Now it was nearing dinner time, and Jake felt a need to bypass going directly downstairs for a visit with the baby.
Unsure of how he would be greeted, he knocked and waited. When he was bid entry, Jake found MacKenzie sitting in a chair giving her daughter her last bottle.
“I hope you don’t mind, but I thought I’d visit with Noelle before she went down for the night.” Jake could see the surprise on MacKenzie’s face but chose to ignore it.
“Sure, come on over, she’s a little sleepy though.”
“Don’t worry I won’t disturb her. Why don’t you show me what to do and I can continue with her feed while you go and change for dinner.” Jake knew he wasn't too subtle, but he didn’t care. Seeing her still in her dressing gown alerted him to the fact that she might be of a mind to skip dinner. That was not an option.
“I’m not really that hungry.” That she refused to make eye contact with him spoke volumes.
“MacKenzie, there is one thing you should know when dealing with the Kingdom men. “You have to face us down. Not that we would ever take advantage of you, but if you let us, we could unintentionally intimidate the hell out of you.”
“Your family don’t intimidate me,” MacKenzie shot back. “Well, maybe I’m the tiniest bit intimidated by your father, but not by you and your oversized brothers.”
“Then what’s going on?”
MacKenzie hesitated and looked down at Noelle nestled in her arms. “I don’t know if I’m ready to face your family,” she admitted with obvious embarrassment.
The honesty of her response weighed heavily on him. Jake knew his reaction towards the revelation at the interview had a lot to do with how she was feeling, but he wasn’t about to apologize. The way he felt and the way he had reacted still stood. She was just going to have to deal with it. “Is there any truth in what that reporter said?”
“You know there isn’t.”
“Then what do you have to be embarrassed about?” Jake pushed.
“You said it best, your family stood by me, and I em–”
Jake cut her off. He had heard enough. “Give me the baby, show me what to do, and go and change. This subject is now closed.”
“Jake!” MacKenzie’s utterance of the single word encompassed her exasperation with him.
With a sigh, he took the baby from her. His movement was so seamless, Noelle was in his arms, bottle and all before MacKenzie even realized what had happened.
“You need to get going before we end up getting to dinner half way through the meal.” With a toss of his head, he indicated that she should move so he could sit down.
With a huff followed by a roll of her eyes, MacKenzie rose from the chair. Jake took her place and nodded to the bottle that looked awkward in his large hand. “Am I doing it right?” At her nod, he transferred his attention back to the sleepy child. “Good, now go and change.”
“You really need to stop bossing me around, Jacob Kingdom,” MacKenzie whispered.
Jake knew she would have rather shouted at him, but was mindful of the baby. His only response to her reprimand was a show of dimples. He had gotten his way, and that was all that concerned him.
**********
Dinner that night was a somewhat subdued event. Everyone chatted and acted as they normally did, but it was obvious to Jake that MacKenzie was still extremely uncomfortable. No matter how often attempts were made to integrate her into the conversation, she remained on the peripheral. Her lack of response didn’t faze the family. They all joked and MacKenzie was not exempted from their teasing. Watching her, Jake was sure he had seen her smile more than once.
They were all gathered in the family room after dinner when the joviality came to an end.
“We need to talk,” Jackson broke into the chatter that surrounded them. “We need to come to a consensus of what we’re going to do about Diana.”
The mention of their mother’s name was all it took to dampen the spirits of the younger men. Jake observed the veil of barely suppressed anger overtake his brother’s expressions, and he knew his was no different.
Still in charge of the conversation, Jackson continued speaking. “We got distracted by what happened to Aviva all those months ago, then came the wedding and finally Noelle's arrival. All these incidents, as well as our business commitments, have led us to this point. For my part, I wouldn’t change any of the additions to this family, they are most welcomed.” The smile Jackson offered the two women was acknowledged with smiles of their own.
There was no getting away from it, his father was a charmer. With a look and a few well-chosen words, he had Aviva and MacKenzie eating out of his hands.
“I’m going to pay Diana a visit and get this matter resolved once and for all.”
“Oh yeah, and how are you going to do that?” Jason wanted to know.
“I’m not sure yet, but I’ll work it out.”