“How many years you got on her?” Silas asked.
“Eleven. But I’m not looking to marry her, so calm down.”
Silas made a ticking sound with his mouth as he held up a finger. “There’s my real objection, soldier. The way you get around, I don’t like her being one of your ladies. Do what you want with all these other women around here, but I’d appreciate it if you’d step back from that one.”
Mac snorted and started to walk away. “No one tells me my business.”
“I will if it hurts her,” Silas barked. “She’s been through enough.”
“She look in pain to you?”
“Yes,” Silas retorted. “And I can say that because I’ve seen her when she’s not in pain. I haven’t seen that in her in almost two years. You’re not going to help her get there, confusing her,usingher.”
“Did Marge send you out here?” Mac asked, pausing to look back, waiting for an answer.
Silas pulled himself up to his full height. “I don’t need my wife to tell me what’s right for her and what’s not. You want to look out for her, protect her, beat men up to keep them away from her? I’m all for it. I’ll stand right next to you and put in my own swings. But when you start using her the way you use these other women—hell no, Mac, I won’t stand for it. You don’t use her. I’ll take a swing at you myself.”
“I’m not interested in fighting you, Silas.” He looked pointedly at the old man. “And I’m too old for lectures.”
“I’ll have my say about it, boy!”
“You’ve said it.” He walked off the dock.
Chapter thirty-seven
Cassidy
‘MUST DO'
“Youliedtome!”Marge’s words were more hurt than angry as she stood in Cassidy’s kitchen. There was no venom, but the words were surrounded with questioning grief and a hint of concern.
Cassidy bowed her head, admonished and ashamed.
“I was right in front of you, and you lied to me.”
Cassidy frowned. She’d been an orphan, both she and Elijah. How they’d come out of the system as educated and well-adjusted as they were, how they found each other, had been a miracle. Elijah should have written their story. But that aside, being an orphan meant she wasn’t accustomed to having parental figures who cared. Guardians, yes.
But Marge and Silas cared for her. Worried for her.
“I know,” Cassidy pushed out, her voice small.
Marge sighed heavily. “Cassidy, it’s not that, sweet girl, you can live your life any way you want, but… That boy.”
Cassidy wanted to defend him, defend them, but there was nothem. She didn’t know how to explain it. She hadn’t seen or heard from Mac since she climbed into her boat three days ago. She hadn’t expected flowers or love letters, but he hadn’t even shown up at the bar last night.
Of course, sometimes he was a no-show.
It meant nothing. It only meantshewas looking forhim.
And since she’d worked the night shift, she didn’t have the opportunity to see if he’d been serious about his dog-sitting services. Not that she thought he would ever turn Fred away, but the whole interaction had been so strange, she wasn’t sure how to feel about it; if she could trust it.
To the matter at hand, however; she knew a comeuppance was due. Ever since Mac had walked out of her bedroom and taken the croissant, this moment had been coming. At least she was fully clothed today.
“I’m sorry you had to find out the way you did. I should have called you. But…” Cassidy shrugged. “I didn’t think it would happen more than once.” She moved to the counter and leaned forward on it. “We’d fought after…”
The gravity of Marge’s expression was out of place under her sun hat and in her overalls. But she was concerned. “You fought? He get physical with you?”
“No, nothing like that,” Cassidy assured her. “Words. Just words, Marge.”