construction electricians like their father. Bill and Mark had both become mechanics and had opened a shop together. They were still struggling to get on their feet financially, but both worked hard. With time, they’d make a go of it; Mary Jo was convinced of that.
“I wonder what your mother decided to cook today,” Gary mused, and Mary Jo swore he all but licked his chops.
Briefly she wondered if Gary bothered to eat during the week, or if he stored up his appetite for Sunday dinners with her family.
“I’ve been introduced to all your brothers, haven’t I?” he asked, frowning slightly as he helped her out of the car.
Mary Jo had to think about that. He must have been. Not every brother came every Sunday, but over the course of the past few months surely Gary had met each of her five brothers.
“I don’t recognize the guy in the red sweatshirt,” he said as they moved up the walk toward the house.
Mary Jo was distracted from answering by her mother, who came rushing down the porch steps, holding out her arms as if it’d been weeks since they’d last seen each other. She wore an apron and a smile that sparkled with delight. “Mary Jo! I’m so glad you’re here.” She hugged her daughter close for a long moment, then turned toward Gary.
“How sweet,” she said, taking the bouquet of carnations and kissing his cheek.
Still smiling, Marianna gestured her attention to her daughter. “You’ll never guess who stopped by!”
It was then that Mary Jo noticed Evan walking toward them. Dressed in jeans and a red sweatshirt, he carried Lenny, her six year old nephew, tucked under one arm, and Robby, his older brother by a year, under the other. Both boys were kicking and laughing.
Evan stopped abruptly when he saw Mary Jo and Gary. The laughter drained out of his eyes.
“Hello,” Gary said, stepping forward. “You must be one of Mary Jo’s brothers. I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Gary Copeland.”
CHAPTER THREE
“WHAT ARE YOU doing here?” Mary Jo demanded the minute she could get Evan alone. With a house full of people, it had taken her the better part of two hours to corner him. As it was, they were standing in the hallway and could be interrupted at any moment.
“If you’ll recall, your mother invited me.”
“The only reason you’re here is to embarrass me.” The entire meal had been an exercise in frustration for Mary Jo. Evan had been the center of attention and had answered a multitude of questions from her parents and brothers. As for the way he’d treated Gary—every time she thought about it, she seethed. Anyone watching them would think Evan and Gary were old pals. Evan had joked and teased with Gary, even going so far as to mention that Mary Jo’s ears grew red whenever she was uncomfortable with a subject.
The second he’d said it, she felt the blood rush to her ears. Soon they were so hot she was afraid Gary might mistake them for a fire engine.
What upset her most was the way Evan had her family eating out of his hand. Everyone acted as though he was some sort of celebrity! Her mother had offered him the first slice of chocolate cake, something Mary Jo could never remember happening. No matter who was seated at the dinner table, her father had always been served first.
“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable,” Evan said now, his eyes as innocent as a preschooler’s.
Mary Jo wasn’t fooled. She knew why he’d come—to humiliate her in front of her family. Rarely had she been angrier. Rarely had she felt more frustrated. Tears filled her eyes and blurred her vision.
“You can think what you want of me, but don’t ever laugh at my family,” she said between gritted teeth. She whirled away and had taken all of two steps when he caught hold of her shoulder and yanked her around.
Now he was just as angry. His dark eyes burned with it. They glared at each other, faces tight, hands clenched.
“I would never laugh at your family,” he said evenly.
Mary Jo straightened her shoulders defiantly. “But you look forward to make a laughingstock out of me. Let me give you an example. You knew I wasn’t married, yet you manipulated me into admitting it. You enjoy making me uncomfortable!”
He grinned then, a sly off-center grin. “I figured you owed me that much.”
“I don’t owe you anything!” she snapped.
“Perhaps not,” he agreed. He was laughing at her, had been from the moment she stepped into his high-priced office. Like an unsuspecting fly, she’d carelessly gotten caught in a spider’s web.
“Stay out of my life,” she warned, eyes narrowed.
Evan glared back at her. “Gladly.”
Just then Sally, one of Mary Jo’s favorite nieces, came skipping down the hallway as only a five-year-old can, completely unaware of the tension between her and Evan. Sally stopped when she saw Mary Jo with Evan.
“Hi,” she said, looking up at them.
“Hello, sweetheart,” Mary Jo said, forcing herself to smile. Her mouth felt as if it would crack.
Sally stared at Evan, her eyes wide with curiosity. “Are you going to be my uncle someday?”
“No,” Mary Jo answered immediately, mortified. It seemed that even her own family had turned against her. “Why not?” Sally wanted to know. “I like him better than Gary, and he likes you, too. I can tell. When we were eating dinner, he kept looking at you. Like Daddy looks at Mommy sometimes.”
“I’m dating Gary,” Mary Jo insisted, “and he’s taking me to a movie. You can come if you want.”
Sally shook her head. “Gary likes you, but he doesn’t like kids very much.”
Mary Jo’s heart sank as though it were weighted down with cement blocks. She’d noticed that about Gary herself. He wasn’t accustomed to small children; they made him uncomfortable. Kid noise irritated him. Evan, on the other hand, was an instant hit with both the adults and the kids. Nothing her nieces or nephews said or did seemed to bother him. If anything, he appeared to enjoy himself. He’d played volleyball and baseball with her brothers, chess with her father, and wrestled with the kids—ten against one.
“I hope you marry Evan,” Sally said, her expression serious. Having stated her opinion, she skipped on down to the end of the hallway.
“Mary Jo.”
Before she could say anything else to Evan—although she didn’t know what—Gary came looking for her. He stopped abruptly when he saw who she was with.
“I didn’t mean to interrupt anything,” he said, burying his hands in his pockets, obviously uncomfortable.
“You didn’t,” Mary Jo answered decisively.
“Now, what movie do you think we should see?” She turned her back on Evan and walked toward Gary, knowing in her heart that Sally was right. Evan was the man for
