Marsala and Magnolias

by SJ McCoy

  “That’s true.” Mary Ellen was surprised to find herself more interested in letting him know that she wasn’t offended, than she was in worrying about all the women he’d been with in the past. She smiled and dug him in the ribs. “I just have to hope that I’m not the first one you’re subjecting to some new approach.”

  Smoke laughed.

  “But, my darling, you are.” Antonio gave her his best smile. “I’m experimenting with how I’m going to approach the rest of my life—but don’t worry, you’re not just the first, you’re the one and only.”

  Smoke shook his head. “Okay. Enough. I’m getting out of the middle of this one. Your rental car is out in the lot. It’s the red Buick, the keys are in it. Give me a call later and we’ll see about meeting up.” He smiled at Mary Ellen. “If you want to.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Antonio went to stand on the balcony that overlooked the lake. Smoke had really done him a favor finding this place. His friend owned the resort and luckily the most expensive cabin had been available for the weekend. It was way too big for just the two of them, but that didn’t matter. It was perfect. It stood in its own secluded little cove with an amazing view of the lake. It felt like they were completely isolated from the rest of the world, but it was only a few minutes back into the main resort area.

  Antonio knew there was a restaurant there and Smoke had told him there’d be live music tonight. He’d spoken to Jack yesterday and he’d said that he and his wife Emma would be there tonight, as would Pete and his wife, Holly, and Nate and his fiancée, Lily. He smiled. They were all ahead of him on their life’s journey. They’d already found their woman and managed to persuade her to spend her life with him. He’d found Mary Ellen, but he knew he needed to convince her that he was for real before he could ask her to spend her life with him. He hoped this weekend would help his cause. He’d been uncertain about bringing her here; he wanted her all to himself, but he wanted her to meet the guys, too. It was about making her a part of his life, and about letting her know that he wanted her to be a big part of it—the most important part. He hoped she’d understand. He’d thought about taking her to meet his parents, but that was a long way to go just for a weekend. He still planned to take her, but she might think this was too soon and he’d want more than a weekend anyway.

  He turned as Mary Ellen came out to join him. “This place is spectacular,” she said with a smile. “Thank you.”

  He shook his head. “Thank you for agreeing to come. I’m so happy I get to enjoy this beautiful place with my beautiful woman.”

  She smiled at him uncertainly.

  “What don’t you like about what I just said?”

  She shrugged. “Your woman?”

  He nodded vigorously. “That’s what I want you to be.”

  She stared out at the lake, but didn’t say anything.

  “You don’t believe me?”

  She shrugged. “I kind of do.” She came to him and leaned on the railing beside him. “It’s weird. I’ve known you all this time, but never really knew you at all. It’d be easier if I could believe that I had you all wrong.” She turned to look him in the eye. “But I didn’t, did I?”

  He bit the inside of his lip while he considered how he could best answer. He wanted to be honest; that was most important, but he wanted her to understand him. “In some ways, no. You know who I’ve been, you know how I’ve lived my life.” He shrugged. “I can’t tell you I’m ashamed of any of it. I had fun. I did no harm. I’ve always been honest.”

  She nodded and drew in a deep breath. “I know. I’m not judging you. I don’t have a problem with any of it. I think my problem stems from the way I saw you, not from the way you were.”

  He gave her a puzzled look. “I’m not sure I want to hear the answer, but how did you see me?”

  “I thought you were shallow. I thought you were superficial. I’m sorry. I judged you by your lifestyle. You went with so many women—but only incredibly attractive ones. You obviously weren’t drawn to them for their personalities.”

  He chuckled. “Some of them were very nice people.”

  She dug him in the ribs with her elbow. “I’m sure they were, but you know what I mean. It seemed to me that you were all about the things that don’t really matter in life, at least not to me. You were interested in looks and material things.”

  He pursed his lips. He didn’t want to interrupt her to defend himself, but it was hard to hold his tongue.

