Tara grinned. “Nothing like a good old panic attack, is there?”

“Is that what it was? I’ve never had one before.” She blew out a breath, then inhaled again, this time not doing it like she was running a breathing race. “Scared the hell out of me.”

“So the topic of my son brings out panic in you?”

She looked over at Kathleen. “Oh. No, not at all. Yes. Maybe. I don’t know. I wasn’t prepared to answer questions about how I feel about him.”

“Obviously,” Jenna said with a smirk. “Who knew my brother incited such panic in women?”

Elizabeth managed a laugh. “No, really, it’s not him. It’s me.”

“I’m sorry,” Tara said. “I didn’t mean to back you into a corner about Gavin.”

Elizabeth leaned back in the chair. “You have nothing to be sorry about. I’m the one who should be apologizing to you. Until the day I die, probably.”

“It’s okay, really.”

Elizabeth wasn’t sure it would ever be okay with Tara. “I really am sorry, Tara. I was so wrong, so focused on my career and Mick’s career that I was blinded. I hurt you and Nathan without thought. I would never use a child like that. I don’t know what I was thinking, and there’s no excuse for what I did.”

Tara leaned forward and grabbed her hands. “Apology accepted. Let it go, Liz. I have. And Nathan holds no grudge.”

She shuddered out a sigh. “Thank you. You’re very generous and much nicer than I probably would be.”

Tara laughed. “Well, don’t go fainting on me every time you see me. That would be a start.”

Elizabeth managed a smile. “It’s a bit disconcerting that you knew how I felt all along.”

“Well, you were kind of obvious. Your feelings for Gavin are written all over your face.”

She put her palms over her cheeks, the flame of embarrassment heating her. “They are?”

Tara gave her a sympathetic smile. “Yes, they are.”

“So, you’re in love with Gavin. Wow. I didn’t see it,” Jenna said. “You two have known each other for years. So is this a recent thing or have you been carrying a torch for a while?”

“For a long time, is my guess,” Tara said.

“Is she right?” Kathleen asked.

Elizabeth nodded.

“Does Gavin know?”

Elizabeth shook her head. “No. God, no. And I don’t want him to know.”

Kathleen frowned. “Why not?”

She looked down at her hands. “This is hard to explain.”

“Because a guy has to fall in love with you because it’s what he wants, not out of obligation.”

Elizabeth lifted her head and nodded at Tara. “Yes.”

“Which means, Mom, that we need to butt out and let Elizabeth and Gavin handle their relationship the way they see fit,” Jenna said.

“All right. But I have to tell you, Lizzie, that I love you and I love my son. And I don’t want either of you hurt.”

Elizabeth reached for Kathleen’s hand. “I love you, too. And I don’t want to hurt him. I just don’t know how this is going to play out. I don’t know what we are to each other yet. So I’m asking you to give us some time to figure it all out.”

She turned to Tara. “And give Mick some space, too. He’s still mad at me, and he has a right to be. And he and Gavin are at odds over it. I’m strong and I can take it. I just don’t want them fighting because of me.”

Tara shrugged. “I’ve already decided to step away from that battle.”

Kathleen nodded. “Probably a good choice. Sometimes brothers need to find their own solutions to their problems. And when a woman—or women—are involved, it’s best to steer clear. They’ll find a way through this. They always have before.”

Elizabeth hoped that was true. She’d walk away from Gavin before she drove a wedge in his relationship with Mick.

She just hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

SIXTEEN

GAVIN SEARCHED THE WHOLE DAMN HOUSE FOR ELIZABETH, wondering if maybe Mick had found her and stuffed her in the trunk of a car.

Okay, he wouldn’t do that. Or at least he didn’t think his brother would go that far.

As he made his third pass through the house, he saw Elizabeth coming down the stairs with his mother and Jenna—and Tara, of all people.

They were all smiling, chatting away, seemingly at ease with each other.

That he hadn’t expected.

