Chapter Eighteen

Dawson

Man… that was something else.

It wasn't just the way Macy felt on my cock, or the way she sucked me so deep while playing with my balls. Let's face it, she wasn't to know oral sex wasn't really Stevie's thing. At least, giving it wasn't. I never minded, but the thought of it was something that had fueled a few of my dreams over the years, and definitely my more recent ones about Macy. Even so, that wasn't it. No matter how good that felt, that wasn't it. Not in isolation. Neither was the way she came, pulling on my hair and screaming into my mouth, thrashing so wildly against me. It wasn't that it all felt like a dream come true, either… even if it did. No. It was more than that.

It was the sum of all that, and our love.

I know she felt the same way, too. I could see it in her eyes as she broke our kiss, gazing in to mine, and then, as we kissed again, both of us regaining our breath and coming back down from that immaculate high, that was when I knew I'd never stop wanting her… or needing her. And I'd sure as hell never stop loving her.

"I must be getting heavy," she says, pulling back slightly, although she keeps her hands rested on my shoulders.

"Not in the slightest."

She chuckles and I join her, raising her up and off of my cock, before lowering her to the floor, although I keep hold of her, unwilling to let her go. She doesn't seem to be in any hurry to move away and we stare at each other for a moment or two before she licks her lips and says, "Did I hurt you?"

"When?"

"Pulling your hair like that. Did it hurt?"

"No. I liked it. I liked you going kinda wild on me."

"I liked it too," she says as she shuts off the water and I look down at her, noting the slight frown touching at her eyes.

"Is something wrong?"

"Not really. It's just that, although I wish I didn't, I have to go."

"You do?"

"Yeah. I need to go back to my aunt's."

"What for?" I ask and she smiles, like I'm being foolish. It's a feeling I'm beginning to share… not for the first time. I'd assumed she'd want to stay here for as long as possible, not leave at the first opportunity.

"Because I don't have any clean clothes," she says, stating the obvious and I nod my head, realizing the error of my ways. "And unfortunately, although I don't usually work on Wednesdays, I have to today."

"You do?"

"Yes. Peony took a call yesterday, and one of the brides we're dealing with is asking us to move her entire seating arrangement around, with very little time to spare."

"I see," I say, unable to hide the disappointment from my voice.

"Hey…" She bends slightly, getting my attention. "I'll be back later."

"To work?"

"To be with you," she says.

"And you wanna keep doing things that way, do you?" I ask. "You wanna do your job at the apple orchard in the mornings and then come here for your shift in the afternoons?"

"Yeah, I do. I enjoy my job with Peony, and I don't wanna give it up… but if it's okay with you, I'd like to make a few changes to what I do when I'm here."

"You would?" I step back slightly, fear gripping my heart as I notice the goosebumps on her arms. "You're cold," I whisper and pull her with me out of the shower, grabbing a towel from the shelf and wrapping it around her before pulling her close in my arms. "Is that better?"

"Yes, thank you." She looks up into my eyes and I kiss her forehead, just briefly.

"What do you wanna change?" I ask, needing to know.

"I'd like to come over straight after I've finished at Peony's. You don't have to pay me any more, but I'd like to be here… with you."

Thank God for that .

I hold her closer still, unable to stop myself from smiling. "I want you to be here, too, babe… and of course I'll pay you."

That said, it feels wrong to be treating her like an employee after everything we've done. But I'm not sure how to get around that. Not yet. It's something I'll have to think about…

"I—I could bring some clothes back with me, if you want?" she says, stammering slightly, like she thinks I won't be absolutely thrilled with that idea.

"Does that mean you'll be able to stay over without having to rush back to your aunt's?"

"Yes."

"In that case, bring as many clothes as you want."

She giggles. The bells are still there, but I'm getting used to them now, and I rub my hands up and down her back, partly to dry her off, but mostly because I like it. She pulls back eventually and reaches behind me, grabbing a second towel and handing it to me.

"Shall we see if there's time for us to have our first breakfast together?"

I nod my head, grinning, and wrap the towel around my hips, taking her hand and leading her out of the bathroom and back to my bedroom. The bed's a wreck, but that's not surprising. I slept in it… at least for a few hours, and I leave Macy drying herself, and wander over to the nightstand, checking the time.

