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“That…” she said, moistening her lips. “That you’d had a change of heart.”

“I didn’t.”

“But you want to talk about the engagement?”

“Well, yes.” The only thing Mack felt he could do was be honest. “Frankly, ever since we got engaged you’ve been avoiding me.” Some engagement, he wanted to say.

“No, I haven’t,” she said swiftly. “You were the one who didn’t want anything to do with me. You stopped coming over as soon as we got engaged!”

They could argue about it all night and it wouldn’t settle anything. “If I gave you that impression, then I apologize,” Mack said.

She offered him the merest hint of a smile. “I guess we’ve both been silly, haven’t we?”

That was an understatement if he’d ever heard one.

“I know you weren’t happy when I insisted on a six-month engagement.”

“I can live with that,” Mack said. “It was the fact that you didn’t want me to touch you at all during that time.”

Doubt flickered in her eyes. “I didn’t say you couldn’t touch me…I just don’t feel it’s wise for us to be…intimate.”

“Oh.” Mack wondered if he’d misread the situation. But if she was interested in, say, a kiss or a hug, she might have given him some indication earlier.

The shyness was back. Mary Jo started to turn away and he caught her hand, stopping her. His fingers curled around hers. When she turned toward him, Mary Jo slid effortlessly into his embrace as if she’d been waiting her entire life for exactly this moment.

They kissed—two or three lengthy kisses. Not until they’d exchanged another heated kiss did he find the strength to ease his mouth from hers.

Mary Jo looked up at him, eyes wide. Slowly, ever so slowly, she smiled. “That was very nice.”

“Yes, it was,” Mack said. “Are you sure you want a six-month engagement?”

Staring up at him, she blinked, and then nodded. “I still think that would be best.”

Mack could see it was going to be a very long six months.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Olivia warily eyed the horse, which was saddled and ready to ride. “I don’t know about this,” she said.

They stood just outside the barn. Grace walked over to the mare Cliff had chosen for her friend and ran her hand down the animal’s long, sleek nose. “You don’t have a thing to worry about,” she assured Olivia.

Olivia tucked her hands in the back pockets of her jeans. “In case you weren’t aware, I’m not a horse-riding type of person. I prefer picking wildflowers and sewing quilts. Riding never interested me. I didn’t read The Black Stallion and all those horsey books when I was twelve.”

“Me, neither, although I have since—when I took a course in children’s literature. But that’s not the point. I didn’t think I was interested at first.” Grace refused to listen to excuses. “It’ll do us both good to get out in the fresh air.”

“Grace, really, you and me horseback riding?” Olivia turned longingly toward the house.

“Yes—you and me.” It was a mild, sunny Saturday afternoon and she wasn’t going to let Olivia talk herself out of this. “There’s a lovely path that meanders down to the beach. Trust me, you’ll regret it if you don’t at least try.”

Olivia still didn’t seem convinced. She cast a pleading glance in Grace’s direction. “This horse has an evil look about her. How do you know she won’t take the first opportunity to buck me off?”

“Sugarplum?”

“Her name is Sugarplum?”

Grace nodded.

“What does that prove? The camel that bit you was called Sleeping Beauty,” Olivia said, referring to an unfortunate incident with one of the animals they’d housed for the church nativity scene.

“That’s irrelevant. Anyway, you promised you’d do this.”

Groaning in defeat, Olivia slowly edged her way back to Grace. “Oh, all right.”

“You’ll be glad,” Grace said with an encouraging smile. She remembered the first time Cliff had talked her into getting on a horse. Like her friend, she’d balked and made up a bevy of excuses—really good ones, too. When she’d finally run out of ways to avoid the inevitable, she gave in. The short ride along their property line to the beach had been…wonderful. Afterward, Grace had no idea why