“Man has good abs.” I shrug it off. “Plus I’m clumsy.”
“Liar. You have freaky steady hands. You should have been a surgeon.” I keep quiet knowing that everything she’s saying is true. I do have super steady hands and balance. The only time those things seem to be off are when Mack is around me. There is no way I’m admitting these things to Maisie or I’ll never hear the end of it. I proceed to dry my hands on the nearby dish towel and attempt to change the subject. She’ll start trying to play matchmaker. She’s been doing that to me since she found love herself.
“I’ve been thinking about having my office redone and thought Star could give me a hand.” Maisie lets out a deep breath in frustration. I continue down the path of denial that I’m trying to get her to follow. “She has such a great eye and it’s missing something.” She remains quiet while I continue to jabber on.
“You know he’s not going to wait forever. I hope for both of your sakes that one of you makes a move. You’re both so smart but such idiots too.” My mouth hangs open in shock at her calling me an idiot. Before I can respond she walks out of the room. She stops before she reaches the door that heads outside. “I’ll let Star know that you’re looking for some help redoing the office.”
I stand there speechless until I hear the back door slam closed. Is she right? Would I care if Mack found someone? I haven’t given it a ton of thought. Of course women throw themselves at him but I also know he doesn’t like it. He doesn’t care to be touched by random people and enjoys his own personal bubble. Except when it comes to his family. I’ve even noticed him letting me more and more into his personal space too. I’m not purposely trying to enter it but we spend such a good amount of time together that it’s been happening naturally. He’s used to me now so he groups me in as one of the women in his family. Or maybe I am missing something. The very something that has been right in front of my face this entire time.
I keep to myself for the next hour while I continue to clean up. Now I’m not only avoiding Mack but everyone else too. I peek out the window that looks out over the yard and scan it for any sign of him. When I think the coast is clear, I step outside and say a quick goodbye to everyone. I had thought about leaving out the front door but decided against it. I walk hurriedly to my car that’s parked out in front of the house. I reach my car, open the door and get in. I breathe a sigh of relief that I’ve made it without running into Mack again. I step on the brake and push the start button, ready to make my escape. Nothing happens. I repeat my actions but still my engine doesn’t turn over. “You have to be kidding me!” I slam my hand down on the steering wheel and let some other not nice words out while I’m at it.
“Something wrong?” My head jerks up to see Mack standing in front of my car.
“No. I cursed and hit my steering wheel for no good reason,” I snip at him. I instantly regret being rude. It’s not like it’s his fault that my car won’t start. Thankfully he gives me one of his smiles that washes most of my guilt away.
“Let me give you a ride home. I’ll have the car fixed.” He opens my car door. I should fight him on it. I’m sure by morning the car will be fixed and parked outside my apartment even though it’s Sunday night. He’ll find someone to fix it. That is Mack. He knows how to do most things. It is why his comment about him being dumb caught me off guard. That’s the last thing anyone would consider him. I often think how smart he is gets overlooked because of how handsome he is. He hasn’t always been the sexy beast of a man he is now. Going through puberty has done him well. Hell, it has done him more than well. I still find the pictures of him in his younger days adorable. He was cute and chubby and I hated how my mind always thought about having cute chubby babies with him.
“Fine.” I grab my purse, handing Mack my keys. “I’m paying you back,” I tell him. Who knows what it will cost for me to fix the car? I have no clue what is wrong with it. I’m sure if I dig a little I’d figure it out but I wasn’t going to let myself do that. I’d fall down a rabbit hole.