Must-Have Husband

Especially thinking that…” Connie’s eyes welled with tears.
    Linda reached out and took her hand. “Then don’t.”
    “I’m not taking some crazed, suicidal maniac back to Napa!”
    “We’re not sure he’s suicidal. Why don’t we see what the doctor says first?” Linda pulled a tissue from her pocket and handed it over.
    “Sure, and then what?” Connie dabbed her eyes with a sniff.
    “Well, if he’s willing. I mean, wanting to make some money…”
    Connie sat up a little straighter. “You’re saying we should buy him?”
    “ Rent him is more like it. Just for the weekend. What do you say?”
    The idea was ridiculous. Ludicrous. And yet it would keep her grandfather from knowing. At least for the next little while, until he got past his eightieth birthday. “But Grandpa thinks I’m marrying Walt!”
    “That doesn’t matter. You just say that Walt got away and you found a new one. A better one. An environmentalist.” Her voice rose with excitement. “That’s got a ring to it!”
    Connie cocked her head, considering this. An environmentalist with a beard. Hmm.
    Linda clasped her hands together, gaining more enthusiasm as she spoke. “He seems intelligent, well-spoken. Plus, he is rather handsome. You admitted it yourself. And, ooh , this is the best part. You can say that he saved you!”
    “Saved me?”
    “That’s how you met.”
    “But Linda, he nearly killed me! Fell right down on top of me!”
    “Details.” Linda held her gaze. “You’ve got to look at the big picture. And, at the end of the day, he saved us both from a fate worse than… I don’t know…coyotes.”
    “Or grizzlies.”
    “Snakes even!”
    “Spiders.”
    “All of it. Absolutely.”
    “But we can’t say we met this weekend and got engaged already.”
    “We’ll claim we came hiking before. That you and he have been an item for weeks.”
    Oh, what a tangled web we weave, Connie thought, heaving a sigh. “What makes you think he’ll do it?”
    “What’s the cash advance limit on your credit card? With mine, we’ll double it.”
    “You think we can do this and not get caught? Not even by…” She thumbed heavenward. “You know.”
    “Oh, God already knows, and He approves.”
    “What?”
    “Lies are only bad when they’re told for selfish reasons, meant to hurt other people. This little… thing …we’re talking here? It’s like playacting, a harmless charade that will help Grandpa go to his grave in peace.”
    This still didn’t feel right to Connie, but she couldn’t think of another way out of the horrible corner she’d painted herself into. Would it really be so wrong to bring a handsome friend home for the party? Help everyone get through the weekend intact without causing a big scene with her melodramatic news: Constance Marie Oliver has lost — yet another — groom.
    Just then, the door to Hank’s office opened, and the two men emerged.
    “Is he going to be all right?” Linda asked with concern.
    “Oh yes, he’ll be just fine. Ankle’s merely twisted. Nothing’s broken,” Hank said. “And that other small concern you had?” He made a tugging motion beside his throat like he was yanking on a rope. “All a big misunderstanding.”
    Connie breathed a sigh of relief. “Really?”
    Mac gave her a tilted grin, and her heart fluttered. “Totally,” he said, appearing amused. “Facts are, I was up in that tree fully intending to stow my grub for the night. To keep it away from bears.”
    “Bears, you see?” Linda said, elbowing her. “I told you there was a logical explanation. Connie glared at her sister, knowing she’d said no such thing.
    Connie pursed her lips a beat, then asked tentatively, “Maybe he should still have his head examined?”
    “You’re right on that.” Hank snapped his fingers. “Already gave the guys at the clinic a call. They’re expecting you.”
    “Us?” Connie asked with surprise.
    “Until we’re sure there’s no brain swelling, it’s probably best if Mac doesn’t drive. I’d take him myself, but I can’t leave things unmanned here.” He glanced at Linda, then met Connie’s eyes. “You don’t mind?”

    A few hours later, Mac approached the girls in the clinic waiting room, waving a stack of papers. They stood to greet him as he drew near.
    “Tests all came back negative. Doctors say I’m fine.”
    “Other than your ankle?” Connie asked.
    “Already feeling better.” He shot her a smile. “After the X-rays, they