Alec’s problem, of course, which he’d also admitted, was that he just hadn’t figured out how to graciously say no to his growing entourage without hurting someone’s feelings.
And didn’t that sound familiar?
Mackenzie had watched her own father struggle with the very same problem. Big Dave Malone still hadn’t figured out how to say no to a pretty face. As a result, his marriage had failed, and at fifty-two, he was still no closer to settling down with just one woman than he had been when Mackenzie was ten years old.
“But don’t you worry,” Mackenzie told the large orange and white cat who appeared from nowhere to rub against her legs. “I’d never get involved with a man who’s a carbon copy of your grandpa.”
Marmalade, whom Mackenzie’s mother called her grandcat as another barbed reference to Mackenzie’s single status, mewed in agreement, then darted off ahead of Mackenzie in anticipation of her nightly meal.
“But I did meet a really nice guy tonight when Auntie Angie dragged me to a new hot spot where they serve pornographic drinks,” Mackenzie told the cat in confidence when she walked into the kitchen where a not-so-patient Marmalade was already twitching her tail.
Taking a can from the overhead cabinet, Mackenzie filled Marmalade’s bowl with a cat’s version of caviar, judging from the price Mackenzie paid to satisfy her beloved pet’s finicky appetite, and placed Marmalade’s bowl back on the floor.
“And tomorrow, while you snooze the day away as usual, I just might head out to Auntie Angie’s beach house and see if this prominent young attorney liked me as much as I think I liked him.”
The haughty feline looked up for a moment as if to challenge Mackenzie’s wisdom in that comment, then again buried her head over what was supposed to be a moist and tender tuna fillet.
“And don’t give me that look,” Mackenzie said with a frown. “I know what you’re thinking, but this guy isn’t anything like the other morons I’ve been dating. Of course, he’s not to die for like Mr. GQ across the hall, either,” she added absently, “but he’s cute enough.”
Marmalade’s tail twitched again, showing her annoyance at being disturbed during dinner, so Mackenzie added out of spite, “And by the way. I think this new guy has a dog. Possibly a pit bull.”
Unfortunately, enough was enough, even for Marmalade.
In her customary I’m-a-cat-and-you-bore-me style, Mackenzie’s cohabitant suddenly turned her nose up at the remainder of her dinner, lifted her tail straight in the air, then strolled politely out of the kitchen without looking back.
WHILE MACKENZIE SPENT time arguing with her cat, Alec was getting ready for his turn-around flight to New York City that would put him back in Charleston during the wee hours of the morning. He was also still stewing over the fact that he had exposed himself to two pushy flight attendants who never would have received an invitation to see him naked, and his comely neighbor who would have thrown such an invitation right back in his face.
Or not?
She certainly hadn’t covered her eyes, that was a fact, but Alec had also seen her struggling to keep from bursting out laughing right there on the spot.
“Well, I’m glad someone thought my accidental exhibition was funny, because I sure didn’t,” Alex told his reflection in the mirror.
He wiped what was left of the shaving cream from his face, knowing that he really couldn’t blame his neighbor for refusing to play along with another one of his silly charades. After all, he’d already taken advantage of her kindness once before when he’d found himself in a similar jam, compliments of another eager co-worker determined to make contact with the new, single pilot who had just arrived in town.
However, complaining about his current popularity with the ladies had resulted in Alec receiving nothing but scorn from his buddies.
“Are you nuts, Alec?” his copilot had jeered when Alec recently complained that his impromptu visitors were driving him crazy. “I’d give my left arm to have your kind of troubles.”
And Alec supposed his copilot had a point. Only an idiot would be griping because women found him attractive. Telling himself his current popularity would surely die down after a few more weeks, Alec slapped a few dabs of Calvin Klein aftershave on his cheeks, ran a comb through his hair, then strolled out of his bathroom in the pair of boxer shorts he should have grabbed instead of that damn towel, when his two surprise visitors took out their frustration on his front door bell.
