When Uncle Mac had invited her over for breakfast, Robin had seized up the opportunity. She needed to tell him about the engagement before he found out from anyone else. He had been so busy lately, as he always was, that he hadn't seen the news article. Maxie wasn't exactly up with current events so she wasn't able to spill the news either. This wouldn't be the perfect way to tell him, but it was better than him finding out on his own.
Despite the fact that she hadn't lived in his house since she was a teenager, Robin still found herself pushing her Cap 'N Crunch around in her bowl with her spoon. "I'm fine. I like cereal. Come sit down. You don't have to do all of that."
"Do you want me to finish the waffles?" Maxie offered standing up quickly. She wasn't completely comfortable with anyone knowing that she was seeing Ric, that they were dating--that was going to take some getting used to--unless it was on her terms. He had thrown out some ideas of how they should spend the coming weeks, some date ideas, but other than making her feel guilty for keeping her family from getting to know him, she could only pretend nothing was wrong.
"It's just waffles ladies. I think this old Papa Bear can handle it." Mac rolled his eyes as he flipped over the waffle iron. "I'm to understand that you both have the morning off, right, because I don't want our time to be cut short by work?"
"Right." They said in unison.
"How are those designs coming along?" Satisfied with the amount of waffles he had made, Mac carried them to the table and placed them on the tiny plates provided, the ones he had set in front of his girls even when they had protested. Some things never changed.
"Good." Maxie smiled. "W—I showed them to Lucy Coe yesterday and she went crazy over them. Started talking about my designs taking me elsewhere."
"What's there to see?" Mac wanted to know. "What's wrong with this town? There's certain stability to it. Even you can't ignore that."
"Um, excuse me..." Robin made a time-out sign with her hands. "Aren't you the one who agreed to let Georgie go overseas?"
"Don't remind me. You know, that girl never answers her phone. She's probably dead and no one's told me." Mac went on dramatically.
"She's not dead. There'd be a message in the sky and a chorus of angels. Do you see either one?" Maxie teased pointing her fork at him.
"She does have a point." Robin agreed. "I saw that you didn't get your paper this morning."
"It's all a bunch of hogwash anyway." Mac informed her. "Why would I want to see that little twit on the front page?" Knowing who he was referring to, Maxie beamed.
"It's not all bad." Robin insisted gently.
"The news is just a way of repeating events and rephrasing how you say it. Besides, they have an uncanny ability of making my department look incompetent." Mac grumbled sipping his coffee.
"Your department is far from incompetent." Robin assured him wisely.
"I know. I just get so sick of their b.s. The way they attacked Alexis during the kidnappings...it's too much to swallow." His voice had gone impossibly quiet.
"It's nothing to do with her abilities as D.A. It's that she's a woman." Maxie informed them.
"Well I got sick of hearing about it, so I've quit reading the paper altogether." Mac replied biting into a piece of waffle.
"Patrick and I can only stand the funnies." Robin threw in purposely knowing the only way to get her uncle to pick up on something was to leave him breadcrumbs.
Mac bristled at the mention of that man and snorted. "I'd rather not know what the two of you do in your spare time. I'd like to keep some sense of sanity."
"What is it you think we do?" Robin demanded and Maxie choked on a Froot Loop.
"As I just said, I don't want to discuss it." Mac argued.
"Wait just a minute here. You were fine with him at Christmas." Robin reminded him.
"I tolerated him at Christmas. No situation we've ever been in together has inspired confidence in that immature, one-track minded man."
"We love each other. That's not going to change." Robin assured him.
"Fine. Love him. I've had to mend your mistakes before." Mac muttered.
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Robin leaned forward.
"Oh shit." Maxie said into her cup before taking a big gulp of orange juice.
"Are you saying that I'm not capable of making adult decisions about my life?"
"I'm saying you make them fool-heartedly." Mac clarified.
Robin glanced down at her half-empty cereal bowl. "I see. So if I told you I was getting married, what would your reaction be?" She lifted her eyes just in time to see him awestruck reaction.
"Did you happen to hear about those rabid ducks?" Maxie squeaked out.
"Getting married?" Mac's eyes almost fell out of his head.
"Yes. Some people call it getting engaged." Robin explained wryly.
"Logan wasn't enough of an example?" Mac asked sharply.
