There are at least twenty white envelopes withAngela and StevenorThe Happy Couplewritten across them in various colors of ink.
Lenore freezes, staring at me with wide eyes. I straighten up, all pretense of being tipsy gone. I grab my phone, holding up a finger at her. "Do. Not. Move." My icy tone makes her stay in place.
Mack answers on the first ring. "Hey – where are you?"
"In the ladies room. Lenore had the envelopes in her purse."
"Be right there."
Barely thirty seconds later, there's a tap at the door. “It’s Mack.”
"Come on in," I call out.
Lenore is leaning back against the wall, trembling. "I don't know how…I mean…"
Mack takes a photo of her spilled purse, then picks up the envelopes and tucks them into an inside pocket in his jacket. "Layne, could you please go get her husband? We'll escort them to the back door."
I go to find Neil, quickly explaining that Lenore is okay, but needs him immediately. Mack waits until the four of us are outside before explaining to Neil what happened tonight, and very probably at other family functions.
The poor man looks shocked that his wife could do such a thing right under his nose. "Ron is going to be pissed," he mutters. "How can I possibly face him?"
"I'll talk to him," Mack says calmly. "Right now, you two should check out and leave.” Lenore won't even lift her chin tomeet Mack's eyes, so he continues speaking directly to Neil. “It's up to the Gillis family whether they want to press charges. You might want to search your house for the cards from the previous weddings."
"I will." He nods quickly. "I'll send you photos of anything I find.” They exchange numbers, then Neil grabs Lenore's arm firmly and marches her toward the car. "You're going to wait out here while I pack our stuff,” he mutters. “I can't believe you’d pull something like this again, after you promised years ago that you'd stop."
Mack turns to me, cupping my cheek with his hand. "You were brilliant, baby. Polite. Efficient. Calm under pressure. Everything that we want in agents.”
I’m still shaking as I look up at him but manage a smile. "Does this mean you might put me on more assignments?"
He shakes his head decisively. "Only if it's a family function like this, with zero possibility of danger."
We reach the edge of the lobby and he pauses, pulling me into his arms as we stand in a shadow. "Layne, I would never take a chance that you could be in danger or even witness something violent. I'm annoyed enough that you’re still shaking." He strokes my back softly, and I can feel the crinkle of the envelopes hidden in his jacket.
"I'm fine."
"Good. I'm going to make sure I keep you that way." He tilts down to give me a kiss, then smacks his lips together. "Did I get your lipstick that time?"
"So much for kiss-proof," I laugh. I pull out a tissue and wipe his lips clean. "Don't worry, I'll take this off as soon as we’re finished."
“Job’s almost done, baby." His hand skims down my side, then grabs my ass as his eyes light up. "I can’t wait to have you all to myself."
I feel a huge warmth spreading through my chest. It’s more than pride in a job well done. It’s the glow in Mack’s eyes. He’s proud of me.
I think he’s falling for me.
And I know I’m already falling for him.
12
MACK
The last few laps around the reception are an extreme lesson in patience.
It’s important that we say goodbye to the newlyweds and several couples we've been chatting with over the weekend, but all I want to do is get Layne alone in our hotel room so we can give our full attention to this rapidly growing heat between us.
I circle past Caleb at the bar, and he gives me a thumbs up. "Your mixing advice was great. No problems at all. Boisterous, but not rowdy."
"Perfect." I drop a twenty into his tip jar, then we head back to our table. Astor is straightening Ryland's tie, both of them laughing at his mock strangled sounds.
