Kissing her had been amazing, but he’d known it would be.
And now he had an afternoon at the beach with her to look forward to. He couldn’t wait to spend more time with her, to get to know her, to kiss her and maybe…
No, he couldn’t let his mind go there. Not yet, anyway.
His mind might not be ready to go there, but the rest of him certainly was.
“Down, boy,” he said out loud, as if his cock listened to him.
He was wandering into uncharted territory where she was concerned. Usually, he didn’t spend much time overthinking his interactions with women. They happened somewhat organically. But being with Gigi required thought and intention. Except when it came to kissing her. He hadn’t planned to do that, but when she came to the door looking like a goddess in her crop top and boy shorts, he’d acted without thinking.
Thankfully, she hadn’t minded and had responded in a way that accounted for his current agitated state.
His phone was full of texts from “friends” in the city who were wondering when he’d be back in town, and he’d had a bunch of Tinder matches from women on the island. But he wasn’t interested in pursuing any of them. Not when he had the alluring goddess known as Gigi Gibson to keep him entertained.
He couldn’t wait until tomorrow afternoon.
Chapter 7
Quinn and Mallory stayed at their reception until all the guests had departed, except for her father and stepmother, Big Mac and Linda McCarthy.
“I’m sure you kids want to get on with the wedding night,” Big Mac said, grimacing.
Mallory laughed. “What I’d love more than anything is a glass of sparkling cider with my parents on the porch before we say good night.”
Big Mac smiled at his daughter. “We can certainly make that happen. We’ll get the cider and meet you out there.”
After he and Linda had walked away to speak to the bartender, Mallory looked up at her handsome husband. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course I don’t.”
“I wanted a minute with them to thank them again for this amazing day. I wouldn’t have thought I wanted the big production, but this was…”
“It was magical.”
She put her arms around his waist, inside his suit coat, and rested her head on his chest. “Yes, it was.”
“My bride was the most beautiful bride in the history of beautiful brides.”
She laughed again. She did that a lot with him. “And you’re not the slightest bit biased, right?”
“Not at all. It’s just true.”
“Thank you for this beautiful second chance. After Ryan died, I honestly believed that part of my life was over until I met you and found a whole new love.” Her first husband had died suddenly at twenty-seven, a lifetime ago.
“You don’t have to thank me, sweetheart. I was a wreck of a man until I met you the day we came upon that accident and found out we had so much in common.”
“That feels like a million years ago when you consider what’s happened since then.”
As they talked, they swayed to the instrumental music the cleanup crew had playing.
“Best year of my life, hands down,” he said.
“Me, too.”
“Did you check on Jared and Lizzie?” Mallory asked.
“I texted with him. They took the baby home with them tonight, and he’s calling in an investigator to find the mom tomorrow.”
“What an awful situation, especially after what they’ve been through recently.”
“I know. I’m glad Coop is there to support them. My baby brother is all grown up.”
“He’s a sweetheart.”
Big Mac returned with a bottle of cider and four glasses. “Ready for a nightcap?”
“We’re ready,” Mallory said, taking Quinn’s hand to follow Big Mac and Linda to the back porch.
Big Mac popped the cork and filled the four glasses, handing one to each of them. “A toast to my daughter and son-in-law. I hope you’re as happy every day as you were today.”
“I’ll drink to that,” Quinn said as they all touched glasses and took a sip of bubbly.
“A toast to my dad and extra mom,” Mallory said. “Thank you so much for this beautiful day, for convincing me to upgrade my wedding plans and for giving me the family I’ve never had but always wanted. The best thing I ever did was come to find my dad on Gansett Island.”
Her father blinked back tears as he touched his glass to hers. “After I recovered from the shock of finding out I had a daughter I never knew about, that became one of the seven best days of my life—one for my wedding day and one for each of my six kids.”
She loved being one of his six kids, even if she hadn’t met him until she was in her late thirties. They’d done their best ever since to make up for the time they’d lost.
“A toast to my spare daughter,” Linda said, “and new son-in-law. If you’d asked me before we met you, Mallory, if our family was complete, I would’ve said yes, it was. But you’ve completed us so beautifully, and we love you very much.”
“Thank you,” Mallory said over a huge lump in her throat. “You’re the key to it all, Linda. If you hadn’t supported both of us the way you did, things could’ve turned out very differently.”
“My Lin is the best of the best,” Big Mac said. “And with that, we’re going to let you newlyweds have some time to yourselves.” He put down his glass and held out his arms to her.
Mallory went to him as if she’d been doing it all her life. Tears filled her eyes as her dad wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly. “Love you so much,” she whispered. In her wildest dreams about her missing father, she never could’ve imagined the reality of Big Mac McCarthy, the kindest, sweetest, funniest, most loving dad there ever was.
“Love you more,” he said.
She hugged Linda while Quinn hugged Big Mac, and then they delivered their bottle and glasses to one of the trays waiting for cleanup and walked to the foyer.
“I meant to ask if you’ve heard any more from Mac and Maddie,” Mallory said.
“I talked to him an hour ago, and mother and babies are doing well,” Big Mac said. “They’re going to keep the babies for a few days to monitor their breathing. Hopefully, they’ll be home within a week or two.”
“I can’t wait to see them when we get back from our trip,” Mallory said. “What a day for the McCarthy family.”
“Indeed,” Big Mac said. “It’s not every day that we acquire three new members.”
“Thank goodness for that,” Linda said. “My blood pressure couldn’t handle it.”
They shared a laugh before Big Mac put his arm around Linda. “Take me home to bed, my love.”
Mallory realized he was more than a little tipsy, but happier than she’d ever seen him—and that was saying something. He was the happiest person she’d ever met.
“I’m making breakfast in the morning for everyone,” Linda said over her shoulder. “Come by before you leave if you’d like.”
“We will,” Mallory said.