by Marie Force
“What’s the matter?”
As he took her coat, she looked up at him, blinking rapidly as if trying not to cry. Though he had no doubt that she was every bit as committed to him as he was to her, his heart stopped at the possibility that she might be having cold feet. “I… Um… My parents. They’re not coming.”
“What?”
“Th-they said the trip was too much for them, that they’d been trying to find a way to tell me…” She broke down into heartbroken sobs that made Evan want to kill the people who would soon be his in-laws. They’d done nothing but hurt his beloved Grace in big and small ways since he’d known her, and he’d had about enough.
He wrapped his arms around her and guided her into the formal living room his mother kept for “guests,” out of the view of the others. “I’m so sorry, honey. I hate that they would do this to you, especially so late in the game.”
“It’s what they do,” she said, sobs hiccupping through her. “Any time I’m really happy, they find a way to ruin it.”
“After this, they’ll be seeing and hearing very little from you and us. I won’t let them hurt you anymore.”
“Wh-who will give me away if my dad isn’t there?”
Evan’s heart, the heart that belonged completely to her, split right down the middle. “My dad will. You know he’d love to.”
“H-he’s nicer t-to me than m-my own f-father has ever b-been.”
“He loves you. We all do. We’re your family now. Us and your brothers and all your friends. You’re surrounded by people who’d do anything for you. Your brothers would give you away, wouldn’t they?”
“P-probably, but they’d be aw-awkward and uncomfortable. I think I might rather have your dad.”
“You can have anyone you want, and my dad would be delighted to do it.”
Because he was holding her so close, he felt her backbone stiffen and her usual fortitude return. “I’m sorry to show up in this condition when everyone’s excited.”
“Don’t apologize. Not to me or anyone else. Of course you’re upset, and with good reason, but we can’t let them ruin this amazing week that we’ve been looking forward to for so long.”
“I won’t let them ruin this for me. No way.”
“That’s my girl. Your brothers will still be there, right?”
“Oh yes, they wouldn’t miss it, but this is it for me with my parents. I can’t keep letting them do this to me.”
“No, you can’t, and I’m glad to hear you say that.”
“Because you’ve wanted me to cut things off with them for a while now?” she asked with the hint of a smile ghosting her lips.
“Something like that, but I never would’ve said it. You had to get there on your own.”
“Well, consider me there.”
Evan cupped her face in his hands and kissed her cheeks, brushing away her tears, before turning his attention to her sweet lips. “Focus on me. I’m your family, and I’ll never let anyone hurt you ever again.”
“I’d be lost without you, Evan. You have no idea how much I need you.”
“Yes, I do, because I need you just as much.” He kissed her again, more intently this time, before the clearing of a throat interrupted them.
“Sorry to interrupt the early honeymoon,” Big Mac said. “I was just making sure you two are okay. Someone said Grace seemed upset.” He zeroed in on her tearstained face, his brows furrowing with dismay.
That was what Evan loved best about his dad—he took care of them all, whether they were his biological kids or their friends.
“Who made you cry, and how can I kill him or her?” Big Mac asked. “The offer includes my son, in case you’re wondering.”
Grace’s face lit up with a big, bright smile. His dad had that effect on people, especially the ones who loved him. “Your son is the most wonderful man who ever lived, and he only makes me cry with laughter.”
“Then who do I need to see about tears on my daughter-in-law’s pretty face the week of her wedding?”
“Grace’s parents let her know today that they’re unable to make it to the wedding.” Evan saved her the trouble of having to say the words again.
His father’s face went slack with shock. “They… Well… I’m sorry, honey.”
“Grace was worried about who might give her away, and I said—”
“I’ll do it,” Big Mac said fiercely. “I will do it, and it’ll be my honor.”
Grace began to cry again, but these were happy tears. Evan knew the difference by now. She released him so she could hug his dad, who wrapped her up in his strong arms. She looked so small and fragile next to his strapping father, and the sight of them together brought tears to Evan’s eyes.