"It's seven-fifteen," I say, turning back to her.

"That's okay. As long as I leave here by eight-thirty, I should be fine."

That only gives us just over an hour, and I think we both realize that's not very long. It's not long enough for us, anyway.

"Do you want me to go grab your clothes from the other room?" I ask as Macy quickly towel-dries her hair.

She lowers the towel and looks across the bed at me. "No, it's okay. I'll just take my underwear with me and go in there to get dressed."

"Like hell you will."

I quickly search the floor, finding her bra and panties, picking them up and dumping them on the bed, before I stride into the guest bedroom, gathering up all her things and bringing them back with me.

"This all belongs in here," I say as I put it down beside her underwear. "With you… and me."

"As long as you're sure," she says, and I take her towel, dropping it to the floor and pull her into my arms.

"I'm fucking positive, Mace." I cover her lips with mine and she moans into my mouth, reaching between us to pull away my towel, her fingers dusting over my erection, before her hand settles around it. That feels so good, and I flex my hips as she moves her hand along my shaft from base to tip, over and over. "Keep doing that, and we won't get any breakfast."

"That's very tempting," she whispers, her breasts heaving, and I can tell she's torn as she searches my eyes. "Can we… Can we hold the thought on this until later, and have breakfast now?"

"Of course we can."

"Have I disappointed you?" she asks, moving closer.

"Babe… you could never disappoint me." She smiles and I join her, caressing her cheek with my fingertips. "I may go insane while you're out, just thinking about how much I want you… but you could never disappoint me."

She giggles, and I step away before I'm tempted to change her mind and make her late for work. I don't think it would take too much effort, but she seems to want breakfast, and I like the idea of us sharing yet another new experience.

I move away, across to the closet, grabbing some underwear, jeans, and a gray check shirt. When I turn back, she's standing over by the mirror, which is on the wall behind the door, frowning at herself.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"My hair's a mess. I've got a brush, but it's in my purse, which is downstairs in my locker."

"I'll go fetch it, if you like?"

"No, it's okay. I can go while you're making the breakfast." She comes back to the bed, picking up her bra.

"Sure," I murmur, watching as she puts on her underwear.

"Can I ask you something?" she says, without looking up, as she reaches for her jeans.

"You can ask me anything, babe. You know that."

She looks up now and tilts her head at me. "Are you gonna stand there all day, staring at me?"

I realize I'm still holding my clothes, and I put them down and smile across at her.

"Was that what you wanted to ask me?"

"No. I just wondered if you're planning to get dressed."

"Sorry. I got distracted."

"So I see," she says, shaking her head and chuckling at me, her eyes dropping to my hard-on. "It's easily done…"

"Yeah, it is." We both stare for a moment, taking each other in, before I realize we're running out of time. "So, what was it you wanted to ask me?"

"It's just that you seemed kinda reluctant for me to keep working with Peony. Was there a reason for that? Is it something to do with the feud between the two of you?"

I ignore my clothes, and the need to put them on, and step around the bed, joining her, and taking her hands in mine, looking down into her eyes.

"It's not a feud. It's a silence, which is almost certainly my fault. There's no hostility involved, and that's not the reason I was reluctant for you to keep your job with her."

"Then was it something to do with Stevie? Was it that she wasn't here with you all the time… and that it didn't work out between you? Was it…"

"It was nothing to do with Stevie," I say, interrupting her before she gets too deep into ideas that have nothing to do with my train of thought. "I don't know exactly why it didn't work out with Stevie, or why she went looking elsewhere. She never explained it, and I don't care anymore. I doubt it had anything to do with the fact that she and I weren't together 24/7. We worked well together when she was here, but I never felt the need for her constant presence in my life."

"Then why were you resistant?" she asks, looking up at me, like she's desperate to know.

"Because, unlike with Stevie, your constant presence feels like a necessity."

"Because you don't trust me?" she says, frowning.

Trust? Jeez… it's been one of my biggest hang-ups… one of my biggest barriers to getting involved again. Like I said to Tanner, though, I haven't even given it a second thought. What's more, I don't need to.

"No, Mace. I never thought I'd be able to trust again, but I do. I trust you completely."

"Good, because you know I'd never hurt you, don't you?"