  “I mean, everything about you says you’re wealthy and you like to spend your money on the finer things in life. Things that look good and cost a lot and … I don’t know. Status symbols.” She turned to look him in the eye. “I thought that was what you were all about and it’s totally not what I’m about.”

  He blew out a sigh. “What was your life like growing up?”

  She shrugged. “Normal, I guess.”

  He smiled. “I think the way I grew up was normal, too, because to me it was. What does normal mean to you?”

  She cocked her head to one side. “To me, it means middle-class, suburban, down-to-earth kind of living and good old-fashioned values. I grew up knowing you have to work hard to achieve anything in life. And whatever you do achieve, you appreciate and you’re proud of.” She gave him a puzzled look. “I’m not ashamed of where I come from. I’m proud of it.”

  He smiled. “And so you should be. I just wanted you to think about it a little. See, to me, the normal of growing up was being wealthy, living on two continents. Having a big extended family who are also wealthy, who work hard and reap the rewards. It was never down-to-earth living, but I was brought up on good old-fashioned values.” He hesitated, wondering how he could make her see what he meant. “My point is that I grew up believing that having the best of everything is normal. And being the best at things is normal, too. When you think about how I’ve lived my life, you’ll see that I’ve lived according to my normal. I like to have fun, and I have the means to have whatever kind of fun I want to. I only want the best.” He shrugged. “Going out with lots of women was fun. In the circles I move in there are lots of women who are just out for a good time. Again, I only wanted the best. It may not have seemed like I was living any good old-fashioned values to you, but I was. As I said earlier, I never made any promises. I always made my intentions clear. I truly am a man of my word.”

  She gave him a grudging smile. “I can see that now, but looking at it from the outside, can you see how it looked to me?”

  “Of course I can. I know most people see me that way—as shallow and arrogant. It didn’t matter to me until now. I don’t care what people think of me.” He turned to face her. “But I care what you think. I want you to know who I am, in my heart. I want you to learn to believe in me. I want you to trust me and know my intentions are real.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “I think it’s a little too soon for all of that.”

  He frowned. Did she mean it was too soon to trust him or too soon to talk about his intentions? It didn’t really matter which. He’d just have to keep showing her, keep proving to her that he was for real.

  She pushed away from the railing and smiled. “It’s not too soon for lunch, though, is it? I’m starving. Do you want to take a walk into the resort? There was a restaurant on the little town square. I’d love to sit out on the deck over the water.”

  He smiled. She wanted to leave all the serious talk and get on with their weekend? That was fair. He took hold of her hand and led her back inside. “Let’s go eat, then. And afterward, what would you like to do? We can rent a boat, go horseback riding, go for a hike, or ride four-wheelers ...”

  “I prefer boats and hikes, but if you want to go for something with four legs or four wheels, I’ll give it a try.”

  He chuckled. “I’m happier on two legs or in a boat, also. I just wanted to give you all the options I know of.”

  “Thanks.” She let them out of the cabin and he closed the door beh
ind them. “If we’re going to be doing things together, you should probably know that I’m not overly adventurous. I’ll try things if you want to do them, but if it’s down to me I’ll be happy going for a walk or sitting and talking over a glass of wine.”

  He smiled. “Or a Margarita?”

  She laughed. “How did you know that?”

  He tapped the side of his nose. “I pay attention.”

  ~ ~ ~

  Mary Ellen stared out at the lake and drew in a deep breath. “This place is even more beautiful than I pictured it.”

  Antonio nodded. “It’s a good place. I haven’t been here in far too long, but if you like it, we can start coming up on the weekends, maybe get ourselves a cabin.”

  Mary Ellen looked at him. He meant rent a cabin when they came, right? Not get a vacation home here like Cam and Piper had. She didn’t get chance to ask him to explain as a guy approached their table.

  “Antonio! It’s good to see you; the guys said you were coming this weekend.”