It had been that urgent buzzing that sent him scampering to the door in a panic in the first place.
Half expecting a five-alarm fire, Alec had been astonished to find not one but two of United Airlines’ finest and fittest standing in his hallway arguing nose-to-nose like two spoiled second-graders in a playground squabble.
And then, to make things even worse, she had to come home and witness the entire ordeal.
“Damn embarrassing is what it was,” Alec said aloud as he lifted up both shoes for inspection, then grabbed a dirty sock that was lying on the floor to polish the toe of his left shoe.
He should have found it rather refreshing that unlike the meals-on-wheels brigade, his pretty neighbor was apparently immune to his charms. But he didn’t. After all, the dark-haired beauty was by far the most attractive woman he’d seen since he arrived in Charleston.
On the day he moved in, he’d almost tripped over his own feet when she sauntered up the hall in a pair of short-shorts that left his mouth dry, and a half T-shirt that left him staring directly at her belly button. An inny, by the way.
Unfortunately, within two minutes into their conversation her body language let him know real quick that he wouldn’t have to worry about Mackenzie Malone attaching herself to him like a strip of Velcro.
Oh, sure, she’d been friendly enough in that detached I-can-take-you-or-leave-you sort of way. She’d even been gracious the other night when he hid out at her place telling him to let her know if he needed any help decorating his new condo and handing over her business card.
Thinking of her business card now, Alec headed for the nightstand beside his bed. He picked up the card that had Design Specialties written across the top in gold letters. Her home number was there, but as he reached for the phone to call and apologize for the misguided melodrama she had just witnessed in the hallway, Alec suddenly had a much better idea.
Smiling to himself, he dropped the card back on the nightstand and turned his attention to his closet instead. After removing the dry-cleaning bag, he took out a freshly pressed flight uniform, thinking how great she’d looked in that short little black dress she’d been wearing tonight.
And those legs. Jeez, they went on forever.
Yes, her legs were definitely her best feature, and he’d always been a leg man himself.
Of course, those huge brown eyes of hers were enough to leave him feeling like he’d been sucker punched in the stomach. Even her short, sassy haircut got his motor running. That dark ebony hair of hers all soft and wispy, and cut in one of those slightly tousled styles that gave the impression she’d just tumbled out of bed. Oh, yeah. She turned him on, all right.
Especially the fact that she didn’t seem the least bit attracted to him.
It had been a long time since a woman represented any type of challenge to Alec. Possibly all the way back to his senior year in high school, when he thought about it. He had only been eighteen then and he’d spent his entire senior year trying to woo a skinny girl named Anne who never did give him the time of day. He’d soon be thirty-six, but Alec still remembered the excitement he felt during his quest to win over the lovely Anne.
Just like the excitement he was feeling now, wondering what it would take to make his classy neighbor have a change of heart.
Of course, he’d have to be careful and not go overboard just to risk a little flirt with danger, Alec realized as he carefully removed his pants from the hanger and stepped into them. Because as far as he was concerned, there were two kinds of women in a confirmed bachelor’s li
fe; the kind you could date without any chance of getting involved, and the kind who immediately sent alarm bells ringing in your head.
Mackenzie Malone definitely belonged to the second group, but the lovely Miss Malone had added a slight twist to the situation. Alec was definitely attracted to her, but she wasn’t the least bit interested in him.
So what harm could come from one simple date?
He kept asking himself that same question as he buttoned his shirt and slipped on his shoes, telling himself that all he was really interested in was one measly date. Partly, so he could prove to himself that he really wasn’t the toad she seemed to think he was. But mainly so she would realize that he really was a nice guy after all.
“And I am a nice guy,” Alec said aloud with conviction.
He then picked up his coat and his captain’s cap with the gold leaf brocade running across the brim, grabbed his keys and walked through his condo that was still too cluttered with unpacked boxes to comfortably feel like home. He opened his front door and stepped cautiously into the hallway, looking up and down the corridor for any signs of another ambush. Satisfied that the coast was clear, Alec closed his door and locked it, then stood for a moment staring across the hall at door A-2.
