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CHAPTER 4
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IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 5
The sun filtered through the garden window of Mackenzie’s kitchen, showering light on her plants. A curl of steam drifted up from her big coffee cup. She glanced up and frowned at the date on her kitchen calendar. Friday the thirteenth… Her big day… Mackenzie lifted her mug in salute.“Happy birthday to me.” Ignoring a vague sense of impending doom, she focused on the night to come. The phone rang. She swallowed the hot brew and smiled when she saw the ID of the caller.“Morning, Mom.”“‘Happy birthday, my darling. You aren’t moping about, are you?’” Serena Swanson’s voice held its usual note of censure.“Actually, no. I was just toasting the grand occasion.”“‘Mackie, it’s nine in the morning… Surely, you’re not drinking…’”“No, mother! It’s just coffee.”“‘Decaf?’” Mackenzie grimaced.“No! Ew!”“‘That caffeine will age you, baby girl, mark my word! You’re such a beauty now. And young. Oh, to be young again… To hav
IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 6
‘Did he really say that? Please, God… let me die now!’ Blood pounded in Mackenzie’s ears as Wyatt sank back into his seat. His chair creaked in the sudden silence. George ran his hand down the front of his white dress shirt.“I’ll… Uhm… I’ll get you some fresh rolls… give you the time to decide…” He looked curiously at Wyatt, then scuttled away without a backward glance. Slowly, the tables around them returned to their former buzz. Mackenzie stared at her date in stunned silence. ‘He knows... Dammit, Benjamin!’ Her brother had no right to divulge such personal information. Heat climbed her neck. Anger and embarrassment warred in her. Was her virginity the reason for Wyatt’s brusque behavior?“I’m… Mackenzie, I’m really sorry. I don’t know why I said that…” Wyatt heaved out a breath.“Forgive me, I didn’t mean to cause a scene.” Not trusting herself to answer, Mackenzie pursed her lips and counted to ten.
IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 7
Heat again filled Mackenzie’s cheeks.“Well… We finished early.” Her traitorous stomach announced its emptiness at that moment. Whether or not Estelle heard the rumbling over the loud music, she took Mackenzie’s arm to lead her to a table laden with food.“Try these crab cakes, Mackie. I’m working with a new caterer, and I need your honest opinion…” Mackenzie turned to Estelle.“This is too much… I can’t believe you had the time to plan this party with the wedding next weekend…”“I didn’t want your birthday to get lost in the shuffle… It is a very important day in the Swanson family. And I’m going to be a part of this family quite soon. You see, I never had a sister, Mackie. I wanted to get us off on the right foot.”“Thank you… From the bottom of my heart…” Mackenzie’s gaze swept the room, while unwanted emotion clogged her throat.“All this was so… so very thoughtful of you.” Guilt tightened her chest. Maybe she hadn’t given Estelle
IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 8
Wyatt’s attention swept over Mackenzie’s scattered admirers. What the hell had gotten into them? The lot looked as though they’d escaped a stint on death row.“I won the challenge? What are you talking about?”“There you have it, Mackie.” A guy with red hair peeked over the back of the couch.“I told you he should be the one to show you.”“Show you what? Can someone please tell me what is going on?” Wyatt demanded. A devilish spark lit Mackenzie’s eye. She stood, then moved around the coffee table, stopping inches from him.“We were discussing the most effective means of seduction…” Wyatt narrowed his eyes. A wave of irrational anger swelled in him.“The hell you were!”“Oh, yes…” Mackenzie leaned toward him. Her palm grazed his chest. His pulse kicked into gear.“You see, we talked and talked and it seems that the answer is exactly what Cher is saying in her song: if you wanna know if he… wants you so, it’s in… his
IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 9
Wyatt gripped the steering wheel and glared at the red traffic light. The air had grown heavy. Moisture swirled around the streetlights, distorting their glow.“Dammit!” he said slowly squeezing the wheel. “Dammit!” Guilt gnawed at him. He couldn’t stop thinking of her. The memory of the look on Mackenzie’s face as she confronted him tightened his gut. When he’d made that deal with Benjamin, he hadn’t thought of the consequences. He hadn’t thought of Mackenzie. At the time, she’d been a faceless chore, a means to his selfish ends, not a flesh-and-blood woman.“Dammit!” exclaimed again hitting the wheel. The light changed. Wyatt whipped into a parking lot, then circled around toward her apartment. He had to see Mackenzie… He had to apologize to her and somehow, explain how all that had changed once they’d met. She must know that Kimberly meant nothing to him. She must know that any fleeting attraction he may have felt for that woman van
IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 10
His answer made Mackenzie smile and relief rolled over her. Her own boldness amazed her, but she’d never yearned for anything more in her entire life. Wyatt had instilled a great hunger in her, making her body ache with pure need and lusty thoughts.“Good… Then let’s go to bed,” she said and took him by the hand. Wyatt didn’t protest as he followed her to her bedroom, stopping her only when they reached the big bed. After pulling back the covers, he turned to Mackenzie, then brought his lips down again on hers. He reclaimed her mouth with the steady thrust of his tongue, kissing her while he lowered her gently to the mattress. His hands kneaded her breasts, rubbing their erect buds until Mackenzie moaned with pleasure. She tugged at his shirt, pulling it from his waistband. Wyatt broke away to whip the garment over his head. Sighing, Mackenzie let her gaze drift over his sculpted torso. Her pulse quickened. His shoes and slacks joined his shirt
IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 11
With a soft groan, Wyatt rolled to his side, taking her with him so as not to disturb their intimate embrace. She let her gaze drift over his restful face, memorizing the curve of his cheek, the straight, strong line of his nose, and the shadow of his lashes beneath his closed lids. Warmth expanded her heart. His eyes flickered open. Wyatt swept a strand of hair back from her face.“Are you okay, sweetness?” Mackenzie had to swallow before answering. For some reason, her throat had constricted.“I’m fine. And you?” His sexy smile appeared again. Apparently, that was all she needed to get her to want him again. Her blood thrummed as he cupped her jaw and brushed a tender kiss across her lips.“I’m more than fine. And you are a… sex goddess.”“Now, don’t go putting me on a pedestal or something.”“No, angel.” He snuggled her closer, trapping her legs between his.“I like you where you are.” Mackenzie stroked her fingers down his
IT HAD TO BE YOU CHAPTER 12
“Mackie, there’s something I don’t understand.” She turned her face up to him, eyebrows raised in question.“You’re an incredibly sensual woman. I don’t see why… how you’ve waited this long.” Mackenzie looked at him in silence for a while, then sighed.“I’ve always had these romantic notions. I wanted it to be perfect. I wanted to wait for love. Especially after Helen’s ordeal… She’s my best friend and the one who drove me home earlier. Anyway, she got pregnant at sixteen, got married, and…the rest is history…” She shook her head.“Helen was a child raising a child. She’s never had a chance to really find out who she really is... The whole thing cemented my belief that I wanted to wait for my One… for true love.”“But after all this time, why now?” Her dainty shoulders shifted.“At twenty-five, I felt like some kind of freak. I never realized true love would be so hard to find.”“Hasn’t there been anyone else?”“Oh, there have been a number of m
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