Robin slammed her hands against the solid table. "I am SO tired of everyone comparing them! They're nothing alike! Nothing!"
"Well you wouldn't know it from this end." Mac shot back irritably.
"Just because you've cut yourself off from the man I'm dating, the man I'm going to marry doesn't mean you're justified in your reaction right now." Robin snapped.
"That's the thing about reactions, Robin: They're the only honest thing left in the world."
"Could I design your dress?" Maxie cut in.
Mac stood up so fast, his chair crashed to the floor. "I don't have time for this."
"Make time for it!" Robin countered following his motion and stomping her foot in defiance.
"Guys...come on. Let's not fight. We've got waffles." Maxie reminded them.
Robin moved to stand in front of her uncle. "I am engaged. I'd really appreciate it if you could pretend to be happy for me."
"You want to talk about appreciation? How about sending that punk over here and asking for my permission before springing an engagement on me?" Mac suggested coldly.
"Are you and Alexis going to do a full-blown ceremony or are you going to be boring and do it the courthouse way?" Maxie interrupted again.
Standing this close to him, Robin couldn't discount the tears she saw suddenly appear in her uncle's eyes. "Uncle Mac?"
"I have to get to work." Mac started toward the door, but Robin latched her hand around his wrist.
"What's going on?" Robin pressed.
"I'm not supposed to say anything yet." Mac told them.
"You mean we know before anyone else?" Maxie grinned.
"Alexis is terminal. The cancer has spread." Mac said it all very fast so that maybe, just maybe, his brain wouldn't register the truth in his statement.
"Terminal?" Robin echoed sadly.
"Spread?" Maxie choked out.
"She wanted to sit down with all of you tomorrow night and we were going to tell you then." Mac whispered.
"Apparently she's had this same cancer before, but didn't think the doctors should know. It wasn't as severe last time." Mac wasn't sure what compelled him to explain. He didn't want to admit that any of it was true.
"Are the treatments helping at all?" Robin inquired.
"She's started to lose her hair." Mac clarified as his fingers fisted.
"But you're getting married." Maxie couldn't ignore the tears in her father's eyes or pretend that she wasn't close to tears herself.
"Yes we are." Mac nodded.
"But you're in love." She went on.
"Yes. That hasn't changed."
"This isn't right." Maxie declared carrying her dishes to the sink and dropping them loudly.
"I agree baby." Mac told her.
"She's not giving up, right?" Maxie asked shrilly.
"No. She's not giving up."
"Good because she's going to make it through this. She will. She will." Maxie repeated the two-word mantra quietly to herself.
"What are the doctors saying?" Robin held his hands tightly in hers.
"To give the treatments time to work." Mac met Maxie's eyes. "They're not letting her come home."
"I'm so sorry Uncle Mac." Robin blinked rapidly to keep his image from blurring in front of him. "And to pick today to drop all of my stuff on you."
"You definitely had a new approach to announcing an engagement."
"Alexis shouldn't be sick. Kate the bitch should be terminal." Maxie grumbled her shoulders tensing.
"A new hire at the diner?" Robin assumed.
"Yes." Maxie nodded her back still facing them.
"Maxie, do you have something you want me to know? Do me a favor and aim for the back of my head, will you?"
"You're being dramatic." Maxie pointed out.
"You're seeing someone!" Robin accused pointing. Mac settled back into his chair.
"Do you happen to know who your cousin is seeing?" Mac caught Robin's stare.
"I have a pretty good idea, but it's not my secret to expose. Maxie?" Robin goaded.
"You know nothing." Maxie concluded.
"So there is someone?" Mac asked.
"Do you remember right after Kristina was taken and I had to go the hospital? What you don't know is that someone was there to take me in." Maxie wanted to crawl under the table and announce that she was never coming out again. She was depending on them not remembering details.
"Would you please stop speaking in code? Answer the question before it's time to haul me off to the retirement home, will you?" Mac sighed impatiently.
"I met him through volunteering for the Nurse's Ball. He was there that first day." She could go on about how they were in the committee together, but she had a sneaky suspicion that her dad would figure out Ric's initial intentions.
"Who is he?" Robin asked curiously.
"Dr. Ric Lansing." Maxie gulped.
Previews - "Am I helping with what I think I'm helping with?"
"Yes." He grinned. "You still want to help?"