Page 33 of My Dearest Mackenzie

I had zero clue what was going on with us. It was Thursday. The last I’d seen or talked to him was when we had brunch on Sunday and he sent me home in his SUV, Alex driving and eyeing me from the front—checking that I was okay and not crying, I assumed. I wasn’t sure if I should contact Mack or if he would reach out to me. He’d been pretty tight-lipped about the letters after we left his place, but I could tell he was affected.

“I found her…” He spoke softly, his eyes on me.

“Who did you find?” We hadn’t even spoken about a her, other than his grandma.

I felt a headache coming on. Between the whiplash of everything that was Mackenzie Miller and his showing up at my work and Baron’s posturing, I needed some ibuprofen or a margarita.

“Connie.”

“Milly’s friend? That Connie? Constance?” A firework went off in my belly.

“Yes.”

“I haven’t heard from you in days…I don’t know why I blurted that out. I’m sorry. I’m not your keeper and you’re not mine.” Feeling myself spiral from the extreme emotions and happenings, I clamped my mouth shut.

“I had to go to London. I should’ve said something…and you’re right, you don’t need a keeper.”

I should’ve been flattered or smitten or I don’t know what with his ability to admit my independence, but I was too hung up on the first. “London? It’s only been five days since I last saw you— Never mind. London, that’s…I don’t know what that is. Never mind, tell me about Connie.”

He glanced over at Baron who was on the phone, no doubt with Corey, setting up a meeting with Mack.

“First, I told Corey about the letters. I hope that’s okay. I don’t have many people in my life I can trust, so I’m left with my overly personal assistant.”

He looked to me for some kind of approval and I nodded. I should be rushing back to my customer, but this felt monumental. Not just Connie, but Mack’s confiding in me.

“Well then, you know Corey, and he’s literally a man on a mission, starring in his own reality television show. And when I left Monday night for London, he set about finding Connie. I don’t know if he did any real work, and my schedule may be empty and correspondence unanswered, but he located the Constance Fiorello we read about.”

“Where is she? Can we see her?” I felt flushed. Surely it wasn’t normal to practically be coming out of my skin over this—bouncing on my toes, my heart racing—but it was all true.

“She’s ninety-two but has her full faculties. I know because Corey called her. And when he mentioned Milly, she went on and on about how she loved her, and they were best friends until her awful father got involved. Her awful father being my great-grandfather.”

I started clapping. “I’m sorry, I’m not cheering for your great-grandfather being mean.”

He smiled. “I know. I’m just putting your package together with a neat bow.”

“I need to go… Can you give me the information? I have to talk with her.”

“What?” he asked as if he was offended, and another look of hurt flashed across his face.

“I mean, do you want to go?”

“Of course I do. That’s why I rushed over here to give you the news.”

Baron cleared his throat and I said, “Coming, promise.”

“Saturday at noon.” Mack spoke softly and directly at me. “Then we will go out to celebrate, so hold the whole day.”

I didn’t know what it meant, but I had no reason to argue. I had a date with Connie, and potentially with Mack too.

Saturday morning, I waited outside for Alex and Mack’s giant SUV per a text I received the night before.

I’d expected Corey to send instructions, but instead it was Mack who communicated he’d be coming to get me on our way to a nursing home in Queens.

As I slid into the car, I ignored his masculine forearms peeking out from where he had his white dress shirt rolled up and the earthy cologne rolling off him. Noting he was in slacks, I took in my jeans and lightweight sweater. “Is this okay?”

“Of course,” he said as if I was being ridiculous. “I need to atone for rotten men in my family generations before I was born. I need to look the part of a good guy.”

“Oh come on, you don’t really believe that?”

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