She told herself it was unfair to be annoyed with him for asking. Hadn't she herself wondered about the women in Mack's life? But her voice was tart, anyway. "Why don't you come straight out with it, Mack? You're wondering if I'm likely to get besotted with someone I meet in … " She groped for the most ridiculous thing she could think of. " … the frozen foods aisle at the supermarket, and run off to Rio with him."
He was definitely smiling now. "Frozen food wasn't exactly the locale I'd considered."
Wendy wasn't amused. "If I do this, then be assured I will not be looking around for someone to entertain me. And Rory is far too important for me to take chances with. I'm not about to throw her to the wolves for the sake of some fling."
"You're very innocent, Wendy. What if you fall in love?"
"I'll be too busy." She looked down at the stuffed lamb she was still holding, and began to run her fingers through the already-tangled fur. Finally, very tentatively, she added, "I could ask you the same thing, Mack."
For a moment she thought he wasn't going to answer. "I've been in love," he said slowly. "It's not a very comfortable place to be. I think I can assure you it's not likely to be a problem."
He hadn't said anything about affairs, she noticed. "And... loyalty?"
His voice was deeper than usual, without a trace of humor. "I swear to you that this promise comes first, Wendy, and it always will."
It sounded like a vow – more binding, and certainly more sincere, than the promise he would make in public to love her and cherish her, till death parted them. But then, this promise was really to Rory – as hers was, too.
"Well?" he said. "Will you marry me?"
She nodded, not quite willing to trust her voice. "When?"
"As soon as possible. I'll check on the details tomorrow – but I think it can be arranged by the middle of next week."
She couldn't argue with that, exactly. "The sooner we can establish a normal pattern for Rory … "
Mack finished the thought for her. "The less spoiled she'll be." He smiled a little. "And the less likely we are to get unsolicited advice from the rest of the family. I'll tell them at dinner, if you don't object."
She shook her head. Despite the warmth of the room, she was shivering a little, now that it was too late to back out.
Mack leaned forward and cupped her cheek in his hand. The touch of his palm made her want to nestle her face into his soothing warmth. She could pick out the tang of his cologne, mixed with the aroma of warm skin and Rory's baby lotion.
For an instant, she thought he intended to kiss her. Instead, he brushed his thumb over her lips, and whispered, "It'll be all right, Wendy. You'll see."
CHAPTER EIGHT
Elinor received the news with delight and promptly began making noises about church weddings and country club receptions and dance bands and invitation lists.
Mack, who obviously saw the color starting to drain from Wendy's face as she contemplated the idea, reached for her hand and suggested a very small family wedding instead, to be held at the Burgess house. Wendy clutched his fingers in gratitude and agreed. Privately, she would have preferred a civil ceremony in a judge's chambers with two complete strangers as witnesses – but of course that was hardly realistic.
Tessa, mourning the fact that she had nothing in her current collection of designs which could possibly be considered appropriate for a tiny and elegant wedding – and no time to create something – took Wendy on a whirlwind tour of the city's most exclusive boutiques in search of a special suit.
"I'm so glad it all worked out this way," she confided over hot chocolate at mid-afternoon as they took a break from their search. "I'll be the first to say Rory's a doll – which must be your influence, considering what Marissa was like – but I'm simply not in the mood to settle down to kids just yet. And probably not ever," she added after a moment's thought. "Frankly, the fear that Elinor might expect me to volunteer to be Rory's mama was turning my hair gray. And the idea of being compared to you with every move I made … "
"Surely no one would criticize you."
"Oh, not openly. Mack doesn't have to say a word, you know just looking at him when he disapproves. And don't give me that confused stare," Tessa said dryly. "Of course you haven't noticed it, because he is so obviously enchanted by most of what you do!"
Wendy blinked in surprise, before she remembered that Tessa didn't know about some of their early discussions, like the night in Phoenix when Mack had caught her lying about her job. If Tessa knew about episodes like that, she wouldn't think Mack was blinded by Wendy's charm.
Wendy had to admit, however, that he was being very kind about the whole thing. Of course the family knew the real reasons behind this sudden wedding, but a stranger who came into the house would have no reason to doubt that they had all the usual motives. If their behavior wasn't exactly romantic – well, it was easy to believe that they were simply restraining themselves in public. And Mack was unfailingly polite and correct.
How cold that sounded, she thought, but he wasn't cold at all. He was gentle and always considerate of her feelings, her wishes – and though he didn't follow her around or hang on her every word like a moonstruck teenager, he always appeared to find her interesting and attractive. And though it would have been easy to present himself as a hero, he had never implied to Wendy that she owed him a debt of gratitude for making it possible for her to stay with Rory.
Mack was very special, there was no doubt about that. Sometimes when she caught sight of him unexpectedly her throat closed up in amazement at how it had all worked out.
Tessa had gone straight on without waiting for an answer. "The way that baby lights up when you walk into the room..." She shook her head. "Of course it's no wonder Mack approves of that. I could never have lived up to your example." She checked the dainty watch on her wrist and drained her cup. "One more boutique, and then we'd better make a decision so we can start looking for shoes. Oh, and we mustn't forget to pick up your ring. The jeweler should have it sized and cleaned by now."
Her ring... It was Elinor's ring, actually. She had called Mack and Wendy to her sitting room on Christmas afternoon, and given her own engagement and wedding rings to Mack for his bride.
Wendy caught one glimpse of the glitter of diamonds and gold in Elinor's palm, and tried to turn down the gift. But Elinor insisted. "The rings won't be to your taste, of course," she said calmly. "You'll want to have them reset. But the stones are good, and it would give me great pleasure to watch you wear them, Wendy."
And what could Wendy say after that? Only the truth – which was that the rings were lovely just as they were, and she wouldn't dream of tearing them apart.
They went to the jewelers first. As they waited in a small paneled office, beside a velvet-topped table, Wendy watched Tessa from the corner of her eye. She couldn't help but wonder what Tessa thought of this gift. Her voice had sounded perfectly natural, without a hint of resentment, and yet...
"Do you mind, Tessa? The rings, I mean. After all, you were the first bride, and they should have been yours."
"Mind? Heavens no. I wouldn't have wanted them – I don't have the hands to carry off truly magnificent rocks like those, and the settings aren't my style at all." She waved her left hand, with its cluster of dainty stones, as if in explanation. "Besides, things like that should go to the eldest son and be passed on."
Wendy hadn't thought of that before. They'll go to Rory, of course, she thought. Or perhaps it would be better to pass the rings on to Elinor's oldest grandson, whether he was John's son, or Mitch's.
The jeweler bustled in with a velvet case in his hand, took a chair behind the tiny table, and opened the box with a flourish. "I hope you'll be pleased with the results, Miss Miller." There was no trace of doubt in his voice, and Wendy quickly saw why he was certain of himself.
Wendy was no authority on jewels, but she had known at first glimpse that Elinor was understating the quality of the stones. They weren't merely good, they were superb, and the setting was equally inspired. Still, the sheer brilliance and power of the newly-cleaned ring startled her. She reached for the box, and turned it slowly from side to side.