Jaci Burton - Straddling the Line

“Really,” Haven said.

Zane nodded. “Anyway, they hired her and she starts next week.”

Trevor grinned. “She must really be excited. I’ll give her a call to congratulate her.”

“Dad bought her flowers and candy and took her out to dinner to celebrate,” Zane added.

Rachel brought the drinks, and Haven sipped what had to be the best martini she’d ever had. She sat back and listened to the brothers catch up for the next couple of hours.

Trevor was good about letting Zane lead. It was clear he was interested in what was going on in Zane’s life, both academically and socially. How could she have not known about this part of Trevor’s life before? Of course, she hadn’t been involved in his personal life when they’d been in college. Her attraction to him had been all physical. She’d never taken the time to get to know him, to ask him whether he had brothers or sisters, or to find out about his family situation.

They hadn’t been close then.

They weren’t now, either, but she liked spending time with him, liked seeing how funny he was with his brother, how they teased each other. It was obvious Zane adored Trevor, which spoke a lot to Trevor’s character.

“So are you going to grill him hard, Haven, and ask him why he thinks he has to work all the time and thinks he has to be the best at everything he does?” Zane asked.

“I intend to.”

“Good.” Zane finished his beer. “He thinks he’s a superstar.”

“No. I am a superstar. In sports. Just like you’re going to be a superstar in medicine. And shouldn’t you be back at your apartment studying?”

Zane rolled his eyes, then shifted his attention to Haven. “It’s like having another parent around. Always checking up on me. He wouldn’t even buy me beer before I turned twenty-one. What kind of big brother wouldn’t hook you up like that?”

“I’m shocked,” Haven said.

“At what? Me being law abiding and making sure my little brother didn’t get into trouble?”

“Yes. It definitely doesn’t fit in with your exploits in college.”

Zane leaned back in his chair. “Now these I want to hear about. He told us all he studied hard and went to bed early.”

Haven laughed. “He told you that?”

Trevor stood. “Time to go.”

Zane leaned back and crossed his arms. “I don’t need to leave.”

“Then we do.” Trevor took some money out and laid it on the table. “And you definitely do. Get back home and hit those books.” Zane rolled his eyes. “Whatever, Dad.” But he grinned, then stood and clasped his brother close for a hug.

“Thanks for coming, Zane,” Haven said. “It was a pleasure to meet you.”

“Great to meet you, too.”

“Take care, little brother. And hit those books.”

“Yeah, yeah. Love you.”

“Love you, too.”

Haven felt wrapped up in all the affection between Trevor and Zane. As they walked to the car, she looked over at him. He had a small smile on his face.

They got in the car and drove off, and she made several mental observations.

“So, what did you think?” he asked as he pulled onto the highway.

“I think you really love your brother.”

He cocked a brow. “And that surprises you?”

“I don’t know. It shouldn’t, I suppose, but I never pictured you with family before. And then you were so adamant about them not being mentioned, so I didn’t expect this open affection between you and Zane.”

“My issue isn’t with Zane. Or with my mother.”

He was in such a good mood, she didn’t want to delve into his father—a topic that would obviously ruin that mood. “Zane’s a great guy. Very smart.”

Trevor visibly relaxed. “Yeah, he is. Much smarter than me.”

“Why do you say that? Just because he chose medical school and you chose sports? That doesn’t make someone smarter. That’s just a different career choice.”

“Trust me, he’s a lot smarter.”

She decided not to debate the issue with him.

“But I can kick his ass in sports.”

She laughed. “Ever the competitor, aren’t you?”

He slid a smile in her direction. “Always and forever.”

AFTER SUNDAY’S GAME—WHICH THE RIVERS WON, thankfully, after losing that tough, close game on Saturday—Haven and Trevor went back to the house to change and get ready for the party at Alicia’s.

“Do we need to bring a gift?” she asked after she’d showered and found Trevor waiting for her downstairs in the living area. She’d decided on a dress, something casual, along with heels, since it was going to be an evening event.

He didn’t answer right away, and she took a moment to admire him. So far he’d dressed pretty casually at the house, wearing either workout pants or shorts, depending on the weather. Tonight he had on dark jeans and a Henley. His dark hair was getting a little long, and the ends brushed the collar. Her fingers itched to wind their way into the thickness of his hair, to brush his hair back from his forehead.

