Page 69 of Save the Last Dance
A sharp pang of shame heated the back of his neck even though, damn it, he could love his niece without wanting to put a kid through the battles she faced.
Still, when the screen door opened and Ally stepped through, Mack couldn’t shake an absurd sense of guilt.There were shadows under her eyes, but she smiled. He noticed the bandages on her wrists were gone, as were all the friendship bracelets she’d worn before the scratching incident.
“Morning.” He clapped her on the shoulder as he headed for the door himself. “How’s your friend doing?”
“Pretty good. Her doctor said the surgery went well. She should be able to go home Saturday. Shehasto be able to go through the straw maze, right?”
“Definitely. We’ll make sure they keep it up after the festival, just in case.” Mack waited for Scott to jump in. Ask a question.
Why wouldn’t his brother ask Ally about her night and tell her she’d done a great job being there for her friend? Ally deserved some recognition for being a good kid.
Especially considering the obstacles in her path.
He reminded himself not to push and he was about to excuse himself when his phone rang, his cell phone showing Nina’s number.
“It was great of you to be there for Rachel, Ally,” Mack told her, needing to be certain she heard it. “I’ve got to take this, okay?”
“Bye, Uncle Mack.” She gave him a wave and dropped into the seat he’d vacated at the table.
Mack pressed the button to take Nina’s call as he walked outside, envisioning how she’d looked the night before during their video call, her hair sleep-tousled and sexy. He’d wanted to drive out there and slide under her sheets with her.
“Nina.” He spoke her name into the phone as he answered the call, wishing she was there with him right now, or at the very least, wishing they were using FaceTime so he could at least see her. “I’ve been thinking about you.”
“Well.” He could hear the smile in her voice on the other end of the phone. Also, some traffic in the background. “That’s a very attractive way to answer my call.”
“Call more often. I’ll bet I can top it.”
She laughed, a rich, joyful sound that chased away all the dark inside him and made him want to haul her back to his place for a few hours.
“Am I still going to see you tonight?” He had a surprise for her—he was bringing down a cover band from Nashville that had originally been booked to play at Finley’s for the weekend.
He’d gotten a substitute for the bar and was importing the bigger-name group here for the weekend. The announcement would be in the morning paper. Maybe if he showed Nina a glimpse of the fun life he led away from Heartache, she’d be more inclined to join him. He’d suggested she open her shop in Nashville as a way to keep her closer to him. He wasn’t sure what kind of future they could have, but right now he couldn’t imagine a future without her.
“Absolutely. I’ve got one more property to look at and then I’ll be in the kitchen at the fairgrounds, baking. Why don’t you just meet me there when you’re done with your duties?”
Mack paused in the driveway. “Find anything promising yet?”
He tried to keep his voice light, but the thought of her buying shop front before he had a chance to make his case definitely worried him.
“I’ve got some interesting possibilities, that’s for sure. I’ll tell you about them tonight.” She sounded happy and lighthearted in a way that she hadn’t been when she firstarrived in town.
Amazingly, something about Heartache was really agreeing with her. He wished to hell it was him.
“I can’t wait to see you.” He’d never been the kind of guy to wear his heart—or any deep emotions—on his sleeve. But with his departure around the corner, he couldn’t afford to hold anything back. “Hearing your voice last night after that accident…it put a lot into perspective for me, Nina. I realize I’m not the easiest guy to get along with?—”
“Don’t even go there.” She lowered her voice, turning serious. “We were friends before everything else, right? No matter what else happened between us this fall, I’m grateful we’ve found that again.”
Friends. Right.
They were. But that lone word didn’t come close to summing up the complexity of emotions churning through him at just the sound of her voice. Nina was…everything.
Hell. He slumped against his car, phone clutched in a tight fist.
What a time to realize his feelings went far deeper than he’d ever fathomed. He was still in love with Nina. Not a teenage kind of love, either. But the love of a man, a man who wasn’t giving up
He had his work cut out for him this weekend if he was going to convince Nina to be a part of his life. But then, hard work and ambition had never been a problem for a Finley. He would make this the most unforgettable weekend of her life.
“Me, too.” He slid into his car and started making a plan to win her back for good. “I’ll see you tonight.”
