Love Out of Focus

by Rebecca Connolly

  Besides, she wanted to hear his voice again.

  He picked up after two rings. “Hi,” he murmured sleepily, his voice rough, but she could hear the smile.

  She smiled back. “Hi.”

  There was silence for a few seconds, and then she heard rustling from Hunter’s side. “So … ,” he drawled suggestively, “what are you wearing?”

  Mal burst out laughing and pulled her covers up under her chin. “Flannel pants and a high school T-shirt,” she answered, trying to match his tone.

  His low laugh rumbled in her ears. “That is so sexy.”

  She snickered and then sighed. “I’m sorry. I really wanted to spend tonight with you.”

  “Oh yeah?” Hunter replied, his tone pointed and amused.

  “Not like that!” she protested, drawing another low laugh from him. “You know what I mean.”

  He exhaled audibly. “I do. And I’m sorry too. But I am glad you spent time with your cousins.”

  “Me too, actually. They aren’t like the other girls.”

  He made an amused sound. “No, they aren’t. Did you think they were?”

  Mal sighed and made a face. “I don’t know. No, I guess not.”

  “Did you have fun?” he asked quietly.

  “Yeah.”

  “You sound surprised.”

  She smiled as she thought about it. “I am. It’s been years. Literally, at least ten. But tonight, we watched our same favorite Disney movies, Little Mermaid and Sleeping Beauty, and we laughed at all the same parts we used to, and … I don’t know … I forgot how much I like them.”

  That seemed to satisfy him. Then he asked, “So why’d you come if you didn’t know you liked them?”

  “Money,” she said bluntly, feeling a hint of shame. “Opportunity. And I remembered being kids together, and we had a ball back then. I couldn’t say no to that. To her.”

  “I’m glad for that, Mal,” he told her softly, and again, she could hear him smiling. “I can’t tell you how much. Whatever it was that convinced you to come, I’m … I’m glad.”

  Mal closed her eyes. “Me too,” she finally answered, trying to keep her voice calm.

  Neither of them said anything for a few moments.

  “I miss you,” Hunter groaned petulantly at last.

  Mal snickered softly. “You saw me three hours ago,” she reminded him.

  “Too long,” he grunted. “I miss you.”

  Mal didn’t know what to say. Did she tell him the truth? Did she play it off and back away from the tension she was feeling?

  “Mal?”

  She swallowed hard. “I miss you too,” she finally whispered as something in her chest burst and stole her breath.

  Somehow, Hunter knew. She could hear it in the way he exhaled, could imagine him smiling in the dark, like she was.

  “Good night, baby,” he said, his voice a caress. “Sleep tight.”

  She looked up at the ceiling, shaking her head. “Good night.”

  She hung up, set the phone on her nightstand, and curled into a ball on her side. A small squeal escaped her, and she grinned into her fisted hand, burying her face.

  Where in the world was Mallory Hudson, and what had happened to her?

  Chapter 14

  A wedding rehearsal always seemed like a weird idea in Hunter’s mind. How many times could you mess up walking down an aisle?

  Apparently several.

  He was on his fourth time going down with Caroline, who had long since stopped grinning and was now muttering things that kept him relaxed.

  “You guys are naturals!” Jenna called from behind.

  “I’ve never felt less natural in my entire life,” Caroline grumbled, blowing hair out of her face.

  “At least they let you take your shoes off.”

  She tilted her head in consideration. “True. But we’re still walking like it’s a funeral. Can’t we just quickstep it?”

  “I dare you to try.”

  She glared up at him. “Don’t do that. Then we’d have to do this again when we’re obviously the best ones in this whole party, and then I won’t get to help a certain someone get ready for a certain something.”

  Hunter looked down at her in surprise, caught her warning look, and swallowed. “Right. Fourth time’s the charm, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Do you want them to go slower?” Grace called from her place at the front.

  “No!” Hunter and Caroline and a few others said at once.

