Will endured Nina's excited prattle about her decorative schemes with good humour that night. He had put them into this situation and she did not deserve to be punished. When he wasn't with Mac he didn't really mind what Nina did. He knew they wouldn't last. Let her have her fun.
The next day Mac is in her office earlier than usual, trying to get ahead of the day before the Major comes with Cynthia. Jim is also in early preparing his segments and checking the wires for items for the pitch meeting.
Will is late but then… he has Nina.
"Are you sure they'll be here all afternoon?" Jim asks
"Totally promised Jimmy boy, and Major Max never lets people down." Mac replies with a grin. Max's visit is a real treat. Her spirits lightened when she heard he was back in the US and actually going to visit the Big Apple after DC.
"But I bet him I'd go to work for a week with a beard" Jim whined
"Did you now?" Mac teases "And have you got pictures to prove it or will you have to start growing one now?...or maybe you could make a trade off with an eyebrow shave?"
Neal ambles in and catches the end of the conversation
"You going to shave your eyebrows man? I'll help with that" he offers
"Keep away from my facial hair, no one is shaving my anything" Jim says in panic
Mac and Neal share a smile as Mac puts her hand on Jim's arm and says "Calm down Jim, they have to get through me to get to you and I'm fearless….. and crafty. You are totally safe".
"What's the excitement anyway," Neal asks,"You're both in super early".
"Visitors due this afternoon Neal, from the military" Mac informs him "A major who we shared a few months of our time with and there will be stories to tell, wagers to pay and catching up to do"
"He was so sweet on you Mac" Jim says just as Will enters the newsroom
"Morning" Will mutters, making for his office
After the noon meeting Mac leaves with Jim to meet her guests in the dining room and later brings them down to watch a TV news show being made.
She enters the bullpen leading a petit blonde 30 something woman and the tall handsome man from Valentino's of two nights earlier. Jim trails behind.
Mac introduces Major Max and his wife Cynthia to some of the staff as Will walks out of his office to see what the commotion is all about. "Mac, I need to show you this draft" he says to cover his curiosity.
Cynthia's face breaks into a huge smile as she starts to walk towards Will.
"Hey remember me Mr McAvoy…. Will?" She says still smiling broadly.
Will looks at her and has a very vague notion that he might have met her at some time.
"Errr. Um maybe" he starts tentatively "Can you jog my memory,Miss…"
"It's Mrs now, Mrs Cynthia Brandon, I married Max there." She says easily. "I guess you meet lots of people every day and we did only go on one little date" she pauses "and it was a long time ago"
"We did? Oh, Oh yes well I'm really sorry that I forgot the details" Will continues getting more flustered and uncomfortable.
Mac and Max exchange covert looks and soon are shaking silently. The giggle escapes Mac first followed by solid laughter from Max and Jim.
"What's going on?" Will asks confused
Mac can't talk for laughter and Jim steps up to explain that Max is the Army's no 1 practical joker and that Cynthia was paying on a bet she'd lost…..she had never actually met Will before.
Will then was formally introduced to Max and his wife and Mac explained how they had faced a few things together while they'd been embedded. They'd stayed in touch and she had invited them to see the show being made whilst they were in New York.
Will actually liked Max instantly but wondered if his wife knew he's been wining and dining Mac two nights ago.
"So what brings you here, right now?" Will asks Max when he shows him his office?
"Oh! You know the Pentagon likes to boss us all around. And they think I might be heading towards a staff post in the White House soon. Oh yeah! And there are debts to collect on" he says with a sly smile
"Really…" Will comments "Like..?"
"Like the bet I won with Mac. She promised to take me to dine at her favourite restaurant in this city if I got through the mission. So of course she would never forget to pay and she has- in full"
"Oh! Right!" Will repeats "What was the mission"
"You know the time when we were trapped in a village when Mac offered in URDU, would you believe she can get by in that, to go with the bandits if they would let the rest of us go. She insisted that she was valuable as a hostage because of her father. She argued so passionately and so loudly, determined to save us, that the troops sent to back us up located us and voilà we were released. But we nearly lost Mac on that one and she would have been beheaded after she was no more use if you know what I mean" he says cheerfully.
Will's stomach churns. He knows almost nothing about her twenty-six months embedded. He knows nothing about the dangers she faced and the deaths she saw. What he can see is a man who faced these with her and the bond they made. And Jim is part of this too…Will feels a tug of jealousy... though he knows how stupid he's being.
"So, did you lose any bets with Mac?" he asks quietly, remembering the blue Tiffany box and the flowers Mac had clutched at dinner.
A warm look came over Max's face as he remembered some event or other that involved Mac. He shook his head. "There was something I was always wanting from her but she never was able to …well it's between me and Mac but…I did promise her a gift from the most expensive jewellery shop I could find…I have made good on that…for saving my life she has one gold earing keeper, you know the things that are used to hold earrings on at the back. 100$ for one earing keeper… I think the box was really most of the cost…" he trailed off.
Will had his answer.
Mac had been being…..well... Mac... and he had been plain stupid…again… and now he is living with Nina. And Mac will think he is pushing her further away because he's moved on and this is all a bigger mess than ever.
And Mac has nearly died twice at least a small voice in his head keeps chanting. His gut tenses and his head starts to ache at the thought. He doesn't know what happened to her for 3 whole years. He used not to want to know, but now he truly needs to get to know those years. He desperately wishes to know everything about the extraordinary woman he is completely besotted by.
The only thing he does know, is completely certain about, right now, is that he really, really doesn't want to be living with Nina Howard
SHIT!