Pam and Mac went to sit on the bleachers while Will, Mark and Lonny stood at the fence watching the kids warm up. Soon, they were joined by some other fathers.
When Mac and Pam joined the others on the bleachers several of the women said hello and Mac looked at Pam. "Small town" Pam explained.
"Do you miss the city?" Mac asked.
"Not at all. This move was best for us but I can't imagine you and Will ever living here." Mac laughed.
"Not being able to get falafels at 2am, or Chinese, we wouldn't survive," Mac half teased and then added, "but we also miss out on the family things, too."
"May I ask?" Pam questioned.
Mac was expecting this and said, "you may ask anything."
"Are you and Will back together?"
"We're working on it."
"Good. You know you're already a part of this family."
Mac shook her head. "You, Mark and Will's family, maybe, but Mary and Anna have never liked me. We ran into Anna last night. She's living at Mary's."
"Really? Mary specifically told her not to live there and I'm sure she doesn't know. There will be hell to pay when she finds out. Anna is very selfish and there's always drama that's never her fault. Don't worry about anything Anna says. I thought you and Mary got along?"
"Better than Anna and I, but we've never both been in one place long enough to let the relationship grow. I hope that we would and we could have a great relationship, but I don't know if that's possible."
"It is, Mac, trust me, it is, and Mary and Thomas are great. You'll really like them."
"I don't think I've ever met Thomas, he was away on business so much when Will and I were together. And I've probably laid eyes on their children once." Mary and Thomas and their children had never figured as prominently in Will and Mac's lives as Mark and Pam and their children had. Maybe they would all get a chance to be closer now.
"Give them a chance. Mary isn't Anna…nowhere close."
Mac nodded and looked at Will and Lonny standing at the fence.
Lonny was giving Will some space when another of the fathers came up to the fence and started chatting. "Do you have a son playing today?" the man asked Will.
"Nephew."
"My son is playing shortstop, number eleven out there warming up."
Will nodded. "Important position."
"It is and he takes it seriously, but this is more fun for him. He's not as passionate about it as some of the kids. I tell you the kid to watch today, along with your nephew," the man added smiling, "is number seven. He's going to pitch today. The kid has got an arm on him."
Will smiled and said, "thanks for the tip."
The umpire called the teams together and Will turned to find Mac on the bleachers, his eyes spotting her immediately, and he made his way up next to her. "They look good," Will said to Mac and Pam.
"They practice a lot, but Jackson's always excited to go and being part of the team has actually helped his grades, not that they were low before but where he was getting high Bs and As, he's now getting straight As. His coach is all about school."
"Good, school's important but so is baseball," Will said smiling at Pam.
"Wait until you see his room, it's an homage to baseball. He loves it so much."
"That's great, but you've got to know how talented he is, too, Pam. I was watching him and when I was showing him the pitch at the house, the talent is there but it needs to be developed. Will you let me see if I can arrange some local, higher level coaches to come talk to his team. I want them to watch Jackson, but I'll make sure that they know to come and see the whole team and not single him out. If they see what I see, will you talk to me about getting him some private coaching?"
"Will…." Pam warned.
"He's that good, Pam, trust me, I know what I'm talking about. And I'd like to help him, if you'll let me," Will said.
"We'll talk about it, okay, that's all I can promise."
Will smiled at her and he knew he'd won the battle.
Mark joined them and sat next to Pam. Together they all watched the game. Mac, though, was also watching Will. Will was concentrating on the game but he saw Mac shiver and took the sweatshirt off and handed it to her.
"Are you sure?"
He leaned in and kissed her softly and nodded. She smiled and hugged him. After a few innings the Umpire called the game for Jackson's team per the rules of having so many more runs than the other team. Jackson had got to pitch the entire game and after thanking the other team, he ran to find his family.
"Great game, buddy," Will said as Jackson came up the bleachers and straight to his Dad, giving him a hug.
"Thanks," he said smiling and then hugged his Mom.
"We need to go pick up Em," Mark explained. "You guys want to grill some burgers for lunch?"
"That sounds great," Mac said, leaning back against Will, who in turn, wrapped his arms tightly around her.
"Okay, we'll grill and maybe we can go out on the boat this afternoon and talk. The kids both have plans for the afternoon and will be gone until tonight."
"Thank you," Will said looking at Mark.
"Let me guess…you want to fix this?" Mark said, later that afternoon, when they were all sitting quietly together on the boat.
"I'm not trying to rush in and be the hero here Mark, I'm trying to offer my resources. Who the hell else do I have to spend money on? I don't have a wife or children. I have a nice apartment and buy myself some pretty decent guitars and some great meals out. Other than that I don't have much of a need for the salary I make. Let me help," Will pleaded.