  They were out on the lakeside gazebo, where rows of white chairs adorned with fabric and ribbon had been set up, a long roll of white linen was spread along the stone aisle, and the gazebo itself was decorated with matching ribbons, fabric, and flowers. It would all be adjusted in the morning for the wedding, but for this afternoon, it was good enough. Hunter’s crew had outdone themselves, and Jenna was beyond pleased with the results, which meant Tom was pleased, which made everyone else happy too.

  Caroline and Hunter parted at the right spot, went to their respective places at the front, and turned to watch Jenna and her dad one more time.

  The flower girls had already lost their patience and had been given permission to go off and play, so their part was skipped, which Hunter was grateful for. They’d squabbled two of the three times they’d come down the aisle, drawing things out more painfully for all of them.

  Drake looked about as happy to do this again as the rest of them and was saying things under his breath that made Jenna giggle.

  Hunter heard Tom catch his breath after one laugh and was about to tease him when he heard another laugh nearby. Mal, standing near her uncle and cousin, had heard the last comment and was now laughing behind her camera. The camera came down, and she looked at the display screen, laughter still on her face.

  His breath caught, and he had nothing to tease Tom about.

  Mal looked up at him, then turned back to plan angles with Taryn and Dan, who would be doing the pictures during the ceremony. Mal had been informed she would be sitting with the family during that time, which made her smile but also left her flustered. As much as she liked her assistants, she was a control freak with her projects, which was pretty endearing, Hunter thought.

  She’d been her usual sweet and mischievous self at the sunrise shoot this morning and more cuddly than normal, which didn’t bother him one bit. They’d talked about their childhoods, which was a revelation. Mal was very open with him about the death of her parents and moving to Iowa, living and working on her grandfather’s farm, living in a small town. She’d overcome a lot of obstacles and skeptics to become what she was today, a world-class photographer with high prospects. No farm girl from Iowa, in their minds, could do that.

  But one had.

  Hunter didn’t have as many stories to share with her, having grown up all along the East Coast without any difficulty or objections to his future, but he and his cousins had managed to get into their fair share of scrapes over the years. He and Deke alone had caused a dozen hospital trips for themselves and the girls, but his older cousins were just as vicious, only sneakier about it. The McIntyre family was not exactly shy and retreating, especially not around each other.

  Mal had been surprised at some of their adventures. Hunter was so reserved and careful, she said, so how could he have been reckless or come from a family like that?

  How indeed?

  He’d thought about that, wondering how he had become the man he was now. Was it something he’d had to prove to himself? That he was to be taken seriously and not just because of his family name and fortune? It had worked, whatever it was. He was still the same person with his family, but he rarely opened up for anyone else.

  Until Mal.

  “Aunt Cady, you can’t cry now!” he heard Mal say with a laugh, slipping an arm around her aunt in the front row. “It’s the rehearsal!”

  Her aunt dabbed a tissue at her heavily lined eyes and sniffed. “I’ll cry if I want to cry, Mallory Jo. I’ll be crying a
ll day tomorrow; think of this as a makeup test.”

  Mal grinned and shook her head, and so did Lucas, standing at the end of the line. “Mama, you’re a goddess and you know it,” he called.

  Cady smiled broadly at him. “Baby boy, you got something brown on your nose.”

  Caroline and Jenna chortled, and the minister shook his head with a grin.

  “Right, back to work,” he said over the general conversation. “Mr. Hudson, you give your daughter away …”

  “She’s away,” he said, releasing her and holding his hands up in surrender.

  Jenna rolled her eyes. “Nice, Daddy.”

  “ … and go join your wife,” the minister continued as if nothing had happened.

  Drake did so, giving Mal a quick peck on the head as she slid past to take more pictures.

  Hunter did not come from a particularly demonstrative family, and he knew Mal was not a hugger generally, but the warm affection from her aunt, uncle, and cousins fascinated him. They were loud but loving, and though they had not seen Mal in ten years, they treated her as if she’d never left, and from her accounts, they never made her feel guilty about it. And now, seeing Mal interact with them, he wondered whether this wasn’t some part of her nature too, something she’d forgotten. Mal grinned at her uncle and then went back to business behind her camera.