"Yes. I don't know how I know that, but I do. It's like an instinct, and my reaction just now had nothing to do with any of that."

"What was it about, then?"

"It's just that being with you makes everything brighter. You make me feel good about myself for the first time in a very long time, and I don't wanna give that up."

"You're not. I'm only going to work with Peony for a few hours," she says.

"I know. And I get it. It wasn't that I wanted to stop you from doing something that makes you happy. It was just… just some of my insecurity creeping in. I'm sorry."

She rests her hand on my chest. "You don't need to be sorry. And you have nothing to feel insecure about."

"I know. At least, I know it when you're here." I place my hand over hers and dip my head. "I'm so in love with you, Mace. I can't believe how quickly you've turned my life around, and I guess I'm just a little scared of letting you go, now I've found you."

"You're not letting me go," she says. "I'm coming back."

"Good," I whisper, and kiss her. Deeply.

Macy's gone downstairs to fetch her hairbrush, and the coffee's still brewing, giving me a moment to mull over that brief interlude of insecurity. The last thing I wanted was to come across as a possessive idiot, although I think I may have done. I think that's why she asked her question, and that meant I had to be honest. I had to tell her how I felt, even if it meant letting her see me at my most vulnerable. She understood… thank God. Our kiss proved that, because it almost turned into something more. Again. It seems we're good at that, but we remembered just in time that we'd promised to have breakfast together, and finished getting dressed before temptation got the better of us.

I'm keeping things easy, and just fixing some toast to go with our coffee. It's not the most exciting of breakfasts, but who cares? It's the company that makes the meal special.

Macy comes back upstairs, brushing her hair, just as I pour the coffee.

"Did you realize we left the lights on downstairs last night?" she says, looking over at me.

"No… although I honestly couldn't care less."

She smiles and glances at the coffee, darting toward the bathroom. "Give me two minutes," she calls over her shoulder. I don't even get the chance to reply before she's gone, but I don't mind. I like how relaxed she is around me now, and I wait for her, smiling when she comes back into the room, empty-handed. "Sorry about that," she says, sitting at the table opposite me. "I've left my hairbrush on the shelf. Is that okay?"

"Of course it is." I offer her some toast, marveling at how perfect this feels.

"You were gonna tell me about Tanner's wedding night," she says, sipping her coffee before she butters her toast.

"Yeah. I was, wasn't it?" It feels like hours ago that I woke up with Tanner's name on my lips, but it seems Macy hasn't forgotten.

"So, what's it all about?" she asks. "What's the plan you want to put right for him?"

"It's to do with Nash."

"What about him?"

"Well… thanks to Tanner's ex, Nash is gonna have to stay with Tanner and Zara over the weekend of their wedding."

"The entire weekend?"

"Yeah, including their wedding night."

"Oh." She frowns, shaking her head. "Did his ex do that on purpose?"

"Of course she did. It's typical of Sabrina. Anything she can do to screw things up for Tanner, she'll do it."

"I don't understand her. She cheated on him more than once, so why does she keep trying to screw things up for him? She can't have loved the guy, and surely she'd welcome the freedom she gained from their divorce. It would mean she could sleep with whoever she wanted, without fear of getting caught."

"You'd have thought so, wouldn't you? And she's certainly made the most of her freedom."

"She hasn't been short of male company, then?" Macy asks, smiling slightly as she finishes her first slice of toast and takes a second.

"Not at all. But for some reason, she can't let things go with Tanner. When he and Zara first got together, Sabrina was behind Zara losing her job at the elementary school."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah. Then she threatened to apply for full custody of Nash if Tanner didn't agree to stop seeing her."

"She's jealous," Macy says with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Funnily enough, she accused Tanner of being jealous of one of her many lovers, but I think you might be right."

"Do you think she wants him back?"

"Who knows? It's not gonna happen, no matter what she wants. Tanner's in love with Zara now, and Sabrina's very much confined to his past. I know he'd be a lot happier if he and Sabrina could be more amicable about everything… or failing that, if he could have nothing whatsoever to do with her. But he can't step away from her, because of Nash."

"It must be difficult for him, and Zara, I guess, when there's so much animosity between them?"

"It is." I let my head fall into my hands, thinking through all the conversations I've had with him since he and Sabrina split up, and since Stevie left me, feeling the burden of my inadequacy weighing a little too heavy on my shoulders.