  Mary Ellen liked the guy immediately. Antonio stood to shake his hand and then wrapped him in his customary hug. “Ben! It’s good to see you. I’d like to introduce you to my girlfriend, Mary Ellen.”

  Ben smiled and shook her hand. “It’s nice to meet you. Welcome. How do you like the cabin?”

  She smiled. “It’s beautiful. I love the whole resort. It’s a credit to you.”

  “Thank you.” The way Ben smiled, she could tell the compliment meant a lot to him—and so it should. The resort was perfect in her eyes. From the wonderful cabin they were staying in, to the amazing scenery, to the deck where they were sitting over the water, Mary Ellen had already fallen in love with the place. “I can’t really stop and chat right now—we’re busy—but you guys are coming out tonight, aren’t you?”

  Antonio raised an eyebrow at her and Mary Ellen nodded. “We are. I’m looking forward to it.”

  “Good, I’ll catch up with you then. The whole gang will be here, and I’m taking the night off so Charlie and I can have dinner with everyone.”

  Antonio grinned at him. “I’m happy everything worked out for the two of you.”

  Ben smiled. “Thanks, we got there in the end.” He turned to Mary Ellen. “I’ll introduce you to my wife later.”

  “Great. I’ll look forward to it.” Mary Ellen smiled as she watched him walk away. “He seems nice. Is he one of the guys you went to college with?”

  “No, but he grew up here with one of them—Pete.” He chuckled. “You’ll probably like Pete the best.”

  “Oh, and why’s that?”

  He chuckled again. “Because I drive him nuts. He’s like you, he’d rather plan than be spontaneous. He’s organized and practical. He’s the realist while his partner Jack is more of the idea man.”

  Mary Ellen smiled. “I’m sure I’ll like them both.”

  “I hope you’ll like them all—and their wives.”

  “Are they all married now?”

  “Jack’s married to Emma, who’s a real sweetheart, and they have a baby girl—Isabel. I haven’t met her yet; I can’t wait.”

  Watching his face, Mary Ellen had to smile. He looked genuinely excited at the thought of meeting a baby.

  “Pete is married to Holly,” he continued, “and Nate is engaged to Lily. I haven’t met her yet, but I’m curious to.”

  “And why’s that?”

  He met her gaze and a smile played on his lips. “If I’m honest, I’m curious to know what kind of woman could tame him. He was always something of a ladies’ man.”

  Mary Ellen smiled. She was curious to meet Lily now, too; she wouldn’t mind picking her brain about how it felt to date a guy who was known to play the field—and not only that, but how she’d navigated going from dating to engaged. She looked out at the lake again. Was it really a possibility that she and Antonio might go down that road? Who knew? It was far too early to tell.

  After they’d eaten, they walked back to the cabin to collect the rental car. The resort was busy, and there were no boats available for the afternoon, so they’d booked one for the next day and were going out for a hike this afternoon.

  “Do you know where you’re going?” she asked as he pulled out of the resort and headed east.

  “I do. The guys have a big development up on the other end of the lake. Smoke told me about some good hiking trails up there. I thought we could have a look around the place and then go for our walk.”

  “Great.” She liked that he seemed to know his way around out here, even though he hadn’t visited in years.

  When they arrived at the resort at Four Mile Creek, Mary Ellen got out of the car and looked around. “I think I love it over here even more,” she said with a smile. There was a big modern lodge and newer houses, some of them right down on the water’s edge.

  “I had a feeling you would. You might be a down-to-earth Midwestern girl, but your taste is more modern, right?”

  She nodded. “I guess it is.”

  He put his arm around her shoulders and tucked his thumb under her chin and tilted her head, so she was looking into his eyes. “I already know you so well.”

  “It seems you do.” It felt good that he did.

  “If we get a place here, we should look at the ones on the water.”

  She narrowed her eyes at him, wondering if he’d explain what he meant. He could only mean rent one, couldn’t he?

  He shrugged and gave her a mischievous smile. “Are you ready to walk?”

