Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 47238 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 236(@200wpm)___ 189(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 47238 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 236(@200wpm)___ 189(@250wpm)___ 157(@300wpm)
He had to envy how happy Walter was. He and Macy were engaged for years, until they’d saved up enough to have the wedding they wanted, but never once in all that time did Walter seem conflicted or unsure. Never once did he doubt his worth, or that he was with the person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with.
“How did you know?” Rory asked abruptly. “You were together a long time before you tied the knot but you knew right away, right? Saw Macy and just dropped where you stood Some Enchanted Evening style?”
“Hell no.” Walter looked at him as if he were crazy. “This isn’t a movie, dumbass. In real life, you can’t see anybody that clearly across a crowded room, and one look wouldn’t show you their heart. No, Macy was my neighbor’s granddaughter. Lived right next to me for most of my life.”
“I had no idea.”
Walter smiled in memory. “She was a brat. Liked to tease me about my droopy pants and big shoes. I pulled her braids once when we were five and she decided I was the enemy from then on. Always telling me off, talking to my dates about me when I brought them home. She got such a kick out of getting me in trouble.”
It was hard to believe. The woman Rory knew was charming and warm, a great cook with a wonderful sense of humor and a love of mythology that was driving her degree in higher education. “Stop lying. My Macy doesn’t have a mean bone in her body.”
“Are you sure about that? The body has a lot of bones.” Walter took a pull from his water and looked thoughtful. “She says it was all an act. That she just wanted my attention, but I don’t buy it. She dated her share of handsome college boys and I know at least one of them tried to butter up her grandma with proposing in mind. Lucky for me he was easy to scare away.”
Rory grinned at that. “How did you two finally get together?”
Walter’s eyes were shining in the darkness. “The strangest thing. I was sitting on my porch one afternoon, watching her with her family. I saw her smile and it felt like I’d been hit over the head with a frying pan. All of a sudden I wanted to be over there with my arm wrapped around her. I wanted it to be our kids playing on the sidewalk. One moment, one smile and everything changed. I wanted it so badly, saw it so clearly that I went over there, asked for a moment alone and told her all about it.”
“What did she say?”
“About time,” Walter answered with a grin. “I asked for her grandmother’s permission and we went ring shopping the next day.”
How long had he known how he felt about David? About Rig? He’d pushed the truth down for so long he wasn’t sure. David hadn’t even realized Rory wanted to kiss him until the Mistletoe Meltdown. And he didn’t know what to think about how long Rig said he’d been waiting for Rory to get his head out of his ass.
Not exactly the romance of Walter and Macy.
“You’ve never asked me about that before. In fact, you usually tune out when I start talking about love. Did you get hit over the head with a frying pan recently?”
Repeatedly. “I have a lot on my plate right now. Too much to bring someone else into it, frying pans or no.”
Walter stared at him for a long time. “You’re a good guy, you know. Anybody would be lucky to have you, heaping plate or not. You’re trained to save lives, according to Macy you’re easy on the eyes, and last year you talked me into spending most of our free time entertaining the kids in the pediatric wing.
“Sure. I also used to lure unsuspecting straight guys into bed for fun and only went to family dinners to shop for fresh produce and gossip.”
Walter choked. “Yeah, but that was before your cleanse.” He paused, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. “Is this about David again? Or was Rig the one you kissed at the wedding?”
“I told you about that?”
“It was a late shift and you were kind of a mess. Like tonight. Is it him?”
“With David and Rig… It’s complicated.”
“Both? Well, sure it would be,” he agreed slowly as if digesting the information. “But I’ve heard that love—whatever way it comes to us—is our gift for dealing with all the complicated things life throws our way.”
Rory looked down at his sandwich and set it aside. “There is such a thing as too complicated.”
“Tell me.”
His breath escaped in one heavy sigh. “My father is dying. He had a stroke, then another in the hospital before we could get him home and now he’s on life support. My brothers wanted me to see him tonight—in about an hour—and I volunteered us for this shift instead.” He wiped his face with the back of his hand, too distracted to notice it came away damp. “Why did I do that? Even if it wasn’t complicated, who could love someone like that?”