"Hey…" I feel a hand on my arm and look up to see Macy standing beside me. "What's wrong?"

I put my arms around her. "I was just thinking about how much worse it was for Tanner than it was for me. He said to me once, when I was wallowing in self pity, that I got a cleaner break than he did. Not completely clean – because Stevie left me with so many unanswered questions – but cleaner. I argued that the unanswered questions made it tough. Or maybe it was Tanner who argued that. I can't remember now, and I was probably too drunk to understand exactly what he was saying. It always seemed to me that because Stevie had fallen in love with another man, while Sabrina had left because of sex, not love, that made things easier for Tanner. But it didn't, did it? It was still hard, regardless of why they left, and I can see now that, in many ways, I was lucky compared to him. At least I never had to see Stevie again after she walked out, while he has to see Sabrina all the time. He has to meet her new lovers, deal with her games, and wrestle with the way she uses Nash as a pawn. And although I'm not gonna say he took it all in his stride, he handled it a lot better than I did."

"Maybe. But like he said, it's not a contest."

I look up into her face, then reach behind her head, pulling her down into a deep and passionate kiss. She falls into my lap, turning her body to face me, and I hold her there, devouring her sweet lips. She sighs, twisting her fingers in my hair, and I skim my hand down the side of her body, pausing over the swell of her breast, then working my way over her hip, and around to her ass, pulling her onto me.

"Fuck… I want you," I growl into her mouth.

"I want you, too." She pulls back, looking up at me, her lips swollen and smiling.

"I thought we were holding the thought?"

"We are," she says, sitting up and planting a quick kiss on my lips before she stands.

"You're a tease, Macy Potter."

"And yet you love me."

"No. I'm in love with you."

"And I'm in love with you, too." She wiggles her ass at me as she walks back around the table, resuming her seat. "Now, stop beating yourself up about the past, and finish telling me about Tanner's wedding night."

"He's not gonna get one," I say, nibbling at my toast, even though I can think of several other things I'd rather be nibbling. "It's that simple. Sabrina and her latest boyfriend are going away for the weekend, so Nash has gotta stay with him and Zara."

"Did they have any plans?" she asks. "I mean, I know they weren't intending to go on honeymoon, but…"

"How did you know that?"

"Because I work for Peony… remember? She knows practically everything about their wedding plans, and she doesn't keep it a secret from me. It wouldn't be very helpful."

I nod my head. "No, of course not. Although Sabrina wasn't aware of their plans, and no doubt she thought she'd do her best to spoil their first night of wedded bliss. She probably will, too, because, with Nash in the house, there won't be a wedding night, will there? Not one worth speaking of, anyway."

"How does Tanner feel about that?" she asks.

"He says he's okay with it, and Zara's arranged for her mom to come and stay with them."

"Her mom? Doesn't that just make things worse?"

"Yes. Although that's not the end of it, because Zara's aunt had an accident a while back. She hasn't recovered very well, and Sylvia doesn't want to leave her, so she'll be staying, too."

"Heavens. Why don't they just throw a party?"

"I thought that, but Tanner maintains it'll make things easier. Sylvia and Nash get along really well, and he and Zara seem to think that'll give them more time to be alone. I gather Aunt Charlotte is quite unobtrusive since her accident, although what they think they're gonna be able to do, with his son, her mom, and her aunt in the house, God only knows."

She chuckles. "What did you have in mind to make things easier for them?" she asks, finishing her second slice of toast.

"Do you want some more?" I ask, nodding to her plate.

"I'd love some, but I'd better not."

"You're still hungry, then?"

She licks her lips seductively and leans closer. "Oddly enough, I seem to have built up an appetite."

"I can't think how that happened," I say, and she giggles, taking my hand in hers.

"Yeah, you can."

I nod my head. "I can… and the memories are gonna drive me crazy all morning."

"Me, too," she says, and I raise her hand, turning it over and kissing her palm. As I turn it back, we both notice the time on her watch. "I'll have to leave in fifteen minutes, and you haven't told me your plan yet."

"I haven't got one. Not really. I want to do something, though. Their wedding is already really understated, and that's fine. It's what they want. I think even if they had money to burn, they'd still go for something quiet. It's just that, when Tanner was telling me about Sabrina's plans, I got the feeling he wasn't just mad at her. He was disappointed about the consequences, too, and I wanna do something about that."