“Everything’s going to be okay, sweetheart,” Big Mac said, rubbing small circles on Grace’s back. “I’ll make sure of it, and so will Evan.”
“I-I’ve never said this before, but you sh-should know… I love you all so much. Your family… I’m so happy that you’re going to be my family.”
“You’re damned right you’re our family.” Big Mac raised his hand to invite Evan into their embrace. “Tomorrow, we’re going to Anguilla, and we’re going to get you two married in the most beautiful wedding you’ve ever seen. After that, you and Evan are going to have the most beautiful life. And that’s just the way it’s going to be, you hear me?”
“I hear you,” Grace said, sighing.
And so did Evan, because if his dad said it was so, he believed him. Big Mac McCarthy was rarely ever wrong about anything.
Chapter 28
On their third night in Anguilla, the guys and girls went their separate ways for bachelor and bachelorette parties for the bride and groom.
Evan’s brothers took over a British pub on the resort property, and the beer was flowing a couple of hours into the party.
“What’re the ladies doing?” Alex asked as he toked on one of the cigars that Dan Torrington had contributed to the gathering.
“Something about the spa.” Mac turned up his nose. “They really know how to party.”
“They’re getting spa treatments and then going to dinner at the Japanese steakhouse,” Evan said. “They’re probably finishing dinner by now.”
“Ohhh,” Adam said. “How wild.”
“Well, Tiffany helped to plan the night,” Blaine said, “so anything can happen with my wife involved.”
“This is true,” Mac said. “She’s a terrible influence on my sweet wife.”
“Whatever!” Blaine said. “Whose idea was it to tell us they’d hired strippers for Jenny’s bachelorette party?”
“Maddie’s,” the guys said in unison.
Mac squirmed. “That was a rare lapse in judgment for my lovely wife. She’s been soundly disciplined, and it won’t happen again.”
“I sooo can’t wait to tell her you said that,” Joe said, laughing and accepting a fist bump from Grant.
“It might be better if you didn’t tell her,” Mac said, sending the others into hysterics.
“I’ve only been married a couple of weeks,” Paul said, “but even I can predict trouble in your future, Mac.”
“Nah.” Mac waved his hand, sending cigar ashes flying. “She worships at the altar of Mac McCarthy.”
“It just gets better and better,” Shane said, grinning as he shook his head at Mac.
“Son, far be it from me to tell you what to do, but if I were you, I’d stick a sock in it,” Big Mac said, to howls.
“He’ll never stick a sock in it,” Frank said. “He’s been this way all his life.”
“Sad but true,” Kevin said.
Slim took it all in, laughing at Mac’s antics and enjoying one of the fine cigars Dan had brought. This was usually one of his favorite ways to spend a night—with his best friends, juicy steaks, good vodka and fine cigars, laughing and bullshitting. But on this night, he wasn’t able to relax or fully enjoy the party because someone was missing.
Erin would be here tomorrow,
but that felt like a lifetime from now. He’d only gotten there himself late that afternoon, in time for the bachelor party, which was why he’d had her come the next day. He knew he wouldn’t want to leave her for any reason after she arrived, and he couldn’t miss Evan’s party.
So he was destined to spend one more night alone and was half out of his mind waiting for her. From the moment she’d said yes to his invitation, time had slowed to a torturous crawl for him. Every minute felt like an hour, every day like a year. The flight from Palm Beach to Anguilla had been pure torture. But once he’d arrived, he’d found the ebullient McCarthy family in high spirits, and it was impossible to be anything other than sucked into their excitement.
Finn McCarthy joined the bachelor party late, having taken part in an all-day scuba-diving expedition that had returned after dark. He was drawn right into the circle of friends and family, given a beer and a plate of food.
“Ran into the ladies on the way over here,” he said between bites.
“Where were they heading?” Luke asked.
