Just My Type (14 page)
When four pairs of shocked eyes and one pair that was ecstatically happy turned to look at him he made his feet move again.
“What do you mean you’re
married
?” Danika demanded.
The other three seemed too stunned to speak.
Sara danced to his side, sliding her arm through his, and cuddled up next to him.
“I’m dead,” he muttered to the top of her head.
“I’ll protect you,” she whispered back.
“What the
fuck
?” Sam’s sudden exclamation echoed down the airport hallway and everyone streaming through toward the baggage claim stopped to stare.
Danika moved closer and took his hand. “Easy,” she said softly, still looking at Mac and Sara.
“What’d you do, you son of a bitch? Get so drunk you didn’t know what you were doing?”
“Hey!” Sara said, stepping toward her brother. “What the
fuck
is that supposed to mean?” Jessica stared at her. “Sara!”
“What? That’s the only reason he’d marry me is if he was too drunk to know any better?” Sam was glaring at Mac. “Drunk or dying. And if you’re dying it better be in the next twenty-four hours.”
“Sam, calm down,” Mac said in a low, steady voice, squeezing Sara’s elbow against his side. “Let us explain.”
“Is it true?” Sam demanded. “Start with that.”
Mac sighed. This was going about how he expected. He wasn’t bruised yet, so he thought that was a good thing. He just wasn’t sure it would last. “Yes, it’s true. We got married this morning.”
“Without us?” Jessica asked, looking confused and hurt.
“Well, it had to be behind
my
back,” Sam said. “That’s the only way in hell it would happen!”
“I’m a grown woman, Sam!” Sara shot back. “You don’t have a say.”
“The hell if I don’t…”
He took a step forward and Ben stepped in front of him.
“Take it easy, Sam. This isn’t the way to handle this.”
“You’re right,” Sam said, staring at Mac. “I don’t want to pay to get the blood out of the airport’s carpet. Let’s go out to the sidewalk.”
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“Did it ever occur to you that I did it this way because I knew you’d be a jerk about it?” Sara asked her brother. “Did it ever occur to you I might be just as hurt by this as you, because I would
want
you at my wedding but couldn’t ask you because you’d act like this?” Everyone, including Mac, looked at her with surprise. Sara never talked to anyone like that, most of all her siblings.
“Sara,” Jessica started. “You have to understand why we’re upset.”
“I’m happy, Jessica,” Sara said, her voice calmer. “I would think that would be enough to make you happy too.”
“But we’re—”
“Upset because you didn’t make this decision,” Sara cut in. “You’re not sure how to react because every other major thing in my life has been laid out by you.” Mac felt a vibration of unease rumble through his gut. No, he thought a moment later, this couldn’t be just about proving she was able to make her own decisions. She’d gone to St. Croix to prove to
him
she was a grown woman. But surely she hadn’t said yes to getting married just to prove a point to her siblings.
Had she?
She was in love with him. She’d said so. She had to mean it, dammit.
“Sara, I just don’t think—”
Sam cut his older sister off. “We’ll get it annulled.”
Sara glared at him. “What are you going to do? Throw me over your shoulder and carry me down to the courthouse? You’ll make me sign my name or, what, you’ll ground me?” Mac almost laughed at the ridiculousness of the statement. Sam had never grounded Sara. He’d never disciplined her at all. No one had. That was part of the reason Mac was currently in this situation.
“I’ll…” Sam clearly didn’t have an answer. So he resorted to more scowling. “Dammit, Sara, this is stupid. You can’t just run off without telling anyone anything and then come back married. For God’s sake!
What did you think we were going to do?”
“It is possible, Sam, that this isn’t about you at all.” Sara crossed her arms and stared at her brother.
“You’re my sister!”
“And this isn’t a college tuition you can pay for me or a job you can make up or an apartment you can rent. Who I spend my life with is up to me.”
Oh, shit.
The unease in Mac’s gut increased. Especially when Sam said, “You actually thought we would arrange a marriage for you?”
“Not exactly, but you have a pretty good idea in your mind about what the guy should be like.”
“I…” Sam swallowed. “Of course. I would want you to be with a good guy.”
“And I am.”
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Just My Type
Son of a bitch
.