  “Jenna and Tom, you say your vows,” the minister said, peering over his spectacles as he read the order of events.

  “Blah blah blah, I love you, et cetera,” Tom said, making Jenna grin.

  “Exactly,” praised the minister. “I say my spiel, and yadda yadda yadda, you are man and wife, kiss the bride.”

  Tom made a show of dipping Jenna and kissing her, which earned some whoops and hollers from the rest.

  The minister chuckled and waited for them to set themselves to rights. “And I present you as the mister and missus. Wait for applause, and down the aisle with you.”

  Tom and Jenna marched their way down. Hunter offered his arm to Caroline, and they followed. Mal snapped a picture of them, and Hunter cast a wink at her that earned him a scolding look. The rest of the group followed perfectly, and they all held their breath and waited to be dismissed.

  “All right, y’all,” Jenna finally said over them all with the help of a whistle from Tom. “Thanks for your patience. Dinner’s on your own or at the lodge. Boys, you got stag night later; I guess a text will be going out with details. Anyone brings a stripper near my man, I will beat you with a tire iron.”

  That was met with some chuckles, and Hunter noticed some of the girls looked ashamed.

  “Tomorrow morning we all have breakfast at nine with the rest of the family members that are coming in for the wedding,” Jenna continued, holding Tom closer. “You all need to be there. We turn in phones after that. You can pick them up when you leave the reception for the night.”

  Some of the group grumbled, but Hunter actually didn’t mind that. Tom and Jenna had thought of everything for the security of their wedding, and it should work. Wedding guests would turn in their phones when they arrived at the resort before they were shown to the venue, which should not prove to be an obstacle, as everyone who had been invited knew about their wish for privacy. His only concern would be keeping track of Mal throughout the day with all the running around they would both be doing, but so long as he stayed close, it shouldn’t be a problem.

  But when the wedding was over, when Jenna and Tom left for their mystery honeymoon, when everyone started going back to their lives …

  What was the plan then?

  “Okay, dismissed!” Tom called out, cupping his hands over his mouth.

  People began dispersing, and Hunter looked for Mal but couldn’t find her. Caroline saw him and took pity on him.

  “She’s headed over to her cottage,” she told him. “I’m bringing things over to help her get ready, and then I’ll take her stuff back to the Hen House for tonight. You pick her up at six thirty, all right?”

  Hunter gave her an assessing look, then sighed. “Take care of her, okay?”

  Caroline reared back. “Tonight? Oh, buddy, you better take care of yourself. She is going to knock you off your feet.”

  He smiled, then said, “No, I mean after. Tonight, at the house.”

  Caroline’s expression softened, and she patted Hunter’s arm. “I gotcha. Rest easy, Hunter. I’ll take care of our girl.”

  He swallowed a lump that had formed and nodded, turning to go back to his truck.

  Tonight was going to be special for them; he could feel it. It might be the last night they had together before the real world took them back. He wasn’t letting her go, he knew that much, but where did she stand?

  Where did they stand?

  “Mallory Hudson, if that man does not want to eat you with hot fudge and a spoon, I am checking him for a pulse.”

  Mal teetered on the heels that had been forced upon her. They weren’t especially tall or crazy; in fact, they were perfectly Mal’s style, if more strappy. Mal was just ungainly and uncoordinated and the tiniest bit nervous.

  “Seriously, girl, come look at yourself,” Caroline insisted, waving her toward the mirror on the back of the closet door. Mal shook her head and fumbled with the jewelry Caroline had brought, looking for something that might match.

  Caroline heaved a sigh, then grabbed Mal’s arm and yanked her toward the mirror. “I said come look, and I meant come look!” she ordered.

  Mal glanced up, and her eyes went wide at the sight of herself.

  While she had been self-conscious when the little black dress had first come out, now that it was on, it looked fantastic. It fit her absolutely perfectly without being tight and flattered what little figure she had. The material was light and flowed while still clinging to her, and the halter top left her feeling secure even with the plunging V-neck. She’d never been grateful for not being particularly well-endowed before, but it was ideal for this look, and her waist looked even smaller than normal thanks to the ruches and silver ribbons there.