“Hey, I’ve been looking everywhere for you,” he said as she reached the bottom of the steps. “What have you been doing?”

“It’s a secret women’s society. We’re plotting the demise of the male species,” Jenna said.

“Smart-ass.” He kissed the cheek Jenna presented to him, then she walked away.

Tara came up to him and hugged him. “Girl talk. You don’t have to monopolize all of Elizabeth’s time, do you?”

He looked to Elizabeth, who seemed just fine. “I guess not.”

“Then I suppose you can have her back. Your mother and Jenna and I have to go get Mick’s cake ready. Did you and your dad grill the meat?”

“Yeah,” he said, unable to take his eyes off Elizabeth, wanting to make sure she was all right. “It’s on the counter in the kitchen.”

Elizabeth looked at Gavin’s mother. “Do you need help?”

“No,” Kathleen said. “You catch up with Gavin. We have it under control.”

They walked off, and Gavin led her out the front door so they could have some privacy.

“What’s going on? Why were you upstairs with Jenna, Tara, and my mom?”

She shrugged. “Nothing. We were just talking.”

“Did Tara grill you or give you a hard time?”

Her lips quirked. “No. We talked. It was good. It cleared the air. We’re fine now.” She laid her hand on his arm. “Really, it’s okay.”

“You sure?”

“Positive.”

“Okay.”

“So can we go inside and help out instead of skulking around avoiding everyone?”

He put his arm around her shoulder. “I guess so.”

She slid her arm around his waist. “Really, Gavin. I can take care of myself. Even with Mick.”

Who was at the front door with Tara when they opened it. Elizabeth gave him her biggest smile.

“Happy birthday, Mick.”

Gavin could tell Tara had talked to him. “Thanks. Glad you could make it.”

Elizabeth’s lips curled. “No, you’re not, but thanks for being civil about it. I’ll try to stay out of your way.” She let go of Gavin. “I’m going into the kitchen to help your mom.”

“Me, too.” Tara leaned up and kissed Mick. “Behave.”

“When have I not behaved?”

Tara rolled her eyes, then switched her gaze at Gavin. “You, too.”

Tara left and Gavin stood there with Mick. “Thanks for not jumping on Elizabeth.”

Mick shrugged. “I don’t have anything to say to her as long as she doesn’t f**k with my family. She’s already done enough of that.”

There was a lot Gavin wanted to say in reply, but it was Mick’s birthday, and his mother would probably smack him on the head if he punched the birthday boy. Which was probably why Mick figured he could get away with saying whatever he wanted.

The free pass would only last so long. Like today was the only day.

“I think we should see what Dad’s up to,” Gavin suggested, swallowing his anger.

“That’s probably a good idea.”

Dad was neutral territory. He was outside, surrounded by the smoke of the barbecue pit and a handful of Gavin and Mick’s uncles. Gavin heard the tail end of a story about this year’s Super Bowl game, about one of Mick’s outstanding plays and how there was standing room only at the bar that Sunday.

Mick groaned. “Like Uncle Robert and Uncle Matt haven’t heard that story a hundred times already.”

“Heard? Hell, they were at the bar that night. We all were. Doesn’t mean Dad isn’t going to tell it over and over again.”

There were a handful of neighbors surrounding Dad, and they’d all been at the bar that night, too. So had Gavin, who’d seen all the plays, heard all the cheers, and still had to listen to the replay.

Not that he was jealous. Winning the Super Bowl had been a damn big deal for his brother. He didn’t begrudge him the glory at all. If the shoe had been on the other foot, Gavin would be reveling in the glory and milking it for as long as he could.

“Mick, my boy, come on over and tell the guys about the winning touchdown pass.”

“Again,” Gavin murmured.

Mick rolled his eyes. “They don’t want to hear it.”

“Probably not, but Dad wants you to tell them. Maybe if you’re lucky, they’ll take up a collection for you not to tell it.”

