It was a town-saving kind of day.
His knee felt great. In fact, he felt like a warrior of old, like he could ride bulls until the moon came up again.
“Hey, stud,” Daisy said, flouncing past him when he came out of the bunkhouse.
Trouble was up, and she was wearing a smile. “Hello, Daisy,” he said cautiously. “Isn’t there a rule about how the runner and the prospective bride shouldn’t see each other the day of the race?”
She shrugged one dainty shoulder, tossed her bronze locks. “Rules were made to be broken, weren’t they? And you’re a rebel, right? That’s what they say around the rodeo circuit, anyway.” She went off, banged on the kitchen door and was allowed entrance. Justin hung back, deciding to delay his morning coffee and muffin with the babies—and of course their sweet mother.
Nothing good could come of seeing the woman he loved with the woman who intended to sabotage her on the big day.
Daisy had no idea they were intending to slip Mackenzie into the opposite fork. A decoy, as it were.
History was about to be made in BC.
Justin checked his watch. Two hours before he gathered up his team, put on his running shoes and got ready to prove everybod
y in Bridesmaids Creek wrong.
There was no such thing as a charmed and lucky road.
No such thing as a creek with mystic powers.
All there was was hard work. Determination. And a desire to win.
That was how you made magic.
* * *
“GOOD MORNING, MACKENZIE,” Daisy said with a smile that somehow grated on Mackenzie’s nerves right off the bat. “How are the babies?”
“The girls are fine. They’re just down for a nap.” Mackenzie glanced at the baby monitor to make sure she’d switched it on. The girls had gotten into a routine that was almost regular, no easy feat with four of them. Somehow they seemed to have an intuition about each other. When one was upset, they all got upset. Happiness seemed to settle over them as a general mood, as well.
They’d come a long way.
“So today’s the big race.” Daisy looked at her. “It’s like being crowned the king and queen of homecoming, only this is for real.”
Mackenzie looked at her. “Whatever.” She went to wash up the baby bottles in the sink.
Daisy cocked her head. “You seem very unconcerned about Justin running the Best Man’s Fork. I’m the prize, you know.”
“Daisy, there isn’t a magic spell on earth strong enough to get Justin anywhere near an altar that you’re standing at.”
Daisy laughed. “You’re sure?”
“Positive.” She checked the pound cake and the level on the tea, her mind on what she needed to leave behind for Jade and Betty’s comfort. “Justin sees this as a charity function. The legend eludes him.”
“That’s because he’s not from here. He doesn’t understand how this town works.”
“He’s got a pretty fair idea.” And he’d returned. Mackenzie smiled.
“You seem awfully confident.”
“Look.” Mackenzie turned to face Daisy just as Justin came in the back door. “Let me spell this out for you. You and your father and your gang can do anything you want to do to me, but you can’t take the thing from me that I love most. You can’t take my children, and you can’t change who I am. You can talk about the man who died at our haunted house—”
“Was murdered,” Daisy inserted.
“Never proven,” Mackenzie snapped. “You can spread all the gossip and lies you want, and I’m still going to wake up every day being the same old Mackenzie Hawthorne my parents raised me to be. Which is more than you can take, because that’s exactly what you’re missing. Your spirit is damaged.”
“Excuse me,” Justin said. “I was going to grab a piece of that pound cake and maybe some coffee.” He looked at Daisy. “Shame you picked me to be your runner. I’m really slow. Did anybody tell you they used to call me Turtle in high school?”
“What I heard,” Daisy said, “is that you once ran a mile in under four minutes just to prove you could.”
Mackenzie smiled at Justin. “I’ll cut you some cake and get you some coffee. ’Bye, Daisy.”
“I didn’t come by just to talk,” Daisy said. “I came by to let you know that there’s going to be a tea after the race at The Wedding Diner. Held in our honor by Madame Matchmaker and Monsieur Unmatchmaker.”
“I thought they were getting divorced,” Mackenzie said.
“They are,” Daisy said.
“Because your father ruined their marriage, the way the Donovans ruin everything.”
“How is it our fault if Monsieur Unmatchmaker couldn’t manage his finances?” Daisy asked. “Dad didn’t have to loan him money.”
“I’m sure he didn’t.” Mackenzie placed the cake and coffee in front of Justin.
To her absolute shock, he swept her into his lap, kissing her thoroughly.
“Wow,” Mackenzie murmured.
“Um,” Daisy said, “what the hell is that?”
“Collecting my prize early,” Justin said.
Daisy’s jaw dropped. “Are you two...an item?”
Mackenzie looked at Justin.
“Are we an item?” he asked.
“Do you want to be an item?” Mackenzie asked.
“Hey,” Daisy said. “I want a different runner! You’re out,” she told Justin. “I’m going down right now to tell Jane Chatham and Cosette that I’m choosing a new guy to run the race.”