Mackenzie could hear the hurt in his tone when he sadly admitted that he didn't have a family of his own to spend his money on. Damn it, would she always feel this ache in the pit of her stomach when she thought of how lonely Will really was?
"I have job Will. I have insurance…there's no need," Mark began, but mercifully, Pam cut him off.
"And they're already arguing with us about which hospitals we can go to and which doctor's are in-network and how much time you can have off. I'm not going to sit here and watch you be stubborn and pig-headed right into the damn grave Mark! It's not just you we're talking about here. We have two children who aren't anywhere near ready to be without their father. Take the damn money! Take the damn connections! Take whatever the hell he's offering!" Pam screamed.
Mac grabbed a few tissues from her purse and offered them to Pam, who took them and swiped at her tears, but refused to look anyone in the eye just yet. Mac let her be.
"Look, I'm not trying to jump in and take control. I get that maybe I do that too much in my life with the people I care about," and he looked meaningfully at Mackenzie when he said it. "Do whatever it is you think is best for you and your family. Continue on with your doctors and the treatments they suggest, but if, at any time, you feel like you aren't getting the best care possible, I want you to come to me. That's all I'm asking Mark. If anyone around here suggests that you seek out another opinion, or that your odds would improve if only you had access to a top-notch treatment center, then pick up the damn phone and call me. I'll make it happen. I promise."
"Ok," Mark agreed, and an expression of such joy spread across Will's face that it was hard for Mackenzie to look away for a moment. She loved watching happy Will. It was something she had seen far too little of in recent memory.
"Ok," Will agreed, sitting there grinning goofily.
"Oh for God's sake, would you two just get it over with and hug each other all right already?!" Pam shouted. Mackenzie chuckled. Will and Mark gruffly, but quickly, hugged.
"Thank God that's over," Mackenzie muttered, and she and Pam burst out laughing. It was so good to be back together again…all of them. They spent the rest of the afternoon laughing and crying and simply enjoying being a foursome again. But all through the day and into their dinner that evening, Mackenzie was watching Will out of the corner of her eye and wondering if he realized what he had said earlier and how much it had meant to her.
"What?!" he finally shouted later that night, as Lonny drove them back to Mary and Thomas' house.
"Nothing!" she shouted right back, and Lonny chuckled from the front seat.
"Eyes forward!" Will grunted out. "And what in the hell are you staring at me for Mac?!" he asked.
"Hey, I'm your bodyguard, not an indentured servant. My eyes will go wherever they damn well please," Lonny said under his breath.
"Sorry," Will apologized.
"Well, answer him, would you?" Lonny said, looking at Mackenzie through the rearview mirror.
"Jesus Christ! When did everyone in the known universe become a damn expert on our relationship?" Mackenzie asked him.
"When you sent an email to 145,000 employees of AWM. I'm on that list you know," Lonny informed her. Will just laughed. Mackenzie fumed.
As soon as they pulled into the driveway of the old farmhouse, Mackenzie was out the door and dragging Will after her.
"I'm not as young as I used to be Mac. Could you slow down a little?" he pleaded, trying to keep up with her quick stride towards the cornfields surrounding the house.
"Did you really mean it?" she asked, once she had stopped walking. He looked at her confused.
"What you said back on Mark and Pam's boat? That you jump in and take control of the people you love a little too much? And then you looked at me Billy. Did you…" she tried to formulate another question, but couldn't quite seem to get it out.
"Yes," he said simply. "Look, I've been talking to Habib for months now about forgiveness and betrayal and a lot of the things he's said have made sense. But I figured if you and I had any hope of getting back together, I damn well better figure out where I went wrong in our relationship too Mac. Because you and Brian," and he took a deep breath as he said that name "that didn't happen in a vacuum. I was there too. There had to have been something that I did wrong to send you back to that asshole," he finished.
"I'm not sure I agree with that, but go on" she replied.
"I've been taking care of the people around me since I was ten years old Mac. Hell, probably even younger than that. I don't exactly know how to have a relationship between equals. I push and I prod and I direct…that's what I do. But you never really needed me to take care of you…to take care of anything for you. And that sort of threw me for a loop. I probably stepped on your damn independent toes one too many times. I'm sorry."
"Wait, you are apologizing to me?" she asked, stunned. "I cheated on you…and you're apologizing to me?!"
"Well, yeah. I'm not saying what you did was right or that my behavior justified it. We should have sat down and talked about things like adults. But I'm pigheaded and proud and egotistical and you're stubborn and independent and we fucked it all up Mac. But I think maybe my controlling tendencies are mellowing, and your stubborn streak is fading, and maybe we could make it work this time around?" he finished that sentence with a question…as if he was in doubt.