“I’m almost afraid to tell you guys.”
“Now you’d better,” Blaine said in his sternest cop voice.
“There was talk of skinny-dipping at the beach.”
The boisterous group went silent.
“Like hell,” Blaine said, getting up from the table and heading toward the beach.
“Wait! Blaine, wait!” Mac called after him. “This is our chance.”
Blaine stopped, turned back, hands on hips, clearly seething. “For what?”
“Revenge,” Mac said, drawing out the single word with dramatic flair. “Come back here, and let’s make a plan.”
“Uh-oh,” Finn said, giving his full attention to the steak. “Was it something I said?”
“You just threw gas on a fire, son,” Kevin said, chuckling.
Slim sat back, filled with amused detachment, listening to the guys plot against their women and imagining the many ways this could go wrong. As a single guy, he didn’t feel he had any place to speak up and suggest they might want to reconsider their plan. What did he know about being married or engaged, or committed, for that matter? He hoped to change that status very soon, but in the meantime, he couldn’t resist tagging along on their mission, just to see how it turned out.
They snuck down to the beach, where the women could be heard a mile away, screaming, laughing, splashing. To say a good majority of them were pregnant and sober, they were having one hell of a time. Thanks to the full moon shining down on the white sand, they could easily pick out the piles of clothes that had been left on the beach.
“There,” Mac whispered, pointing to the clothes. “Let’s go.”
“Boys,” Big Mac said, “I have to tell you… This is not going to end well.”
“Oh come on, Dad,” Grant said. “It’ll be hysterical, and they have it coming after the crap they’ve pulled on us.”
Grant’s capitulation surprised Slim, as he tended to be much more mature than his older brother. One thing Slim had to say for Mac, he’d missed his calling as a military commander. He was excellent at getting others to follow his lead. While they crept onto the beach to collect the women’s clothing, Slim stayed back with Big Mac, Frank, Kevin and Ned, otherwise known as the actual adults in this group.
“Buncha fools,” Ned muttered.
“Ah, yes,” Big Mac said, “but they’re my fools. I’m just glad Linda, Betsy, Francine and Chelsea offered to babysit tonight so the girls could go out. I’d want no part of digging myself out of this one.”
“You know it, brother,” Frank said.
“Chelsea would kill me,” Kevin said bluntly.
The guys returned, laughing and whispering—loudly—arms loaded with dresses and panties and bras and sandals that they then deposited in a pile on the sand.
“I did this once to Abby,” Adam whispered. “I thought she was going to murder me.”
“She will this time for sure,” Frank said.
“I can’t believe Katie is skinny-dipping,” Shane said. “She doesn’t like being naked in the shower.”
“Dude!” Owen said, sending the others into somewhat-silent hysterics. “That’s my sister you’re talking about.”
“Sorry,” Shane said, chuckling.
“No, you’re not.”
“I feel your pain,” Mac said, using his thumb to point to Joe.
“I only speak the truth,” Joe said, “and your sister is one hot mama.”
“Joseph,” Big Mac said. “End it. Now.”
“You’re talking about his precious princess,” Frank said, patting Joe on the back. “Inferring that you sleep with her is grounds for execution by firing squad.”
“You’re goddamned right it is,” Big Mac growled.
“So what happens now?” Slim asked the mastermind.
“Now, we wait for them to notice,” Mac said.
The ladies were in no apparent rush to end their nocturnal adventure, and the splashing and screaming continued for another fifteen minutes.
“I gotta pee,” Grant said.
“Me, too,” Alex replied.
They left to find the nearest men’s room while the rest of them waited and waited and waited, so long it was almost as if the women knew they were torturing them by dragging it out. They’d be thrilled to hear later that they’d done that without knowing it.
“Kara is going to kill me dead for this,” Dan said.
“But what a way to go,” Paul said, grinning.
“We are going to rescue them, aren’t we?” Shane asked, sounding nervous. “I was hoping Katie might actually marry me at some point.”