She went out the door in a huff.
“Uh-oh. Look what you did,” Mackenzie said.
“Couldn’t help it.” He kissed her again, this time longer.
“Guess you don’t have to run today,” Mackenzie said.
“Guess I don’t.”
“Which means I don’t have to be waiting in the Fork to sabotage Daisy.”
“It was such a great plan,” Justin said. His hands stole up to her waist so he could tuck her closer against him.
“It was a great plan. But now that neither of us have to be at the race, we have time to do something else.” Mackenzie touched his cheek, nibbled his lip, tried not to inhale him.
“Did you have something in mind?”
“I most certainly do.”
“I was hoping you’d say that,” Justin said.
* * *
MAKING LOVE TO Mackenzie was better than running a charity race for sure. It was sweet kisses and soft skin and gentle heat that grew into a fire he had no desire to control. Justin stared up at the ceiling while Mackenzie slept beside him, feeling satisfied for maybe the first time in his life.
All the old feelings of rebellion were gone. And they’d started to be erased in this house, with this woman, with her children.
Felt like the family he’d always wanted.
Not that he didn’t love his family, but a man wanted his own—and this was the one he hoped to put down roots with.
If Mackenzie would have him.
She got up to dress, and he let his eyes roam wildly, drinking in every bit of smooth naked skin he could. Wondered if he could drag her back into bed before the babies awakened.
He heard a baby cry and banging at the back door at the same time. Time to get up.
“I’ll get the baby,” he said.
“Thanks.” She kissed him and hurried down the hall.
There were excited voices coming from the kitchen. “Sounds like something fun is happening down there,” he told the babies, who were gazing around, riled by Hope’s crying, wondering if they should join the chorus. He picked Hope up, calmed her and then heard footsteps flying down the hall.
Mackenzie burst into the nursery. “Suz is in town and she’s going to hobble Daisy for life because Daisy chose Frog—Rodriguez—to run in your place. Suz told Jade that Daisy will never walk in high heels again when she gets through with her.”
Justin shook his head and resumed changing Hope’s diaper. “Young lady, you have a firebrand of an aunt.”
“I have to go into town.” Mackenzie hurried off.
“Which means I need to go into town to keep your mother out of trouble. Would you girls like to go into town?”
“This is all my fault,” he heard Mackenzie mutter.
“Your fault how?”
“Because I kissed you in front of Daisy. She decided to cut her losses.”
“Hey!” Justin laughed. “I resent that. I kissed you.”
“And I liked it,” Mackenzie called from the other room. “But now my sister is going to turn Daisy into a pretzel.”
He didn’t doubt that at all. “But Frog and Suz don’t have anything going on, do they?”
“No, but that won’t stop Suz and Daisy. Daisy thought she was going to be homecoming queen, but Suz won. It’s bad blood.”
“Let’s pack the girls up and let them watch their first Bridesmaids Creek brawl. Think we could make a legend about that?”
Mackenzi
e hurried into the nursery.
“I’ll watch them,” Jade called. “By the way, I can hear every word over the baby monitor. I feel a bit like a creeper. And I like the idea of a Bridesmaids Creek brawl.”
“I don’t want my little sister fighting over a man.” Mackenzie looked at Justin. “I’ve got to stop her.”
“That I agree with,” Jade called. “People will just say that bad things happen at the Hawthorne place.”
Mackenzie gasped. “She’s right.”
There was a lot at stake, even if he couldn’t grasp the whole concept of the underlying currents. “Do we even know if Frog agreed to take my place?”
“He did,” Jade said, coming into the room. “I hope you guys are decent. I didn’t want to keep listening over the monitor. Feels so third wheel.”
Mackenzie hugged her. “You’re never third wheel. You’re family.”
“Go. Just hurry.” Jade waved them on. “Your sister’s been spring-loaded ever since Daisy started flirting with Frog. It’s really weird, because I never saw Suz get giddy over a guy.”
“That’s true. This is serious.” Mackenzie hugged Jade and grabbed Justin’s hand. “You’re sure you don’t mind going with me?”
“Mind?” Justin smiled, feeling like a king with Mackenzie’s hand in his. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”
* * *
JUSTIN REALIZED HOW serious Bridesmaids Creek was about their social events when he saw that at least half the town had shown up at Best Man’s Fork, expecting a race of some type.
What they got instead was an all-out vigorous debate between Suz and Daisy, with Rodriguez clearly the focal point of the discussion. Somehow that got other ladies and gentlemen involved, and the next thing he knew, even Cosette and Philippe were standing on opposite sides of the road that branched off into the fork where the victims—or bachelors, depending on how one looked at it—went off on the adventure of a lifetime.
“The Road Not Taken,” by Robert Frost. Deep stuff this town lived by.
And it got a little deeper when Suz jumped on Daisy and dragged her by her long dark hair to the ground.