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“And the ship,” CJ adds.
“Why can’t you?” Magnus says.
“Because—” CJ goes silent as Ryan and Royal give their brothers a peculiar look. It’s as if they both thought they knew the answer to that particular question—Magnus having military ties—but are second-guessing themselves because of how he posed the question.
“I’ll make sure he looks into it,” I say with what I hope is a helpful smile.
Tonight has been a pleasant surprise, seeing the growing McGregor family in action. It makes me long to truly be a part of it. To have one of my own.
Whereas Royal seemed grumpy, he’s surprisingly friendly. I thought Magnus was brooding, but it turns out that he’s serious, stoic, commanding...and sweet and thoughtful.
Especially when dessert comes, and he lets me eat the icing off his cake.
Ryan is a flirt for sure and CJ is, well, an “island” man of mystery instead of an international man of mystery.
“We’re also serving chocolate on the half shell,” Isla announces.
We all laugh, mouths watering as she describes the creamy Crème brûlée -style dessert, topped with chocolate and served in an oyster shell, because of the beach-inspired wedding.
The conversation turns from treasure back to the wedding. We bring in the dishes and help clean up, with Isla giving me the details of her big day. It’s the polar opposite of all the conversations I had with Romy. Whereas she was a Bridezilla, Isla is full of enthusiasm—a bridal unicorn—Bride-i-corn?
We move to what Isla calls the drawing room with bookshelves, seating areas, a massive mural map of the world painted on the wall, and a piano. An old song comes on and Ryan starts singing along. Royal joins him and Magnus pounds the piano keys, also singing, which comes as a surprise.
Isla and I start belting it out and dancing, swinging each other around, before Royal takes her hand. Ryan and CJ boogie. Magnus looks up at me.
It’s as if the room goes quiet. The music no longer vibrates through our bodies. Something else pulses between us. In a few short strides, he crosses the room, takes my hand, and twists me around, then into his arms. It’s a lively, jaunty tune, and for a guy who said he doesn’t dance, he’s good. Uninhibited. The McGregor family musical revue seemed totally spontaneous and positively fun.
As I glide away from Magnus and then he reels me back in, the deep timbre of his voice singing the song lyrics makes me gaze at his lips. But his gaze on me lifts mine to meet his and hooks there.
It’s right then something shifts, takes anchor.
We dance and sing and...
I’m in love.
And breathless.
After we say goodnight to everyone, instead of going to Magnus’s truck, he leads me across the property toward the peninsula.
“Tell me about your family,” he says.
“Yours is fresh in my mind, so think exactly the opposite. My mother worked part-time at a lumber mill, and even though she was home often enough, she was distant. We never got especially close, though we did play cards a lot. More like a bare-bones relationship. My dad and I were closer, hiked a lot. But he was quiet, not available for much more than casual conversation.”
I leave out my mother’s habit, the one we never talked about. I don’t mention the only time she spent with me was playing card games, the fights with my dad about money missing from their bank account, and how, each month, she’d disappear for a few days.
My poker skills paid off, though, because it helped me fund the difference that my GI Bill benefits didn’t cover for vet school. But this isn’t something I discuss.
“Are they still together?”
“Technically, yes, but my dad lives in Alaska and my mother is still in Washington. I don’t think they were expecting me or knew what to do with me. I see moms and dads involved in their children’s lives and am like, that’s how it’s supposed to be. That’s how I’d want it to be if I had kids.”
“Do you?”
“Want kids? A whole bunch. Even one would be good. First, I’d want to take a few steps, you know, the whole marriage thing.” In movies, talking about this so soon, so early is often portrayed as being taboo, a surefire way to turn a guy off, but I want a man who’s excited about marriage and not scared of merely discussing that kind of commitment.
I can’t see Magnus’s expression as we walk swiftly along the dimly lit path, but his hand finds mine.
Before I let myself get too comfortable, I have to ask a hard question. “Would you mind telling me about the text you got from Emmie? Is she someone special? Did she propose to you?”
