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Settling into the Cherokee, he tilted the chair back and closed his eyes, hoping he could rest and the dull headache that was starting behind his eyes would disappear.
His phone rang. He pulled it out without sitting up. “Hello,” he muttered, hoping it was Navy or one of his brothers. He could really use some advice from his sister.
“Mack,” the voice was unhappy and he instantly recognized it as Hyde Metcalf’s voice.
He sat up and wondered if the angels in heaven were conspiring against him. “Hey, Hyde.”
“Caleb called me.”
“Figures.”
“You found Sariah?”
“Yeah.” He stared out of the windshield at the bright spring day. The wind rustled budding tree branches. Why had he come here? Did he even have a chance with Sariah?
“And?” Hyde’s voice was tight and controlled.
“She’s going to dinner with me at six.”
“Did you bully her into that?”
“What? Come on, Hyde,” he protested. “Have you ever seen me bully anybody into anything?” Mack might be one of the toughest offensive linemen in the nation but he had never pushed his way around anywhere, besides the football field. He’d learned young that people were intimidated by his size and he’d tried extra hard to be kind and not give anyone a reason to fear him. Being bullied as a small child for his speech impediment had made him empathetic. He hated the thought that maybe he had scared Sariah because of his large build. The only other reason she would have freaked out like that was because there was something wrong with her face or neck.
There was a pause then Hyde finally admitted, “No.”
“I just want to get to know her. Why are you so against me?”
Hyde blew out a breath. “It’s not you. It’s your fame and your family and Sariah is just delicate.”
Mack swallowed, staring at the front of the massage school. Half an hour ago he’d think Hyde was being overprotective, but he’d witnessed … something. “She was flirting with me and I pushed the hair from her face and it flipped her out.”
“I bet it did.”
“Did someone hurt her?” He was imagining everything from an abusive boyfriend to a traumatic accident.
“Sariah’s very private and it’s not my story to tell. I know you wouldn’t intentionally hurt her, but please be careful with her. Please think about her and not your own desires.”
Mack didn’t know what to make of any of this. He wasn’t some selfish brute that was going to push himself on Sariah. “I’ll treat her like I would want someone to treat my sister.”
“I guess that’s all I could ask. I’ll check in with you soon.”
“Okay.”
Hyde hung up the phone. Mack laid back against the seat and squeezed his eyes shut. This whole deal with Sariah was unnerving. Why was he so drawn to her and why did Hyde act like she was a fragile piece of beautiful pottery? The interactions he’d had with her showed she was witty, strong, and feisty. The only weird thing had been when he pushed at her hair and she screamed.
Frustration rolled through him and he second-guessed everything from his motivation to pursue her to everyone’s overprotectiveness of her to even Sariah’s mental health. He’d take her to dinner, but that might have to be the end of his Sariah quest. No matter how much he wanted to be with her, he couldn’t allow her to be hurt.
* * *
Sariah made it through the last hour and a half of school, her mind replaying the way she’d reacted to Mack’s gentle touch over and over again. Ah, Mack. He was a gentle giant and she was a freak-out crazy woman. How could she explain why she’d reacted like that? She still didn’t want him to see her ugliness. She knew the insistent way he was pursuing her would end soon, if it hadn’t already, but she didn’t want to see revulsion in his eyes. She could still remember the first time Tyler had seen her scars. He’d recoiled and then she’d been very careful to keep her hair covering her right side after that. She never let herself reflect on when Tyler’s girlfriend and her brothers had been trying to drown her and then discovered her scars. They’d changed their plan and used her injury to exploit Tyler. Sariah knew it had probably saved her life but at the time she hadn’t been certain she wanted to keep living.
She said goodbye to everyone and took a deep breath. When she walked out those doors she might be face to face with Mack Quinn. Making sure her hair was in place, she said a prayer and marched resolutely out front of the school.You got this girl, she muttered to herself.
Searching around, she didn’t see Mack. Her stomach filled with a heavy sickness, like eating an entire loaf of stale bread by yourself then discovering it was moldy. He’d left and wasn’t coming back. She didn’t blame him, but oh, how it hurt. She’d known she shouldn’t let herself fall for him, but stupidly she had.
Walking slowly toward the parking lot, she squinted at the sun glaring off of shiny vehicles. She walked past a black Jeep Cherokee and jumped when she saw there was a large person inside. Putting a hand on her heart, she took another quick look. The man was inclined in the driver’s seat, sleeping, and she recognized him.
Mack. She kept the hand on her heart. He hadn’t left. He must’ve decided to wait in his car and had fallen asleep. She stood there, staring into his window. It was crazy that he could be so big yet so good-looking and non-threatening. His features were definitely male, strong and cut. The curly, blond hair softened him, but not as much as the blue eyes that she loved to stare into.