"Yeah, I think maybe we can," she said, squeezing his hand and walking back toward the house with him.
"Was I that bad before?" he asked curiously.
"You weren't controlling in the sense that most people think of that term Billy. You weren't a domineering, abusive partner. You were just…just…" she stuttered.
"An asshole?" he asked.
"No, never," she told him. "But you seemed to want to take care of everything. All the time Will. One day I was sitting alone in the apartment and I realized I didn't know where anything was. I didn't know which channel was which on cable. Hell, I didn't even know where we kept the take-out menus! And do you know why? Because I had never once decided what we were going to have for dinner, or what we were going to watch on tv. It all just became a little overwhelming. And then Brian started calling, and you and I weren't in a very good place at the time, and it all just seemed to happen so quickly. I'm sorry Will. You're right we should have talked to each other more. Maybe that's what this last year and a half has been? We've been nothing more than work partners and friends…we've done nothing but talk for the last eighteen months. We should be experts by now!" she exclaimed.
"Actually, I think we've screamed and shouted and argued more than we've talked, but still," he remarked, and she smacked him upside the head.
"Hey! My face is my fortune here! Stop being so abusive," he whined, rubbing the back of his head for effect.
"Oh please! First off, I didn't hit you that hard. And second, your face is not your fortune. Your brain and your voice are. You could read names out of the phone directory and you'd have me weak in the knees Will McAvoy. And you know it. Don't be obtuse."
"Is that right? Well, I'm sure Mary and Thomas left a phone book somewhere around here. Let's go inside and give it a shot," he said chuckling. Just then they heard a shriek from the driveway.
"Billy! Is that you?" Mary shouted, and came running toward them. She threw herself into her brother's arms and he swung her around.
"Hi Mary," he said softly as he hugged her.
"Well, well, well….look who we have here," Mary said, clucking her tongue.
"Hello Mary," Mackenzie greeted.
"I'm surprised to see you here Mackenzie. All things considered." Mary looked her up and down. Suddenly Mackenzie was glad for her height. At least Mary didn't tower over her. The look she was giving her would have been much more intimidating if it wasn't coming from a woman who was five foot four.
"Mary…" Will warned.
"Relax Billy. You're a big boy. I don't get involved in my sibling's romantic entanglements. Been there, done that with Anna. It's been nothing but a huge disaster. I've learned to hold my tongue," Mary replied tiredly.
"That bad?" Will asked.
"You have no idea Billy. No idea at all."
"She's here, you know," Will told his sister.
"What? Here? As in my house, here?" Mary asked, stunned.
"Yup. In one of the guest rooms. Don't worry. Mac and I cleaned up the kitchen this morning," Will told his sister, at her panicked look.
"Jesus Christ! She'll burn the place down or something if she's left to her own devices for too long. I told her she couldn't stay here! Where in the hell did she get keys?!"
Mary looked like she wanted to cry. Hell, she probably did. She was coming back home to a place she had only just managed to pack up and leave less than two months ago. She was coming back to spend time with her seriously ill brother. And now, she was coming home to what could be a disaster in the making with her own sister.
"Thank you. Both of you," Mary said quietly, and gave Mackenzie a short smile.
"So, did you bring the kids?" Will asked, eager to see the niece and nephew he had barely laid eyes upon in the last ten years. He had never been all that close with any of his siblings once he left Nebraska. Mark and Pam were a different story. He had been close with them because of Mac and because of the connection they all shared from their time in D.C. But Mary had never strayed far from Nebraska until this recent move, and she and Will couldn't have been more different. Where Will craved a challenge and an adventure, Mary truly would have been happy to have never left this old farmhouse. As such, Will hadn't been much of a presence in the lives of Mary's now teenaged children.
"They're getting their stuff out of the car. Thomas just started work at the San Francisco branch of his company's office. He couldn't leave so soon after the move, but the kids were thrilled at the idea of getting to come home to see their friends. Go say hi," Mary offered, pointing him toward sixteen-year-old Jarod and fourteen-year-old Kate.
"I read the email you know," Mary said to Mackenzie, as Will strode up the lawn toward Mary's children.
"You and half the fucking world apparently," Mac replied. At that, Mary started laughing hysterically. Mackenzie soon joined her.
"I knew you were a klutz. I didn't know that extended to technological devices as well," Mary told her. It was still something Will's siblings liked to tease her about. When Mackenzie was nervous, she fidgeted, and when she fidgeted, things went wrong. That very first weekend she had met Will's family she must have tripped over every damn shoe, rug or small child that she came near. She was just so damn terrified to meet his entire family all at once that she was a mess.
