“Should we sneak past the group and get some alcohol?” Mac asks, and as I nod I recognize the absence of any anxiety.
Mac starts to walk away, but I grab his hand and stop him.
“Thank you,” I say, and when he smiles, a thousand tiny fireworks explode inside me.
He wraps his hand around mine, leading me to the living room where a bar cart is set up. It’s a fancy bar cart, but it’s got more liquor than some actual bars I’ve been in, and it’s all top-shelf. No one is there at the moment, and he stands between me and the people as a buffer.
“What’s your poison?” he asks, leaning close, his mouth practically against my ear.
“White wine is fine.” I point to the bottle in an ice bucket and Mac pours me a generous glass.
He hands it to me as a woman who looks the right age to be Mac’s mother approaches. She and Mac have identical smiles, and her blonde hair is styled back in a chic hair clip. She comes up to Mac’s shoulder and has one of those sturdy body types that indicates she gives a great hug. Mac hugs the woman warmly and introduces us.
“Anita,” she says and grabs my hand before I can offer it to shake. But the shake feels more like she’s warmly holding my hand for a moment before she pulls me in for a hug. I was right. She does give a great hug. It’s so motherly and kind it brings tears to my eyes. I blink them away. Anita releases me and looks me dead in the eyes. “I am so glad you’re here. You are so welcome.”
“Jessie, this is my mom.”
“Thank you so much for having me. For letting me crash the dinner at the last minute,” I say, genuinely grateful.
“Oh, honey, we love having company. Plus, Mac never brings home girls. You must be—”
“And that’s enough of that.” Mac grabs my shoulders and steers me away from his mom.
I hear her chuckle behind us as Mac guides me to a corner of the room where we can see everything. He stands behind me, leaning in, his mouth next to my ear.
“That is Rob, my oldest brother, and his wife, Lori.” They both look like they just stepped out of a J.Crew ad. This must be the lawyer brother. “That’s Michael and his fiancée, Amelia.” They’re just as refined as Rob and Lori, but in a much more relaxed way. They look like they attend expensive sports games, and I remember this is the brother who played in the NFL and is heading to Antarctica. He points out Noah and his girlfriend Charlotte, and then a small handful of aunts, uncles, and cousins whose names I don’t remember.
“I’m going to go say hi to Noah,” Mac says. His hand rests gently on my lower back, the pressure of his fingers light. “You can stay here or you can come with me, whatever you’re more comfortable with. If you stay I’ll come right back.”
“I’ll come with you,” I say. Between Mac and the wine, most of my social anxiety has dissolved now.
We approach Noah, who’s picking at a cheeseboard on the island. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think Noah and Mac were twins, they look so similar. He’s got his arm around a very pretty girl with long blonde hair and he’s feeding her a piece of cheese. She looks absolutely smitten.
“Get a room,” Mac says.
Noah turns from the girl, his entire face lighting up when he sees his younger brother. “You son of a bitch,” he says with a loud laugh and leaves the girl’s side to punch Mac’s arm and put him into a headlock.
I sidestep out of the way, moving closer to the girl, Charlotte.
“So violent, aren’t they?” she says to me.
“I can’t even imagine what Anita had to deal with raising all four of them.”
She laughs and holds out her hand. “Charlotte.”
“Jessie.” I take her hand with a smile.
“Oh! Jessie! I’ve heard so much about you.” The smile on her face is genuine. She seems really pleased to be meeting me, but I’m so taken aback by what she said that I can’t figure out what to say back.Heard about me? Why was Mac talking about me?What could he have been saying?
“And who is this, Mackenzie? Is this your girlfriend?” Noah asks.
Mac steps back to stand next to me. He places his hand on the small of my back again, a reminder just for me that he’s here. “No, no, she isn’t my girlfriend.” But he’s looking at me as he says this, and the look is loaded and meaningful. Like maybe he wishes I was.
“Just friends,” I say, echoing his sentiment by holding his gaze. The unspoken phrase hangs between us in the air.
Just friends…for now.
“Jessie,” I say. Noah’s face lights up as he shakes my hand like he recognizes my name. He gives Mac a knowing look, and my stomach turns over.