"Only you don't know what?"

"No."

"Could Nash come and stay here?" she asks.

"He could have done, if Zara hadn't already made plans. The wedding isn't far away now, and I think it would be difficult for them to change the arrangements she's made with her mom at this late stage."

"Yeah, it probably would." She nods her head. "Okay. What about the hotel?"

"The hotel? You think Sylvia, Charlotte and Nash should go there for the night?"

"No, silly. I think Tanner and Zara should."

"Of course. What a fabulous idea. Why didn't I think of that?" Macy looks at me like I ought to know the answer to that question and I nod my head. "I know… I'd have had to be sober first, but I'm sober now, which means I can call Chester."

"Who's Chester?" she asks.

"He owns the hotel. I'll call him later and see what he can do. It's short notice, but hopefully he'll be able to help."

"You'll also have to contact Zara's mom."

"I will?"

"Yeah. You said you wanted this to be a surprise, so someone's gonna have to pack a few things for the bride and groom, and I don't see how you can do that… unless you're planning to break into their house."

"Good point," I say with a smile, and she smiles back.

"And now… I have to go."

"Shit. Really?"

"Yeah."

"It's eight-thirty already?"

"No. It's eight-twenty-five," she says, getting to her feet and walking around the table until she's standing right beside me. "But I thought it might take a while to say goodbye."

I grab her, pulling her onto my lap again, and she holds my shoulders, leaning up as I dip my head and kiss her. I hate that this is ‘goodbye', but it's only for a few hours, and I focus on our lips and our tongues, holding her close for as long as I can, until she pulls back, both of us breathless.

"When will you be back?" I ask as she gets to her feet.

"I'm not sure. This isn't like a usual day for me. Ordinarily, I work until one, although that can drift a little, and I've even been known to stay on and have lunch with Peony from time to time… not that I'll be doing that from now on."

"Good," I say, smiling down at her.

"Today's gonna be weird, though. I could be there for two hours, or five. It depends how long we take to deal with these seating plans."

"Okay."

I stand and she steps closer, wrapping her arms around my waist and leaning against me, her forehead resting on my chest. "I'm gonna miss you," she says as I skim my hands over her back, letting them rest on her ass.

"Me too, babe. Send me a text to let me know you got to Peony's safely, will you?"

"I will, if you give me your number."

I chuckle as she pulls her phone from her back pocket, reciting my number.

"I'm gonna go," she says. "I've still gotta grab the rest of my things from my locker and if I don't make a move, I'm gonna want to kiss you again, and then I'll never leave."

"I won't mind."

"Maybe not, but I really have to go."

"I know. I'll see you later."

She lets out a slight moan, with a very sexual hint behind it, and shakes her head as she makes her way to the door, turning on the threshold and looking back at me.

"Thank you," she says.

"What for?"

"Everything we've done since last night."

"I think it should be me thanking you for that."

She smiles, then tips her head to one side. That's enough to tell me she's having doubts about something and I walk over, standing right in front of her, and take her hands in mine.

"What's wrong?"

She blinks a few times and then licks her lips, sucking in a breath before she says, "I was just wondering… was it okay?"

I shake my head, and she pulls back, or tries to… although I don't let her, moving one hand to her waist and holding her close. "Where do you think you're going?"

"To my aunt's," she says, her voice betraying her disappointment.

"Not like this." I hold her tighter still, looking into her eyes. "What we did wasn't okay, Mace. It was so much better than that. It was even better than my dreams… and my dreams have been fucking spectacular." She smiles, thank heavens, and I pull her hard against me.

"Was it better than…" Her voice fades and I know what she wants to ask, so I do it for her.

"Better than Stevie?"

She nods, but before I can say a word, she puts her hand on my chest, stopping me. "Sorry," she says. "You don't have to answer that. It was unfair of me to ask."

"No, it wasn't. It's only natural to wonder, although I'm not sure how easy it is for me to explain. You're both very different, in all kinds of ways. Just like I'm probably very different to James."

"You certainly are," she says with a wicked smile.

