Man Shy (21 page)

Tim
’
s eyes opened wide.
“
Why on earth would she have thought that?
”

No one answered his question. Brody watched Mallory swirling around the dance floor in Corby
’
s arms. Was it really necessary for him to hold her quite that close?

Kyle shot Brody an assessing look.
“
And she didn
’
t call off the date? Maybe I misjudged her.
”

“
I hope so.
”
Brody grinned.

But Kyle
’
s expression was dead serious.
“
Watch your step, Hunter. Don
’
t hurt her,
”
he said softly, before dragging Tim off to the buffet line.

Brody stared after them in surprise. Kyle Brewster, mild-mannered Kyle Brewster, had just threatened him. Oh, he hadn
’
t come right out and said,
“
Hurt her and you
’
re dog meat!
”
but Brody knew what he meant. And he wasn
’
t sure whether to laugh or feel insulted.

Shaking his head in dismay, he propped himself against the wall, where he had an unrestricted view of Mallory and the groom. After watching them for a few minutes, he came to a couple of surprising conclusions. First, Corby might look like Mr. Suave and Sophisticated, but he couldn
’
t dance for beans. And second, the man was an idiot. He must be. How else could you explain his dumping Mallory?

“
She
’
s really okay with this, isn
’
t she?
”

“
What?
”
He turned to find the bride standing at his elbow.

“
Mallory.
”
Lindsey seemed surprised.
“
She
’
s not the least bit upset about my marrying Evan, is she?
”

As they watched, Mallory stifled a yawn.

Brody caught her eye, winking encouragingly. An impish grin lit her face, and she winked back.

Lindsey smiled and waved.
“
She told me his defection had only bruised her ego, not her heart, but I didn
’
t believe her then. Only seeing them together now, I do.
”

Lindsey
’
s assessment was accurate. If ever Mallory had carried a torch for Corby, the embers were stone cold now. Her face was frozen in a mask of boredom.

That Corby wasn
’
t in love with Mallory was equally obvious. He
’
d been talking nonstop during the whole dance. Once, Mallory had started to say something, but he
’
d cut her off after a few words and she hadn
’
t made a second attempt. Engrossed in his monologue, the bozo hadn
’
t even noticed.

“
She
’
s in love with you, isn
’
t she?
”

“
What?
”
Brody stared at Lindsey in surprise.

“
I thought the whole thing was a big put-on at first, you know, just to save face, but she
’
s really hooked. I can tell by the way she looks at you.
”
She studied him solemnly.
“
How about you? Are you in love with her?
”

How the hell was he supposed to respond to something like that? He discarded his first impulse: None of your damn business! A little too blunt.
“
What gives you that idea?
”
he said instead.

“
You never take your eyes off her.
”

“
Mallory
’
s not exactly hard to look at.
”
He
’
d thought she was beautiful that first night in the Blue Russian, and since seeing her in a towel, he
’
d been having some spectacular recurrent fantasies, mostly concerned with removing the towel in the most creative possible ways. Probably not the sort of detail to share with her sister, though.

“
You think she
’
s pretty?
”

Brody turned to Lindsey with a smile.
“
No, I think she
’
s gorgeous. Which is hardly surprising since good looks obviously run in your family.
”

She batted her eyelashes like a Southern belle.
“
Why, thank you, sir.
”

“
You
’
re welcome, though actually, I was thinking of Great-aunt Bethiah.
”

He
’
d half expected her to pout, but she chuckled instead, and he caught a glimpse of Mallory in her expression.

“
Champagne?
”
Brody snagged a couple of glasses from a passing waiter.
“
Here.
”
He pressed one of the plastic flutes into her hands and clinked his glass with hers.
“
To happily ever after.
”

“
Happily ever after it is.
”

She eyed him closely over the rim of her wineglass.
“
Actually, I had an ulterior motive in approaching you. There
’
s something I think you ought to know, but I don
’
t know exactly how to put it.
”

Uh-oh.