Was it possible? he wondered, as a chilly feeling of déjà vu overtook him. That like the skinny girl Anne, the lovely lady in A-2 might never give him more than just a passing glance?
Shoving his cap firmly on his head, Alec decided maybe it was time to find out.
2
THE NEXT MORNING, Mackenzie flew through her housework like a merry maid on steroids, trying to get out the door and on her way to Angie’s. She spent thirty minutes looking for her sunglasses, then took a final look in the mirror, pleased that the new hot-pink shorts she was wearing showed off her dark tan to perfection. She then spent another ten minutes making sure Marmalade had food, water and the multitude of cat toys she kept hiding and Mackenzie kept having to find and put back in her pampered pet’s three-tier play tower.
After one last look around her now tidy abode, she grabbed up her beach bag and opened the door to find herself face-to-face with Alec Southerland, who was standing in the hallway with his index finger poised just above her door.
“Well, this is a surprise,” Mackenzie said with a smirk. “Not only are you clothed, but you’re also alone today.”
“And totally pumped for our big date,” Alec countered right back, wiping the smirk completely from her face.
“Very funny,” Mackenzie said as he leaned against the doorjamb, blocking her path.
She stepped back a bit, out of range of the imaginary magnet that seemed to be drawing her closer to him than they were already standing. Of course, having seen him stark naked less than twenty-four hours earlier didn’t help matters either. Mackenzie was struggling to block the image of his vivid tan line from returning to her memory when he reached down to pluck the bottom part of her skimpy bikini out of the corner of her beach bag.
Holding it up for inspection, Alec smiled and said, “Looks like my gut instinct to dress casual this morning was on target. Just let me run back in and get my swim trunks and we’ll be ready to hit the beach.”
Mackenzie snatched her bikini bottoms from his hand in one easy swoop. “Sorry, but we aren’t going anywhere,” she was quick to point out. “I’m going to a party at my business partner’s beach house. Just as soon as you move your delusional self out of my way, that is.”
He clutched his chest with both hands, implying he was stricken with grief. “Say it isn’t so,” he teased. “I distinctly remember you saying our date was today.”
“And I distinctly remember you saying our date was last night, but that didn’t make it so, now did it?”
“It could have. If you’d been willing to play along.”
He maintained the same hangdog expression, and even went as far as looking at the floor while he kicked at the carpet with the toe of a well-worn Birkenstock sandal. In fact, he looked so much like a disappointed little boy, Mackenzie almost wanted to hug him, until he looked up and hit her with one of those devastating grins of his.
“You could always let me go to the party with you,” he said in a voice a step beyond pleading. “And I promise I wouldn’t get in your way. I mean, I’m sure you’re already meeting someone there. Right?”
Mackenzie lifted her chin a bit. “Yes. I am meeting someone there, as a matter of fact.”
“A steady beau?”
Mackenzie hesitated. “Not that it’s any of your business, but it’s someone I recently met.” As recent as last night, if you must know the truth, Mackenzie thought, but she certainly didn’t say it.
“Then, see? You have your own plans, so you wouldn’t have to put up with me at all. I’d be as inconspicuous as a fly on the wall. Promise.”
Mackenzie laughed. “Oh, sure. You. Inconspicuous. That’s certainly the joke of the century.”
“Let me prove it,” he challenged. “Be a good neighbor. I’m new in town, remember? And it’s hard to meet people when you’re new in town.”
Mackenzie’s mouth dropped open. “I can’t believe you said that, Alec! I’ve been expecting to get a notice any day now that our condo association fees are going to being raised in order to expand the parking lot just to accommodate your visitors.”
Alec shook his head in adamant disagreement. “I’m not talking about my co-workers. They’re giving me nightmares right now and you know it. I’m talking about people outside the workplace. And I’ve always hated the singles bar scene, haven’t you?”