I chuckle and hold the back of her head, my lips hovering above hers. "I—I guess… I guess it's like tasting a really great ice cream, and thinking back to all the other great ice creams you've ever eaten before. You can't help thinking about which one might have been better. But then, you realize that's a waste of time, and you just appreciate the truly fabulous ice cream that's right in front of you."

"So I'm an ice cream?" she says, barely breathing.

"You're sweet enough," I murmur, dipping my head to kiss her. "And you're the best fucking ice cream I've ever had."

She gasps, understanding my meaning at last. "Does that mean you wanna lick me?"

"It means I wanna devour you," I growl. We're both a little breathless, but I need to say one more thing, and I kiss her briefly before I whisper, "It's not just the sex that's different, it's the things we do together, the way we are together, the way I feel about you… I don't know how else to explain myself, other than to say that if you walked away from me, I would break. Nothing that's gone before would come close to how devastated I'd be if you left me…"

"I'll never leave you," she says.

"I know. I'm just trying to explain how you make me feel, and how different you are… because if you left me, I'd do everything I could to change your mind. I wouldn't just ask why, I'd beg you to change your mind, and if you did… if you agreed, then I'd welcome you. It wouldn't matter if you did it straight away, or if you took a week, or a month, or half a lifetime, I'd be here, waiting. My door would always be open, and so would my heart, because I know I'll never stop loving you. Not even for a minute."

She leans against me, her eyes glistening. "Thank you," she whispers, smiling at me like I've just gifted her the world.

"You have nothing to thank me for… except making you late."

"I don't care." She leans up and kisses me, then pulls back, staring at my lips before she giggles for no apparent reason, and then she trots down the stairs. I stand for a moment, mesmerized, the bells still ringing in my ears, and then I stretch my arms above my head, unable to stop myself from chuckling.

Because I'm so damn happy.

I've barely had five minutes to draw breath since Macy left, and in a way, that's a good thing. I haven't been able to dwell on her absence for too much of the time.

Only every other minute.

She texted me at just after nine-thirty to say she'd arrived at Peony's. I'd already cleared away the breakfast things, tidied the kitchen, and was making the bed by that time, and I sat down on the edge to reply…

— Thanks for letting me know, babe. Hope you're okay. SILWY xx

I wasn't sure if she'd respond. She was at work, after all, but my phone beeped within seconds and I smiled down at her message.

— What on earth does SILWY mean? M xx

— It means ‘so in love with you' xx

— I've never heard of that acronym before. xx

— I just made it up, because I'm so in love with you. xx

— I adore you, you perfect man. xx

— I think we both know I'm very far from perfect, but I adore you too. xx

There was a very brief pause, and then my phone beeped again.

— I'll prove how perfect you are later. But I've gotta work now. I'll see you this afternoon. SILWYT ;) M xx

I chuckled, knowing what the addition of the ‘T' stood for, and I lay back on the mattress, staring up at the ceiling. It beggared belief that just a few days ago, I'd have been bleary-eyed, misty-headed, and swilling bourbon into my morning coffee, and yet I knew how far I'd come, and my journey was the result of falling in love with Macy. Just the thought of her made me hard, and it was easy to lie there and wallow in the memories of our first night together… until I remembered I was supposed to be making the bed, not just lying on it.

Once that was done, I cleared some space in my closet, knowing Macy would be bringing some clothes back with her, and then I contacted Chester. It took a while to tie him down, and then I had to explain the situation, make sure he knew to keep it quiet, and make all the arrangements, so there would be champagne, flowers and chocolates waiting in the honeymoon suite, which was thankfully available. I gave him my credit card details, and felt a lot better, knowing I'd finally done the right thing… with a little help from Macy, of course.

Then, all I had to do was contact Zara's mom.

I wasn't sure how to go about that. Asking Tanner was out of the question, and I didn't even know exactly where she lived, other than in Northern Vermont, which was hardly helpful. I was wondering if I'd have to involve Nash in my little subterfuge, when I suddenly had a thought, and I placed another call.

That one took even longer. There were more explanations to be made, but in the end, I got what I wanted. Not Sylvia's number exactly, but an agreement to help find it… and that was a start.

I made it down to the bar by eleven, and got set up in time to open thirty minutes later, although I don't know why I bothered, really. We've had very few customers today. The weather's obviously responsible for that, but according to Maggie, it's definitely not due to last. She told me there are signs of the snow melting already, and it looks like we won't have to wait until the weekend for it to warm up… which is good news. The snow might look lovely, but it's not great for business.