Mac knew then that this was about a lot more than a misplaced crush or a spontaneous temper tantrum. The whole trip to St. Croix hadn’t been just for his benefit after all. The elopement hadn’t been planned, but Sara was certainly smart enough to take advantage of an opportunity. It was clear now that Sara had gone on the trip—and then married him—to show her siblings she could make a good decision without their help. He was the most obvious choice because they knew and liked him and well, because he’d been there. Hell, it had even been his idea.
Sam didn’t answer at first, but finally he said, “You don’t care if we’re upset?” Sara lifted her chin. “You’ll get over it. I’m an adult. I can take care of myself.” Sam’s jaw was tight, his arms crossed, as he looked from Sara to Mac and back. “Bullshit. You haven’t ever taken care of yourself.”
Sara flinched and Mac clenched a fist, but simply cocked an eyebrow at his friend. “A little harsh, Sam?”
“Shut up, Mac.”
“Don’t you mean brother?” Mac asked, definitely taking a risk.
“You want to do this here?” Sam asked.
“What I want to do is have you back off of Sara a little bit.” Mac drew himself up to his full height and mimicked Sam’s stance.
“Is that right?” Sam asked, also standing tall. “Feeling protective of your new wife?”
“Yeah.” He was. He wasn’t sure he wanted to, especially suspicious of her motives as he was, but if anyone got to be mad about this situation, it should be him.
“Fine, I’ll leave Sara alone,” Sam agreed. “Why don’t you tell us about
your
plans, Mac.” Mac looked at his friend and saw everything he didn’t want to see: anger, hurt, uncertainty and, worst of all, genuine worry. Because of him. The strain on his friendships had already started. Unfortunately, he had to deal with Sara before he could make the rest right. Sara wanted to prove she’d made a good decision? Well, it wasn’t going to work that way. He was going to make her admit she’d messed this up.
She thought she wanted to play house with Mac. He knew exactly how to show her what that meant.
“Sara’s giving up her apartment and moving to my house with me.” Sam was the only one in the group who’d ever been to his house. He was the one staring at him with the most incredulity. Everyone else probably just thought having Sara move to his house was normal.
Which it would have been if his house was just a normal house and Sara was just a normal girl. None of them knew that in this case it meant moving Sam’s spoiled sister, who had regular manicures, wore skirts and dresses almost exclusively and depended on her Blackberry like she did water, to a rural Nebraska town with no stoplights and nothing that was open past ten p.m.
“Away from us,” Sam summarized.
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He didn’t get it. Mac shouldn’t have assumed he would, especially in the mental and emotional state Sam was in at the moment, but he’d hoped Sam would get what he was trying to do.
“To my house,” Mac repeated.
“In Oscar?”
“Yes.”
“It’s an hour away.”
“Forty-five minutes.”
“She won’t know anyone there,” Sam said.
“She’ll know me.”
Which wasn’t enough. Mac knew that. Not for Sara. She was social, loved people, loved helping people and being involved and being busy. Oscar, the small town where all six hundred and twenty people knew everything about one another and didn’t welcome anyone who hadn’t been born there, was going to be tough on Sara.
And she was going to be away from her family. That would be the worst part. For her.
Which was the point. Painful as it might be for him to put her through.
Like a half-naked Brandi in the front seat of his car, he had to use drastic measures to shake Sara up and out of this daze and make
her
be the one to end it.
“Your house is a hundred years old.” This Sam said looking directly at Sara.
Mac, on the other hand, did
not
look at Sara. “One hundred and six.” Sam would understand later, after he thought about it. All of the reasons he was giving for Sara to hate moving to his family’s homestead were the reasons that this was a great idea. A great idea Sam would catch on to. Eventually. Hopefully.
“Sara, say the word,” Sam said, returning to glaring at Mac. “You don’t have to go with him.” Mac held his breath. He wanted her to say she did not want to go to his house. He did. It was best.
“Of course I’m going with him. It’s my home now too.”
Mac’s breath whooshed out in what felt, strangely, like relief.
Not good.
“You’ll hate it there. It doesn’t even have running water.” Mac rolled his eyes. “If you’re going to scare her, at least do it accurately,” he said. “The water was a temporary problem.”
