Chapter 14
Fourteen
Ned broke the bad news to Mac—it took forever to get anything built on the island, especially a house.
“We’ve got three guys in the building business, and they’re all running about two years behind,” Ned said.
“Damn,” Mac said. “I guess that doesn’t bode well for getting someone to help me build a house anytime soon.” No way could he and Maddie survive in that tiny apartment for two years, and it would take at least that long to build a house on his own.
“I’ve been thinking ’bout that,” Ned said. “I’ve got a few properties in inventory that might work for ya, if you’d like to take a look. Nice houses, good views, lots of property.” Ned shrugged. “Might be quicker than building yer own.”
“You got time to show me these places today?”
“I got nothing but time, boy.”
Mac let his guys know he was leaving for a while and followed Ned to the cab. Over the next two hours, they looked at five different properties, and as they drove around, a new idea began to germinate.
“Let me ask you something, Ned.”
“Yep.”
“This building glut—you think there’s room for a fourth guy in the mix?”
“Hell yeah. It’s not just new stuff. Ya can’t even get renovations done in less than a year.”
“One of the things that’s worried me about sticking around here full-time is what I’d do in the off-season.”
“Now ya know.”
Mac laughed, and as simply as that, McCarthy Construction was born.
The fifth house they looked at called to Mac on first sight. An angular contemporary situated on six acres, the house faced a grassy meadow and the ocean beyond. Set back far enough from the coast to be out of danger during hurricane season, the house was mostly glass and deck.
“It was built in 1990, but it’s been fully renovated,” Ned said. “New hardwood floors, granite countertops, thermal windows. Kitchen and bathrooms all redone.”
Mac gazed at the cathedral ceiling in the living room, the stone fireplace and the breathtaking views from every room and could picture himself living there with Maddie and Thomas. Excitement coursed through him. He couldn’t wait to show it to her.
“It’s perfect. Just what I wanted.”
“And ya don’t have to build it yerself.”
“Even better.” Mac ran a hand over sand-colored granite in the kitchen. “How’s a place like this even available?”
“Major real estate glut on the island since the economy went bust. A lot of these houses are second homes for rich folk in Connecticut and New York. When the market imploded, they had to sell fast. I snapped up some great deals, and I’ve been sitting on ’em, waiting for the market to recover.
I’ll give ya this one for what I paid for it.
” He rattled off a price that astounded Mac.
“It’s easily worth twice that.”
“I don’t need the money, and yer family to me,” Ned said gruffly. “Ya know I ain’t got no kids of my own. You and yers are mine, so don’t insult me by haggling ’bout it.”
Touched, Mac shook the other man’s hand. “Thank you.”
“I hope you and yer little family will be happy here.”
Mac took another long look around. “I know we will be.”
Ned dropped him at the top of the road that led to the marina. Filled with anticipation, Mac whistled as he walked toward the main building.
Big Mac stepped away from the Wiffle Ball game he was playing with kids from the boats.
Mac stopped to wait for his father. “Wait ’til you see the house I found. It’s fantastic.”
“Son, Maddie was here. She’s real upset.”
That stopped Mac cold. “What happened?”
“She saw today’s paper.”
Mac gasped. “It was already in?”
“Yeah.”
“Shit! I thought I had at least another week to talk to her about it.”
Big Mac’s normally amiable expression hardened. “Were you planning to tell me about what my son was involved in?”
“I figured it was up to Evan to tell you.”
“One of you could’ve given me—and your mother—a heads-up. She’s beside herself.”
“All that mattered to me was restoring Maddie’s reputation.”
Big Mac held up the keys to the SUV. “She said to give you these because she won’t need them anymore.”
Fear crept up his spine as Mac took the keys from his father. “Where is she?”
“She took off about twenty minutes ago.”
“Where was she going?”
“Didn’t say.”
Mac strode toward the truck.
His father trailed behind him. “Son, wait.” With his hand on Mac’s arm, Big Mac stopped him. “Don’t go off half-cocked. Take a breath.”
“I need to find her, Dad. I’ve got to fix this.”
“You might want to give her some time to figure out that your heart was in the right place.”
“Everything will be fine. I just need to see her and explain.”
Big Mac patted his face. “Call me later? Let me know you’re all right?”
Mac nodded, got into the truck and raced into town. Wondering if she might refuse to see him, he broke into a cold sweat. She has to. We have to work this out. The alternative was simply unimaginable.