She intensely avoided that urge and brought her focus back to his face, noticing he was staring at her.

“What? Is there something wrong with what I’m wearing? Too casual?”

“Uh, no. That dress is perfect. And, damn, Haven, you have spectacular legs.”

She smiled at the compliment. It wasn’t like she’d never heard that before. She’d dated—casually—since college. Had a few boyfriends, one serious relationship that she and the guy had ended mutually when he’d gone off in one direction and she in another, and she hadn’t been broken up about it.

That had been a while ago—before things with her dad had gotten bad and she’d put all her energy and time into seeing to his welfare. She hadn’t thought about men a lot in the past year and a half.

Now?

Well, now there was Trevor, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to have a relationship with him, but she definitely enjoyed the way he looked at her. Probably because he’d never even noticed her in college.

He was noticing her now, and she liked it. There was nothing wrong with that, right?

“Thank you.”

“And, no. Alicia said no gifts. It’s just a party, a little get-together for each of them and their friends. They have a new house that they bought and they want to show it off, just relax a little before the big day. At least that’s the way Alicia described it.”

Haven nodded. “Sounds fun.”

“Great. Let’s go.”

They got in the car and Trevor drove to another beautiful neighborhood, located only about twenty minutes from his place. Alicia and Garrett’s house was a gorgeous brown-and-white two-story in a new subdivision, with a large front yard containing incredible landscaping. They stepped up onto the wide, welcoming front porch and rang the bell.

Alicia was right there to open the door. She looked so pretty wearing a sleeveless white dress that clung to her curves. She smiled when she saw them.

“I’m so glad you’re here. Come on in and make yourselves at home.”

They stepped in, and Haven marveled at the expansive foyer, the high ceilings, and the amazing décor. It had a modern, contemporary feel to it, yet very warm and comfortable.

“Your house is beautiful.”

Alicia grinned as she walked them through. “Thank you. We spent some time building the place. I have to admit, I had a lot of fun choosing everything. It’s like every woman’s dream come true to pick out flooring and wall colors and furnishings.”

“I can imagine what fun that was,” Haven said.

She led them into the living area. “Drinks are in the kitchen. Help yourself. There’s also plenty of food in there as well as in the dining room. Feel free to wander and check out the house. Garrett’s . . . somewhere around here. I have no idea where.”

“We’ll find him,” Trevor said. “Don’t worry about us. And thanks for the invite.”

“You’re welcome. And if you need anything at all, come find me.”

“We will,” Haven said.

After Alicia wandered away to see to her other guests—and there were a lot of them—Haven turned to Trevor. “Beautiful house.”

“Yeah. The Rileys always have to have a big place.”

“Really. Why’s that?”

“Big family. There’s Alicia and her brother Cole, and then the cousins—Gavin, his brother Mick, and his sister Jenna—and all their spouses and the parents and the kids.”

“Really. That does sound like a big family.”

“All the guys play sports, too,” he said as he led her into the kitchen. Someone was bartending, so Trevor turned to Haven. “What would you like?”

“I’ll just have a club soda with lime.”

“Beer for me,” Trevor said to the guy at the bar, who fixed their drinks and handed them over.

“All the guys in the Riley family play sports?”

“Yeah. Gavin and Garrett, of course, play baseball. Mick and Cole are football. Jenna’s husband, Tyler, plays hockey.”

Haven tried to take that all in. “Um, wow. That’s a big, sports-minded family.”

“It is. And the Riley family has a sports bar, too.”

She laughed. “Of course they do.”

“Jenna used to manage the sports bar, but she’s a singer and has a club catering to musicians.”

“Oh, really? I’d love to hear her sing sometime.”

He led her to an open spot in the living room where they could take a seat. “Maybe I’ll take you sometime.”

She sat, pondering a family like the Rileys. “Now there’s a family in dire need of having a feature story. An entire family of jocks. What a story that could be.”

“And you’re just the person to do it.”

“I could. It would be an amazing piece. All those sports? What it must have been like growing up in that family, and to have all the guys end up playing professionally. Even Jenna ends up marrying a professional hockey player. And Alicia is engaged to a baseball player. What are the odds of that happening?”