She looked at him for a long moment, chewing on her lip again. But he never felt anxious, never doubted for a second. Her hold on his hand was secure and sweet; he knew where her heart was.
The question was if her head was willing to follow.
“Yeah,” she finally admitted, allowing a smile to curve shyly across her perfect lips. “You’re right.”
He grinned. “I know.” He brought her hand up and kissed the back of it. “See you at dinner.” He slowly released her hand and headed for the door.
“What, you aren’t sending a car for me?” she teased, following curiously.
He half turned and gave her a look. “You said private, Mal. I can do private. In fact, I am very good at private. I may be better at private than I am at public. But you’ll have to forgive my eyes. They’ve never been very good at keeping things private.”
He winked and left the cottage, smiling at her choked laughter as he did so.
ChapterEight
Feeling better about how she was dressed for this dinner and more chipper than usual, Mal sat in a corner of the room, observing the others as they entered.
Hunter was a genius, really. One hour in her new place, and already, she felt rejuvenated. She would have to talk with Jenna tonight, just to make sure she was really okay with it. It had been so important to her to have Mal there, and this hardly seemed like an appropriate thanks.
Mal waved at her aunt and uncle as they entered and earned waves and a wink in return.
“Can I sit here?”
Mal turned in surprise to see Tom indicating the chair next to her. “Where did you come from?” she asked bluntly.
He grinned. “I was out on the terrace just there. Came in to greet Cady and Drake, but I saw you and wanted to come here first. We haven’t had a chance to get to know each other.”
Mal couldn’t help but smile back. Tom was just that guy. “Of course, please sit.”
“Thank you,” he said as he did so, leaning back casually in his seat. “So, Mal… I’m sorry. Can I call you Mal?”
She laughed and waved her hand. “Please do.”
He chuckled. “Jenna never calls you anything else, so I got used to it. It means a lot to her that you could come.”
Mal sighed and twisted her fingers. “I was stunned when she asked me. It’s… it’s been years. And there are other photographers, better qualified ones.”
“She wanted you, Mal. And after I saw your work, I was almost as excited. The fact that you were family was just a bonus.” He gave her a half smile that probably melted kneecaps. “You really are very gifted. I trust you know that.”
There really wasn’t a way to answer that, so Mal just murmured, “Thank you.” Then she asked the question that had been eating at her for months now: “How in the world does a UNC boy get a Tennessee girl? How does that even work?”
Tom laughed out loud and rubbed his ear as he glanced over at his soon-to-be in-laws. “Well, it hasn’t been without its difficulties. Drake and I don’t talk about sports ever, and Caroline lords over me whenever she can. Lucas doesn’t care; he’s just happy I’m not from Florida or Georgia.”
Mal had to laugh at how perfectly her family fit into the stereotypes she’d pegged them for.
“Cady’s just happy there’s a wedding,” Tom added, smiling fondly. “And Jenna doesn’t say anything about it unless our schools play each other, so it’s fairly safe most of the time.”
“How did you meet?” she asked, feeling more comfortable with him by the minute.
He turned back to her with a raised brow. “You don’t know the story?”
She shook her head. “All I know is the public version, of which there are at least seven, and I know Jenna better than to believe you guys met at a Tough Mudder.”
Tom threw his head back for one barking laugh. “Yeah, that one is the most ridiculous of them all. Truth is, we met at a hotel in Lexington. I was in town for business meetings; she was getting ready for the Kentucky Derby. One morning, we were both in the workout room at the same time—she was wearing a UT tank top, and I was wearing a UNC shirt, and somehow it didn’t matter. I couldn’t take my eyes off her, and she ‘accidentally’ broke the treadmill, so I offered my assistance.” He grinned, and his eyes twinkled at the memory.
“Of course you did,” Mal snorted, shaking her head. “Did you fix it?”
He smirked and made an amused noise. “No, turns out she actually broke it in her enthusiasm. So, we ran away and agreed to meet up for lunch to see if we got caught. The rest is history.”