Mackenzie blushed. She’d never cared for the singles bar scene, either, yet how else did one meet new people outside the workplace?
“Just give me two seconds to run back in and get my trunks,” he said when Mackenzie didn’t immediately say no.
“Whatever,” Mackenzie finally said with a sigh, but she was also mentally kicking the crap out of herself for being such a pushover. “But you’ll have to follow me in your own car, Alec,” she called out as he headed back across the hallway. “I probably won’t come back tonight.”
“I thought you said you’d only met this guy recently,” he tossed back over his shoulder as he unlocked his door.
Mackenzie glared at the back of his head. “I didn’t say he would be spending the night. I meant I would probably stay rather than drive back home tonight.”
“Hey, you don’t owe me any explanation,” he called out as he disappeared into his condo.
Then why did you ask for one! Mackenzie wanted to scream.
He was back in a flash, trunks in hand and another stop-your-heart smile on his face. “Lead the way,” he said, linking his arm through hers as he ushered her down the hallway.
And like the gentleman that he was, he held the door open for her when they reached the exit door of their building.
“You know, something tells me this is going to be a really fun day,” he said, literally beaming as they walked across the parking lot.
And something tells me I might as well be dancing toward the gates of hell with the devil himself skipping right along beside me, Mackenzie thought, but as usual, she didn’t say it.
IT WAS ABOUT A FORTY-FIVE minute drive from the Battery to the Isle of Palms, a secluded stretch of beach where the inhabitants could not only afford, but also didn’t mind, paying the exorbitant prices for their own slice of beachfront property. Mackenzie had talked to Angie earlier that morning and learned that the two attorneys they’d met the previous night at Faces planned to return for Angie’s regular Saturday afternoon beach bash. The fact that she was now bringing Alec along wouldn’t bother Angie one bit. Angie’s standard motto had always been the more the merrier, and it would be hard to guess how many other stragglers would wander up on Angie’s deck before the weekend ended.
Glancing in her rearview mirror, Mackenzie saw Alec’s Jag pass a car that had gotten between them, then fall back into the right lane behind her Mercedes. How any guy dressed in a
faded pair of cut-offs and a simple red polo shirt could look that damn good was a mystery to her. But he did. He was every mother’s nightmare, all right, sailing down the interstate with the top down on his flashy car and a deadly come-hither look that even his expensive pair of Ray•Ban sunglasses couldn’t quite hide.
One French fry short of a happy meal. Yeah, that’s me, Mackenzie decided, glancing in her rearview mirror again.
Even her blasted horoscope had been waving a red flag under her nose with those cautious words: Don’t tempt fate today.
And what had she done?
She’d totally ignored the fact that her second moon was somewhere behind the fifth planet of the eighth star, or whatever the heck it had said, and not only had she tempted fate, she’d even invited Mr. Destiny to politely tag along!
Maybe I do need a good therapist, Mackenzie decided, then made a left turn that took them on a winding driveway out through the sand dunes.
But I can handle this, she kept telling herself. And it really shouldn’t be a problem, should it? She would do her thing. He could do this. And that would be that.
Plain and simple.
Right?
Slowing down, Mackenzie looked ahead to the large cedar and glass beach house that had the reputation for being the best party place on the south side of Charleston. And she wasn’t surprised that Angie’s parking area looked like a who’s-who car lot. Every type of automobile imaginable was stacked end-to-end, from a yellow Corvette parked near the deck, to a popular oversized SUV that took up more than its fair share of room. She finally saw a plausible parking space that was more sand than driveway and eased into it, then held her breath when Alec did the same and came to a stop only inches from her bumper.
As if by magic, he was standing by her car door before she even had time to turn off the ignition.
“Great house,” he said, looking around the place.
“Glad you think so,” she told him and accepted his hand when he opened the door to help her from the car.
Driven to Distraction & Winging It Page 18