Page 1 of Mac's Vow

Prologue

Ten years earlier…

“I’ll never understand why you torture yourself with these movies, Alyssa,” Mac said, as he plopped down onto the couch next to her and helped himself to her enormous bowl of popcorn.

Alyssa tried to keep her breathing even, but it was always difficult when Mac Braden was nearby. He melted her insides when he smiled at her. His messy, black hair hung over his forehead and he was forever pushing it out of his eyes. It was sexy, but Alyssa knew the reason it was too long was because he couldn’t afford a decent trim. He couldn’t afford most things. What little money his mom earned at her crap job of waitressing went to his stepdad’s alcohol habit. Alyssa felt bad for Mac, but if she ever showed even an ounce of pity for him he’d stomp out and never come back. He had bucket loads of pride. And she was half in love with the big, silver-eyed buffoon. Unfortunately, he saw her as a kid. Jimmy Saint’s bratty baby sister. God, she hated that Mac would never see her as a woman. One ready to do away with her virginal status. With him as the star of the show. Sure, and pink elephants existed.

Alyssa squashed her girlish crush—yet again—and focused on his words. She tossed a fat kernel of popcorn into the air and caught it in her mouth. “What do you mean, torture? And Jimmy is working.”

“I know he is; I came to hang with you.” Mac chuckled and grabbed another handful of the buttered treat and shoved it into his mouth. He barely chewed, before swallowing. “You watch all this blood and gore, then you can’t sleep because you’re too scared. Makes no damn sense.”

Alyssa sucked down half a can of red pop, before handing the rest to him. “It’s fun, dummy. I like not knowing what’s coming. Being scared out of my wits. It makes me forget my problems.”

He took the pop and drank the rest in a few swallows, then smashed the can between his hands. He angled his big, muscular body on the couch until he was facing her. “What problems?”

She sighed, wondering how much to tell him. Anything she said to Mac would end up going straight to Jimmy. She put the bowl of half-eaten popcorn onto the old beaten-up coffee table in front of her, then sat up and pulled her legs underneath her. “Look, ever since mom and dad died, Jimmy has worked two jobs just to make ends meet. When he’s not working, he’s doing homework and trying to keep his grades up so he can graduate in a few months.”

His arm came around the back of the couch and he started to play with her ponytail. He did that a lot and Alyssa wasn’t even sure Mac realized he was doing it. “That’s Jimmy’s shit. We’re talking about you.”

Her face heated and she stared down at the bubblegum-pink blanket covering her. It was one her mother had bought for her on her fourteenth birthday. A month later a drunk driver had killed both her parents. “I feel dumb talking about this. Especially considering all the sacrifices that Jimmy makes for me.”

“Jimmy is tough, Alyssa,” he murmured in that sinfully sexy voice that sent shivers down her body. “He can handle the load better than you think.” He tugged on her hair. “Tell me what’s going on.”

She bit her lip and picked at a loose thread. “I’m tired of being a virgin,” she blurted as she lifted her head and stared at him. “There, I said it.”

His entire body stiffened, and he quickly glanced at the TV. “Uh, okay.”

Alyssa rolled her eyes and swatted him on the arm. “Don’t freak out. It’s not a dirty word.”

His eyes narrowed as his gaze landed on her again. “You should be a virgin, damn it,” he growled. “You’re too damn young for sex.”

There it was. Out in the open. Alyssa Saint, the kid. The virgin. “I’m not a baby! I’m only a year and a half younger than you, Mac. I bet you were younger than fifteen when you had sex for the first time. I know Jimmy was. He wouldn’t stop bragging about it.”

To Alyssa’s utter shock, Mac’s cheeks turned bright red. “My sex life is none of your business, brat.”

She snorted. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Anyway, I want to have sex. I want to know what all the talk is about. All my friends at school have gone all the way. I’m like the last apple on the tree and I’m about to start rotting if someone doesn’t pluck me!”

His lips twitched and he started to massage the back of her neck. Her nerve endings fired to life. “Pluck you? Jesus, that’s a horrible analogy.”

A laugh bubbled out. “It really is, but it’s pretty accurate to how I feel.” She sobered. “The guys I ask out all turn me down. They’re terrified of Jimmy. With good reason because Jimmy would beat the crap out of them. At this rate I’ll be a virgin when I’m twenty-five.”

Mac’s hand on her neck stilled and his eyes turned a steely shade of grey. “Who have you asked?”

His eyes glittered with anger and Alyssa was suddenly scared to say more. “It doesn’t matter.” A loud scream on the television drew her attention. “Let’s just watch the movie.”

A warm, strong hand cupped her jaw and dragged her gaze back to his. “Who, Alyssa?”

She jerked out of his hold and glared at him. “Why? You want to go tell Jimmy?”

His gaze traveled down her body and he seemed to get hung up on her chest. She had decent breasts, or so her friend Stacy was constantly telling her. And the black tank top nightshirt left little to the imagination. She resisted the urge to drag the blanket higher to cover herself. This was Mac, after all. Didn’t she want him seeing her body and getting naughty thoughts? When Mac reached out and plucked at the strap that hung halfway down her arm, her body revved to life. His silvery gaze met hers again and his voice was low and deeper than she’d ever heard it. “I’m not going to run to your brother, but I do want to know who you’re interested in. Tell me, Alyssa.”

She shrugged, trying to appear unaffected by his touch, his nearness. “Ron. I asked him first. He’s in my algebra class.”

Mac’s gaze narrowed as his finger drifted over the top of her breast, barely grazing the skin just beneath the neckline. “Ron Vebrizzio?” She nodded, unable to speak. His lip curled. “Ron is a dick. He treats girls like shit. Be glad he turned you down.”

She bit her lip and watched as his gaze seemed drawn to her breasts. He licked his lips. That was a good sign, right? Alyssa took a deep breath and let it out. “I wasn’t planning to marry him. I just want to…feel.”

He cursed as his other hand went to the back of her head. “You’re curious and that’s no reason to get rid of your virginity. It should mean something to the guy. It should mean something to both of you. And it should be special.”

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