"I hurt him Mary. I know how much I hurt him now. You have to believe me when I say I would never do that to him again," Mackenzie promised the woman. Mary looked at her and seemed to be appraising her statement.
"You better not," she said seriously. Mackenzie just nodded.
"I meant what I said to Will, Mac," and Mackenzie let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding when Mary used her nickname. Maybe all hope of a relationship with Will's family wasn't fading?
"What's that Mary?" Mackenzie asked.
"I don't get involved in my sibling's love lives. Lord knows, Anna has brought home some real winners," Mary huffed out "but I gave up trying to fix her life years ago. I am not going to try to interfere in Will's. He's always been more of a father to all of us than a brother anyway. No way in hell am I going to tell him what to do now."
"Thanks," Mackenzie responded, not sure if she should really be thanking the woman, but she was grateful that another McAvoy sibling seemed to be accepting her…and her relationship with Will.
"Don't thank me just yet. I won't interfere, but you hurt him again, and all bets are off," Mary warned.
"Fair enough," Mackenzie replied. "So, are you going to introduce me to your kids, or what?"
Mary's children barely remembered Will, and had only met Mackenzie briefly one weekend years ago, so there was that awkward re-introduction to each other. Mainly, the two teenagers wanted to go off to see their friends and could not have cared less about all these boring adults. Although Kate did seem quiet enamored of Mackenzie's accent and upbringing and repeatedly asked her what it was like to grow up as the daughter of an ambassador and travel the world. Kate was in that phase of teenage life where everything about your hometown and your parents seems interminable boring.
Mackenzie was being incredibly patient with the girl, but she swore, if Kate asked her one more time to say "bloody hell" or "bollocks" she was going to feign a headache and go off to bed.
"If I ask you to say it, will you smack me too?" Will asked cheekily as they got into bed.
"Yes," she replied, her patience finally wearing thin.
"I'll read the phone book to you," he offered and she laughed.
"Well, ok then," she agreed, curling up on her side and turning away from him. "Are you waiting for an invitation Billy?" she asked.
"Huh?" he replied, dumbfounded.
"I'm cold and I'm tired and I'm sick of being an exhibit of British pronunciation. Now, scoot over here and keep me warm," she pleaded.
He'd never heard a better offer in his life, so he rolled over closer to her and wrapped himself around her.
"Mac?" he asked a few minutes later.
"Hmm?" she mumbled, clearly already falling asleep.
"Thank you for coming with me," he said.
"Anytime, Billy, anytime."
There were no nightmares and Mac woke with Will still curled around her. His hand, however, had made its way under her shirt and was dangerously close to her breast. She could tell the instant he woke and he realized where his hand was located. He started to pull back but Mac's hand on his stopped him.
"It's okay," she said.
"I'm sorry…."
She turned over onto her back and placed her other hand on his cheek. "I want you to touch me, you have no idea how good you make me feel, touching me."
He knew they were in this for the long haul but he was fighting with himself over whether or not to continue this contact. He wanted her, no doubt. But they had very little privacy and now with Mary and the kids back in the house they had even less.
He moved his hand to her breast and caressed her, his thumb teasing the nipple.
"Fuck, Billy," she moaned and arched up into him.
He leaned down and kissed her, his tongue playing with hers all while his hand was doing amazing things to her breast. When he pulled back he said, "we need more privacy than we currently have. Please don't think that I don't want you, fuck, Kenz, I'm hard as a rock and I want nothing more than to sink into you."
"We never were quiet," she said smiling at him.
"You were always louder than me," he teased.
"Seriously? You think I can't make you louder than me? Is that a challenge?"
"We definitely need more privacy," he said. He softly kissed her and pulled his hand from her breast.
"We have a good reason to go to a hotel now, not enough room," she reasoned.
"Mark and Pam are going to offer their guest room," he predicted.
"Damn. We can't move and not tell them?"
"And when they call here looking for us," Will said, "because they will and then we'll have to explain why we didn't tell them and stay there when they have a perfectly fine guest room. It just happens to be next to Emily."
"Fuck, Billy," she said burying her head in his shoulder. He pulled her tight against him and she could feel how hard he was from their brief encounter.
He smiled at her. "Soon, Kenz, I promise. I want to make love with you just as bad as you want to make love with me. We're there, together."
"We're suffering together," she whined.
"I know and I'll make it up to you, I promise. We'll spend the next weekend we're both home in bed, we won't leave the apartment at all."
"That sounds nice. Will you take a bath with me?"
"I will. That sounds very nice. You sitting between my legs, resting back against my chest."
She smiled and said, "not helping."
"How about I go get us some coffee and we'll figure out what we're doing today."
"Coffee sounds great."