  She nodded.

  “And what’s it to be? Do you want to take a trail, or do you want to look around the shopping plaza first?”

  She smiled through pursed lips. If he knew her so well, he should already know the answer to that.

  He nodded and started walking her past the lodge to what looked like a little town square—there was even a clock tower overlooking the main area and a little café with a terrace outside. She loved it, and she loved that he really did know her.

  “Did you know this is where Laura has her store?”

  “Oh. I think I did, but I hadn’t put two and two together.”

  “Do you want to go see if she’s there?”

  “Sure, why not.” She liked Laura, and if they were visiting with people, it’d be nice to see a familiar face.

  Antonio stopped when they reached the jewelry store and took his time browsing the window display. Mary Ellen loved looking at jewelry, though this was way out of her range. Laura had become a big name in the last few years, and her work carried the price tags to go with it.

  “What’s your favorite stone?” asked Antonio.

  She shrugged. She liked them all and she didn’t want him getting any ideas about buying her something—at least, not from here.

  He gave her a stern look. “You have to tell me, otherwise it will be a surprise, and I already know you don’t like those.”

  She shook her head. “You don’t need to get me anything.”

  “I know, but I want to. Can I?” He held her gaze. It felt like he was asking other, bigger questions, too. Did she trust him? Would she allow him to do something nice for her? Did she have hang-ups about money? She looked back into his big brown eyes, and all she could see in them was that same care and concern she’d seen that first night at Molly’s.

  What the hell? “Yes, if you want to. Thank you.”

  His face relaxed into a smile and he cupped her face between his hands and landed a kiss on her lips. “Thank you.” He turned back to the window display. “Not a ring, not just yet.” She sucked in a sharp breath, but he just shot her a mischievous smile. “I’ve seen you wear earrings, and a necklace sometimes, but never a bracelet. Don’t you like them?”

  She shrugged. “I do, but I don’t have any.”

  “A bracelet, then?”

  “Whatever you like.” It felt weird. She’d like whatever he got her; in fact, that was an understatement. She’d treasure whatever h
e got her—forever.

  He studied the display for a few more moments. “Does anything grab you? Do you see anything you want?”

  She shook her head. There was a thin silver chain, that looked like it might cost less than anything else, but she knew he’d be onto her if she suggested that. “Surprise me?”

  He chuckled. “But you don’t like surprises.”

  “I don’t mind them, especially when I don’t have to prepare for them or pack accordingly.”

  He smiled and took her hand and led her inside.

  The girl behind the counter greeted them with a smile. “Good afternoon. Can I help you with anything?”

  “Good afternoon. Is Laura here?”

  “I’m sorry, she’s not. Can I take a message for her?”

  “That’s fine, Maria. We’ll see her this evening.”

  Mary Ellen wondered if he knew the girl, but then she noticed her name tag.

  “While we’re here, though, could we see tray thirty-three from the front window?”

  “Of course.” Maria got her keys out and went to fetch the tray for them.

  Mary Ellen gave him a puzzled look. She’d been looking at tray thirty-two and had assumed he was, too. That tray was full of link bracelets. The others were fancier with precious stones.

  Maria came back and set the tray on the counter in front of them. Mary Ellen’s eyes widened. They were some serious bracelets! She looked at him, but Antonio just smiled and pointed at one. “Could we see that?”

  Mary Ellen shook her head slightly. It wasn’t a bracelet, it was a cuff—encrusted with diamonds, sapphires, rubies, and emeralds. It was obscene! Ridiculously, beautifully obscene.

  Maria took it out and smiled at her. “Would you like to try it?”

  Mary Ellen looked at him and he nodded hopefully.

  She held out her wrist and Maria fastened it on her. It was beautiful. She loved it, but what had she said to him about not being into material things? She looked at him uncertainly and he smiled. “It’s perfect, we’ll take it.”

  Mary Ellen cringed, dreading hearing how much it cost.