* * *
"Well Madeline, it was a pleasure," Mark affirmed, kissing her cheek
once more. They were standing in the parking lot, having unknowingly
used the same one upon their separate arrivals. Mark's car was just up the
ramp from her white Le Baron, beside which they lingered for a few
minutes.
"So I look forward to tomorrow; I will give you a call in the morning
and we'll go from there. Of course, if you can't get out of rehearsal, just
page me. You have all my numbers, right?"
"Uh yes," she confirmed. "But I am pretty sure Rebecca will say yes;
she's very easy going and we've practiced this routine a million times. If
we don't have it right by now, it's never gonna happen! Besides, SunFest
sounds like a lot of fun."
"It'll be a great time, I promise," he returned her smile and bid her
farewell. "Take care, Maddy. See you tomorrow!"
"Bye Mark!"
She slipped behind the wheel with renewed excitement and vigor,
hopeful that Mark Donnelly would at the very least turn out to be a good
and trusted friend. Still, when she recalled his handsome face, warm
disposition and masculine build, thoughts of friendship took a back seat
to fantasies of romance, in spite of his having kids. At 27, Maddy had
never dated anyone with this so-called baggage, but she was certainly
open-minded enough to give it a whirl. How bad could it be after
everything she'd experienced with childless men? Maybe this guy would
actually demonstrate some maturity.
Driving west on Glades Road on his way to his brother's home, Mark
wondered what he'd gotten himself into. Sure, Madeline was a cute girl,
but that was the problem-she was just a kid. And in spite of being smart,
personable and pretty, there was something just too innocent about her;
something he couldn't quite put his finger on. Then there was Gina, a
woman with whom he'd planned to spend the rest of his life as recently as
last month. In spite of the break-up, she still intended to fly down for
Memorial Day weekend as planned.
True, the visit's real purpose was to return the two-carat diamond
he'd given her, but still, it was going to be a long three days in the Keys.
Maybe there was too much going on in his life to take on anyone new,
particularly a recently relocated young woman. While she seemed fairly
self-assured, the last thing he needed was somebody else depending on
him. Maddy was a babe-in-the-woods where South Florida was
concerned; she was in for a rude awakening.