Mick snorted and headed into the throng. Gavin stayed back and sipped his beer, listening to the story he’d heard many times before.

“Your season is looking good so far.”

Gavin hadn’t heard Tara’s son, Nathan, come up behind him. The kid was always so quiet. Of course a fifteen-year-old amidst the boisterous Riley clan could get swallowed up like a small fish in a shark tank.

“Thanks, Nathan. How are you doing?”

“Pretty good.”

Gavin knew there was something Nathan wanted to talk to him about.

“Is there something on your mind?”

Nathan glanced over to where Mick was mimicking the throw of a football.

“Yeah, kinda.”

“Go ahead. We’re family now. Tell me what you’re thinking.”

Nathan paused for a second, then said, “It’s about your girlfriend.”

“Elizabeth.”

“Yeah.”

“Are you mad at her?” Gavin asked.

“No. But Mick still is. And he thinks I should be, but I’m not.”

Gavin swiveled on the steps to face Nathan. “No one should tell you how you should feel, Nathan. Not your mom or Mick or me. If you’re pissed off about what Elizabeth did to manipulate the media that day, that’s your right. If you’re over it, that’s your right, too. If Mick is still angry about it, that’s his problem to deal with.”

“I guess so.”

“You don’t have to feel whatever he feels about anything. He’ll still care about you. It’s kind of like when two people love each other, but they’re on different sides in politics.”

“You mean when one’s a Democrat and one’s a Republican.”

“Exactly. They don’t have to agree to still love each other, right? Even though they might not agree on some serious fundamental issues.”

“We talked about that in my government class. That it’s our right to stand up for what we believe in, even if we’re in disagreement with the people closest to us.”

“Exactly. Your grandparents oppose each other politically.”

Nathan’s brows popped up. “Really?”

“Yup. But they love each other like nobody’s business. And I’ve never seen two people who can argue so fiercely, especially around election time. It’ll make your ears burn. But pick on one, and the other will defend them to the death. It’s kind of like that with how you feel about something. Just because you love Mick doesn’t mean you have to agree with everything he believes.”

Nathan stared at Mick, then nodded. “That makes sense. Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I kind of like Elizabeth. She came up to me today, and we sat down, and she told me how she screwed up and how sorry she was. I think that takes some guts.”

“Yeah, I guess it does.”

Nathan tilted his head up at Gavin. “I think she’s really trying, Gavin.”

Gavin bumped his shoulder against Nathan’s. “I think she is, too, Nathan. Maybe your dad will figure that out someday soon.”

ELIZABETH WAS DRAINED. PHYSICALLY, MENTALLY, AND emotionally exhausted.

First the meltdown in front of Jenna, Kathleen, and Tara, and oh, God, could that have been a more horrifying moment? And then she’d sat down and had a heart-to-heart with a fifteen-year-old boy, who’d handled her apology with a maturity she hadn’t expected.

And to top it off she’d had to spend the rest of the night doing her best to dodge Mick, which wasn’t easy considering it had been his birthday party.

She wanted to strip down, crawl under the covers, and end this day.

Gavin had brought her home and had gone to take a shower. He had worked up a sweat with an impromptu game of football with his brother and his soon-to-be nephew, along with the various cousins.

While he did that, she opened a bottle of wine and poured herself a glass. She headed upstairs, stripped off her clothes, and fell face-first onto the bed.

She was almost asleep when she felt strong hands sliding down her back, followed by warm lips pressed against the nape of her neck.

“I’ll give you an hour to stop that.”

He didn’t speak, just conducted a very sensual assault over her shoulders with his hands, massaging the tension away from her shoulder blades, the middle of her back, her lower back, and lingering at her butt—which made her giggle. He compressed the spots that needed it and used whisper-light touches on the places that weren’t so tense. He followed his fingers with the barest touch of his lips as he mapped a trail from her back to her butt to her thighs to her calves, then lifted her feet and kneaded the arches.