“I’m going no matter what,” Sara said stubbornly, pressing closer to Mac’s side.
“What about your job?”
Everyone turned and looked at Jessica.
Sara took a deep breath. “I’m—”
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“She’ll just take a break while we get settled,” Mac said. Sara’s job was so much more than a job. The David Bradford Youth Center was more than a charity too. It was truly the center of the Bradford siblings’
lives, it was a huge part of what pulled and kept them together. So Sara couldn’t go to work right now. He needed her to focus on his life and being his wife so she could be properly horrified without any life preserver. And the sooner the better, so she would end it quickly.
“A break?” Jessica asked.
“Or I could quit.”
Everyone turned and looked at Sara this time, like a slow-motion tennis match.
“Quit?” Jess repeated.
“Time for changes,” Sara said, squaring her shoulders. “I’m married to the guy I picked, moving in to a house that you had nothing to do with, maybe it’s time for a career choice my sister didn’t invent for me.” Jessica stared at her. Sam glared. “You don’t have to be a brat, Sara.” Sara sighed. “I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just…we all know the Center doesn’t need a full-time administrator. We all know Jess and you set it up for me to keep me close. Which is great, but you have plenty of volunteers to run the place. Heck, you and Dani and Jess and Ben spend as much time there as I do most weeks. So—” she took a deep breath, “—I quit.”
Mac, for his part, couldn’t help the admiration he felt. Sara was right about her siblings setting everything in her life up for her, including her job. Their intentions were good, but it was okay for her to start doing some things on her own. He still wasn’t thrilled about being one of the rebellions, but he couldn’t deny it was a good thing for her. Besides, he didn’t expect his part in it to last past Sara finding out he had cows in his backyard.
“I can definitely support her if she wants to stay at home and wait on me hand and foot,” Mac added, helpfully.
Sara gave him a raised eyebrow.
Jessica looked worried.
Sam just stared at both of them for a moment. Then said, “Fine. Whatever. Do whatever you want.” He turned and stalked off. Danika leaned in and gave Sara a quick hug, then put her hand against Mac’s cheek. “I hope you know what you’re doing,” she said softly. Then she turned and followed her husband.
“I don’t know what to say,” Jessica told them, her eyes watery with tears.
Ben slipped his arm around his wife’s shoulders. “Just don’t make us choose, Mac.” Mac wanted to say,
What do you mean?
or
Sam’s making you choose
but neither was true. He knew it.
He felt it. This was all his fault.
So he was going to fix it.
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“I know you love her,” Mac said. “I do too.” That much he could say for sure. He loved her. And them.
Those were the reasons that this was the most difficult situation he could imagine.
“Figure this out,” Ben ordered. Then he kissed the top of Sara’s head and stood back while Jessica faced them.
“I’ve always just wanted to do the right thing for you,” she told Sara.
Mac finally looked down at his wife. She was tearing up too as she hugged her sister and guardian from the time she was ten. “I know that, Jess.”
“I want to hear from you. All the time. I mean it.”
“You will.” Sara wiped her cheeks and laughed. “I’m moving to Oscar, not China, Jessica.”
“I know. But you’re usually right here. I see you every day…” Mac felt his gut knot as he watched the sisters hug one last time.
Jessica said nothing to him, just looked into his eyes, then hugged him as well.
Mac watched Ben turn her to leave and watched as they walked away.
This sucked.
Because everything was going to change. At least until Sara realized that she wanted her old life back.
And he knew that after all of this, even when things were back to normal, he’d never be the same again.
Sara awoke when Mac killed the engine. She hadn’t meant to sleep. She hadn’t wanted to sleep. And it became apparent, as she looked around at the dark yard lit only by the tall light on the one corner, that as she’d slept Mac had taken it upon himself to bypass the Hilton and go straight to his place in Oscar.
She yawned as Mac got out and went to the trunk of the car. Oscar, Nebraska. She knew he was from a little town outside of Omaha where he still had a house, but he also had an apartment in Omaha because of his long, odd work shifts, so she hadn’t thought much of his hometown. She’d certainly never been to Oscar and couldn’t have told anyone even what direction it was from Omaha.