“Let me tell you something about revenge, young grasshopper,” Mac said, his hand on his younger cousin’s shoulder. “It doesn’t count until they suffer a fraction as much as they made us suffer.”
“But, um, Katie’s gonna be pissed, and I was hoping to get laid like a lot this week.”
“Dude!” Owen’s roar carried across the beach, resulting in silence from the women.
Uh-oh.
“What was that?” Maddie asked.
“Sounded like Owen,” Laura said. “Owen? Are you out there?”
Mac put his hand over Owen’s mouth and glared at him.
“I swear to God,” Stephanie said, “if they’re spying on us, I’m going to neuter Grant.”
“Okay, I’m out,” Grant said.
Mac grabbed his arm before he could bail. “No one’s out. We’re all in this to the finish now.”
“She said the word neuter,” Grant hissed at his brother.
“All talk,” Mac said, releasing his brother. “Stay strong.”
Wary now, the women got out of the water and walked up the beach to discover their clothes were gone.
“Those sons of bitches!” Tiffany’s howl could be heard for miles.
“What?” Katie asked. “What’s wrong?”
“Our clothes are gone.”
The screaming started in earnest at that point.
“Adam McCarthy!” Abby yelled. “Bring me my clothes, or I’ll divorce you.”
Adam whimpered and tried to pull free of Mac’s iron grip.
“Stay strong,” Mac said to his brother. “She’d never actually divorce you.”
“I’m not so sure,” Adam muttered.
“Can we get a group rate on divorce?” Stephanie asked.
“How could they do this?” Katie asked, sounding slightly hysterical. “What’ll we do?”
“Dan Torrington!” Kara’s voice echoed through the night. “Bring me my clothes, or you’ll never see your favorite parts of me again! Ever!”
“I’m out.” Dan took Kara’s dress off the pile and headed for the beach.
“Don’t look at my wife.” Blaine grabbed Tiffany’s dress and followed Dan. “I’ll fucking shoot anyone who looks at her.”
“Oh come on, you guys,” Mac said as the others followed Dan and Blaine, intending to rescue their women.
&nb
sp; “Mac McCarthy, if you can hear me, you’d better get over here right now with my dress, or you’re never, ever, ever having sex again. Ever!”
“Well,” Mac said with a sheepish grin, “this was fun, but might be time to call it a ball game.”
Slim rocked with silent laughter. This was the funniest thing he’d witnessed since naked boy-naked girl, and it just got better when the guys arrived with the women’s clothes, and much screaming ensued as the wrong guy saw the wrong woman naked.
“Someone poke my eyes out right now,” Evan said. “I just came face-to-face with Janey’s boobs.”
“I should get to see Grace’s,” Joe said. “It’s only fair.”
“Not the same thing,” Evan argued. “Those were sister tits. They don’t even count as tits.”
“Oh yes they do,” Joe said.
“Joseph!” Big Mac bellowed.
“I’d like to say for the record that this wasn’t my idea,” Luke said to Sydney as he handed over her dress.
She yanked it out of his hand. “You’re still in big trouble, mister.”
“Uh-oh,” Luke said. “What does this mean for vacation nookie?”
Sydney’s glare answered for her.
“Where’s Alex?” Jenny screamed.
“He and Grant had to go pee-pee,” Paul told her.
“Oh my God! Don’t look! I’m going to kill him!”
“I’ll help you,” Stephanie said, using her hands to cover the important parts until her clothes were located.
“I’m not looking,” Paul said to Hope. “I only have eyes for my wife.”
“Who will poke your eyes out of your head if you so much as glance at one of my naked friends,” Hope said.
“Awww, baby, come on. You gotta admit it was funny.”
“Hilarious,” Hope said dryly.
“One of my brothers had better bring me my clothes, or you’re going to see more of your new sister than you ever wanted to,” Mallory said.