He pulled into Tiffany’s driveway and generated a cloud of dust on his way back to Maddie’s. Pounding up the stairs, he stopped short at the sight of his backpack and running shoes sitting on the deck. She can’t be serious.
After a deep breath to slow his racing heart, he knocked softly on the door. “Maddie. Honey, open the door. I need to talk to you.” He tried the door and was astounded to find it locked. “Baby, come on. Let me explain.”
“She isn’t going to talk to you—now or ever—so you should probably get your stuff and go,” Tiffany said from the bottom of the stairs.
Mac spun around. “This is none of your business, Tiffany.”
“Who do you think mops up the mess every time she gets crapped on by a guy?”
“I didn’t crap on her.”
Tiffany shrugged with indifference that infuriated him. “Seems to me if you knew her at all, you’d get that being the center of attention in this town is the last thing she’d ever want.”
“Even if it means restoring her reputation?”
“You’re so clueless. You think you can come in here, wave your magic McCarthy wand and make everything all better. I hate to break it to you, ace, but it doesn’t work that way for the rest of us.”
“This is between me and Maddie. I’ll wait to talk to her about it.”
“She’s not here.”
“Where is she?”
“Even if I knew, you’d be the last person I’d tell.”
He sat on the top step. “Then I’ll wait for her. She has to come home eventually.”
“Suit yourself, but it won’t do any good. Once Maddie sees a guy’s true colors, she doesn’t give second chances.”
“Good to know.”
Tiffany turned, crossed the yard and disappeared into her house.
Mac sat there for a long time before he heard the unmistakable sound of a baby crying inside the apartment. He jumped up and went to the door. “Maddie, I know you’re in there. I just want to talk to you. We can work this out.”
Thomas’s cries broke Mac’s heart. He leaned his head against the door. “Maddie.”
“Go away, Mac,” she said through the open window. “I have nothing to say to you.” Her voice was rough, as if she, too, had been crying.
“I’m not going anywhere until we talk.”
After a long silence, the door finally opened. Mac was taken aback by her tear-ravaged face and saddened to know he was the cause. He reached for the screen door.
“Stay out there.”
Thomas brightened at the sight of Mac and reached out to him.
Through the screen, Mac pressed his hand to the baby’s. “Hey, buddy.”
“The other day I told you that lying to me and keeping things from me were deal-breakers. You did both. What do we need to talk about?”
“I was going to tell you about the letters. I had no idea they’d run this week, or I would’ve told you.”
“You could’ve told me the other day when I asked you who you’d hit. It was Darren, wasn’t it?”
Mac looked down at the deck.
“Still not willing to be truthful with me, Mac?”
“Yes, it was Darren! He made a crude comment about you, and I belted him. Does it make me a jerk that I didn’t want you to know what he said about you?”
“I’m not a wilting rose who can’t take life’s harsh realities. By now, I’m an expert.”
“And that’s exactly why I didn’t tell you. I don’t want anyone to ever hurt you again.”
“Instead, you did. You took something I told you in the strictest of confidence and made sure the whole town was once again talking about me.”
“Maddie, they needed to know you aren’t the person they think you are. How could I hear something like that—something my own brother was involved in—and not try to make it right for you?”
“Did you really do it for me? Or was it for you? To make it easier to marry the town slut?”
As if she’d physically hit him, Mac stepped back, staggered by the accusation. “Baby, this was all about making things better for you. I never once considered how it would affect me.”
Tears rolled down her cheeks. “I trusted you, Mac. I told you things I never tell anyone. I can’t believe you’d do something like this and not even warn me.”
“I was going to. I swear to God.”
“You had ample opportunity. I can’t be in this kind of relationship. I’m sorry. I appreciate all you did to help us when I was hurt, but it’s over.”
Mac had never been more desperate. “No, it’s not. I love you. You love me. We can work this out.”
“We have nothing if I can’t trust you.”
“You can trust me. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you.
You have to know that. What about all our plans?
How can you walk away from what we have together?
Just today, I found us the perfect house.
It’s so beautiful, Maddie, and I can see you there.
I can see Thomas there. Are you really going to throw away everything we have over this? ”
With her free hand, she swiped at the tears wetting her cheeks. “I’m sorry, Mac.” She started to close the inside door, but he moved quickly to open the screen.
“Wait. Please.” He reached out to run a hand over her soft hair. “What am I supposed to do without you? Without Thomas?”
A sob shook her entire body.