  Her legs looked long and fit, which was a bizarre experience for her, and thankfully, Caroline had given her a dress with a skirt that hit just above her knees. Anything shorter and Mal would have vetoed it. It swished and twirled in a subtle yet fun way, and for a night of dancing with Hunter, she was all for that.

  “Oh my … ,” Mal managed, unable to find the right words to describe it.

  Caroline squealed. “I knew the dress was perfect. You look like a jazz goddess. What do you think about the hair and makeup?”

  Mal hadn’t even noticed. But when she looked, it was impossible to not notice. Her hair was perfectly curled in a ’40s style, gathered and pulled and pinned to the side—the most perfect chignon ever. Caroline had done a beautiful job on her makeup, giving her a smoky eye that made the green of her irises really pop, foundation and blush for a cleaner complexion, and a dusty-rose lip color to sealed it all.

  As arrogant as it sounded in her head, Mal would have to agree with Caroline on this one: she looked like a million bucks. There were no words for this. She met Caroline’s eyes in the mirror and gaped, which made her cousin grin and nod.

  “And I know what to do for your jewelry,” Caroline announced, going over to the box and bringing some things over. She handed Mal some small silver earrings that were a simple line of five black and silver rhinestones that dangled below her earlobe. Subtle, but with a statement.

  “Nice,” Mal said, smiling for the first time.

  Caroline chuckled low in her throat. “No, this is nice.”

  She draped a necklace around Mal’s throat and fastened it in the back. Mal swallowed in surprise. The necklace matched the earrings except for one detail: the chain on which the matching pendant hung formed a Y so long the pendant sat squarely in the center of her deep neckline, above the skin of her exposed chest. Mal squeaked out some noise of protest, but it only made Caroline grin more.

  “Just enough to draw the eye,” Carol
ine said quietly. “And with enough flair to kick a man in the stomach.”

  She patted Mal’s hip affectionately. “My work here is done! I’ve got your overnight bag, and I claim privilege of being your stylist tomorrow too.” She hefted the bag over her shoulder and gave Mal a serious look in the mirror.

  Mal laughed and ran her hands over her front. “With skills like this? You’re hired.”

  Caroline winked at her. “Go get ’em, tiger.” She clicked her tongue and left.

  Five minutes later, there was a knock on the front door. Mal’s heart leaped into her throat, and her palms started to sweat. Somehow she made her way to the door without tripping and hesitated long enough to inhale and exhale, then opened the door.

  Hunter looked as perfect as ever. His scruff, which would come off for the wedding, was impeccably tempting; his hair was less perfect than normal, which was somehow more perfect; and he was dressed to kill. A simple pair of black trousers and a white button-down shirt with no tie, sleeves rolled back, and open at the throat.

  He was every woman’s fantasy. And he was staring at her with wide eyes and parted lips.

  “I feel shockingly underdressed,” he finally said as he studied her up and down, his voice rough.

  Mal blushed and looked down at herself. “I should change,” she murmured awkwardly.

  “No, you should not,” he insisted, forcing her to look up at him. He smiled softly. “You look beautiful. You always look beautiful.”

  Her cheeks flamed again. “Hunter …”

  He exhaled a laugh, shaking his head. “Mallory, I’m having trouble catching my breath here, so give me a second.”

  Mal felt a smile tickle at the corner of her lips. “One Mississippi … ,” she drawled.

  Hunter met her eyes with a grin and shook his head again. “There’s my girl.” He reached for her hand and gave her another thorough look over. With a heavy exhale, he said, “I’m way out of my league tonight, but I enjoy swinging for the fences.”

  “Out of your league.” Mal scoffed, her fingers curling instinctively over his. “Please. Caroline insisted I wear this tonight, and I feel ridiculous.”

  “Caroline is my new favorite person after you,” Hunter said. “She knows what she’s doing.”