“
Mallory,
”
she started, then stopped.
“
This is a lot more embarrassing than I expected it to be.
”

“
Why?
”

She flushed.
“
Because you
’
re not the jerk I thought you were.
”
She gulped down more of her champagne, then said in a rush,
“
Last night I was furious with Mallory for causing that scene. Then I realized she
’
d only been trying to protect me. So now I guess it
’
s my turn.
”

“
To make a scene?
”

Lindsey uttered a trill of nervous laughter.
“
I sincerely hope not.
”
She traded her empty glass for a full one and took a quick sip.
“
I love my sister, and I don
’
t want to see her hurt. She has no defenses against a man like you.
”

“
A man like me?
”
Brody told himself the knot in his gut was heartburn.

“
Single, with every intention of staying that way.
”
Lindsey took another quick sip.
“
Mallory
’
s not some disposable bimbo, you know. You can
’
t just toss her aside like a piece of trash when you
’
re done with her.
”
She uttered the words with a passionate intensity. Tears trembled on her eyelashes.

Brody spoke softly.
“
What makes you think I
’
d do that?
”

Lindsey took another sip of champagne before answering.
“
That
’
s just it. I don
’
t know what you
’
re capable of. I don
’
t really know you, and I don
’
t think Mallory does, either.
”

Two hours and three glasses of champagne later, Mallory decided she enjoyed dancing with Brody, especially slow dancing. She sighed, snuggling against him.
“
Is it hot in here?
”

“
It
’
s warming up.
”
Brody brushed his lips across her forehead and she shivered in reaction.
“
You ready to go?
”

“
Almost.
”
She grinned up at him. He looked a little fuzzy around the edges. She wasn
’
t sure if her contacts had slipped awry or if the champagne was getting to her.
“
I
’
ll meet you at the door. There
’
s something I have to do.
”

“
Okay. Two minutes. Main entrance. Right under the elk horns.
”

“
Two minutes. Elk horns,
”
she repeated obediently. Then she slipped away to the kitchen, where the extra champagne was chilling in the big commercial cooler. She snagged a bottle, hid it in the folds of her mohair stole, and trotted quickly toward the main door, grinning to herself.

“
Where do you think you
’
re going with that champagne, young lady?
”

“
Daddy!
”
Mallory almost lost her grip on the bottle.

“
I paid top dollar for that damned carbonated French vinegar.
”
Mike Scott sounded fierce enough, but his eyes were sparkling with suppressed laughter.
“
You and that new boyfriend of yours planning to party all night?
”

“
Maybe.
”
She grinned.
“
We haven
’
t discussed it.
”

Her father patted her shoulder.
“
It
’
s good to see you having fun for a change, baby. You
’
re way too serious most of the time.
”

“
Not much to laugh about most of the time.
”

“
Oh, Mallory.
”
He pulled her into a hug.
“
I know I don
’
t say it often enough, but I love you, baby. And somehow, I can
’
t help but feel that this should be your reception that
’
s sending me to the poorhouse, not your sister
’
s.
”

Mallory leaned back so she could make eye contact.
“
Me marry Evan? Never would have happened. Believe me, he and Lindsey are much better suited than he and I ever were.
”

Her father studied her face carefully.
“
You
’
re sure?
”

She patted his cheek.
“
Positive.
”

A smile crinkled the corners of his eyes.
“
Good. Glad we got that straightened out.
”
He gave her a quick squeeze, then released her altogether.
“
Here comes your date with yet another bottle of my overpriced champagne. Apparently the two of you have a lot in common
—
like a streak of larceny a mile wide. You watch out for that French stuff. It
’
ll sneak up on you.
”

Laughing, Mallory crossed her heart.
“
I
’
ll be careful.
”
She turned to Brody with a grin, holding her bottle up so he could see it.
“
Looks like we both had the same idea.
”

Brody raised an eyebrow.
“
At least one of the same ideas. We
’
ll have to see how well the others mesh.
”

They walked out of the Elks Lodge arm in arm, she teetering a little in her high heels as they crossed the loose gravel of the parking lot. Mallory couldn
’
t remember the last time she
’
d felt this carefree. Never? If her present euphoria was merely the product of the champagne, then maybe she
’
d have to add the bubbly stuff to her list of comfort foods. Somewhere between chocolate-covered macadamia nuts and cherry cheesecake.