Being so quiet has left me with little to do, other than watch the clock, so I'm relieved when Macy gets back at just after twelve-forty-five. That's earlier than I'd feared, and as she opens the door and steps inside, the first thing I notice is that her cheeks are really rosy, which reminds me she'll have walked here from Peony's farm. The second thing I notice, as she unwraps the scarf from around her neck, her eyes fixed on mine, is that she's carrying a backpack. It's smaller than I'd like, but before I can say anything, she gives me a smile, biting on her lip, and then rushes to the back of the bar, darting through the door marked ‘private'. I'm desperate to follow her, but there's no-one else out here. Maggie and Vanessa are both in the kitchen, and despite it being quiet, we've got five customers, so I can't just abandon the place.

I don't need to worry, though. Macy returns within moments. She's wearing jeans and a pale gray t-shirt, which she must have had on under the other layers she was wearing, and she strolls over to me, gathering a couple of empty glasses on her way.

"You didn't bring very much with you," I say as she joins me behind the bar.

"I'm not moving in," she says, dumping the glasses and looking up at me.

"Not yet." She smiles, then chuckles, and I have to laugh, putting my arm around her waist and pulling her close, although I notice she's a little stiff… a little resistant.

"I spoke to my aunt about you," she says, leaning away, and I release her, surprised by her comment.

"You did? About me? Or about us?"

"Us."

"How did that go?" I ask, feeling more nervous than I would have expected.

"It went fine. Stop worrying." How does she know? I guess because she knows me so well. "I think she'd already guessed there was something going on between us."

"How? Because you stayed the night again?"

"No. We'd already talked about the fact that I might have to hunker down here if the snow got any worse." She shakes her head. "No… I imagine it was probably the smile on my face that gave me away," she says, grinning.

"You almost always have a smile on your face."

"Not like this one," she says, and my heart swells in my chest.

"And was she okay about it? About us?"

"Of course she was."

"Even though I've got a reputation for being the most miserable guy in town?" I say, and she chuckles, shaking her head.

"Except Aunt Bernie remembers how you were before. Like a lot of people around here, she knows the real you."

"Only you know the real me, babe."

Her eyes sparkle, and she shifts a little closer. "Even so, she told me you were a fair man."

"She did?"

"Yeah. Before I came for my interview. She also told me she thought I was just what you needed."

"In that case, I think we have to accept her insight. Your aunt clearly knows what she's talking about."

She giggles, leaning in to me, her breath catching in her throat as she whispers, "Is it wrong of me to want to kiss you?"

"No. Although I don't know why you're whispering. I've wanted to kiss you since you walked in the door just now." I bend my head, but she pulls back, putting some space between us.

"I don't think we should," she says, her eyes darting around the room.

"Why not? It's allowed, Macy." Her ex clearly got to her, and while I hate that thought, at least there's something I can do about it… like pull her into my arms and hold on tight. She still looks around, like she's making sure no-one's watching us, but I grab her chin in my hand, holding her still, and then I dip my head again, touching my lips to hers. To start with, I think about keeping it brief, but then I figure, why should I? I want her, and she wants me, and I don't really care who knows, so I deepen the kiss, smiling when she moans into my mouth, my tongue delving and caressing hers.

She breaks the kiss first, but that doesn't surprise me, and I'm just relieved she doesn't pull away from me. Instead, she looks up into my eyes, unable to disguise the doubt in hers.

"Are you sure that was okay?" she says, biting on her bottom lip.

I free it with my thumb and smile down at her. "Okay? You need to find a better adjective, Mace, because there's nothing about you that's okay. You're fucking amazing."

"I don't mean the kiss itself," she says, shaking her head. "I mean the fact of us kissing."

"Of course it was. Like I said, I've wanted to kiss you since you got here."

"I know. I feel the same, but we're at work, Dawson. We shouldn't…"

"Yes, we should. As often as possible." Her eyes widen, her lips parting in surprise as I pull her closer. "We can do whatever we like. It's still my place, babe… so we'll play by my rules."

She giggles, but I drown out the sound of the bells with another kiss… and this time it's a much longer one.