“It kind of hit me by surprise, too.”
“Not me. I saw it the first night I met you. I knew you were in love with Gavin.”
Elizabeth whirled around and saw Tara leaning in the doorway, Gavin’s sister, Jenna, next to her.
“What?”
“Come in, you two. Did you know that Elizabeth and Gavin were dating?”
Tara took a seat on the edge of the bed. “I didn’t until Gavin told me. But like I said, it doesn’t surprise me. I saw the sparks that night in the bar when I first came to town and met all of you.”
“Sparks? What sparks?”
Tara turned her gaze on Elizabeth. Elizabeth expected animosity, hatred even. But what she saw was just . . . interest. “I saw the way you looked at him. I could see right away that you were in love with him.”
She remembered Tara mentioning it before, but she’d brushed her off, thought she’d minimized it. She thought she’d hid it so well. “In love—oh. No, really. I’m not.”
Jenna snorted. “You’re in love with Gavin?” She twirled some of the many earrings in her ear and flopped belly-first on the bed. “Now this is getting interesting.”
“I’m not in love with Gavin.”
Tara laughed. “Yes, you are. And I’ll bet you have been for some time.”
“Is this true, Elizabeth?” Kathleen asked. “Are you in love with Gavin?”
She looked from Kathleen to Jenna to Tara, and for the first time in her life she had no idea what to do. The room closed in on her, and she found it hard to breathe. This was why she didn’t have female friends. With guys she could bullshit her way out of anything.
Women were tougher. They bore down on her with their steely gazes, and there was no way out. Dizziness made her breathing quicken, and she sucked in air faster and faster, which only made it hotter in there.
“I don’t feel very good,” she said, raising a shaky hand to her sweaty brow.
“Oh, shit, Mom, she looks kind of white,” Jenna said. “I don’t know, but it looks like she’s going to pass out.”
“Someone get her head down. I’ll get a cold cloth.” Tara’s voice sounded like it was far away, as if she was talking from a tunnel. The room had started to turn, and Elizabeth’s fingers felt numb. She tried to suck in air faster because she couldn’t breathe.
“Jenna, close the door. Elizabeth, bend over and put your head between your knees.”
“I can’t breathe.” She wrapped her arms around her stomach, feeling sick.
“Elizabeth. Pay attention.”
She tried to lift her head, but all she could think about was breathing. All she could think about was gasping for air. And she might just fall out of the chair.
Cool hands pressed onto the back of her neck and shoved her forward. She felt something icy cold and wet on her neck.
“Breathe slow and easy honey. Not so fast. That’s what’s making you dizzy.”
Kathleen’s calm voice penetrated. Elizabeth did as requested, and it helped. The pins and needles feeling in her hands and feet started to subside, and eventually the numbness in her face started to go away.
“That’s it. Focus on each breath. Not so fast. Keep it slow.”
She did, keeping her eyes shut so the room would stop spinning.
“Now lift your head. Think you can do that without feeling dizzy?”
“I have no idea.”
“Try. Just try. If you still feel dizzy, we’ll lay you down on the bed.”
She opened her eyes and looked down at her feet, then slowly lifted her head. Still a little dizzy, but not the roller-coaster ride she was on a few minutes ago.
Tara swiped her hair away from Elizabeth’s face. “Better now?”
Elizabeth nodded. “Yes.”
“Here,” Kathleen said, holding a glass of water in front of her. “Take a couple of sips.”
She took the glass, but Kathleen held it for her while she sipped the water. She tilted her head back and tried for a smile. “Thank you.”
Elizabeth directed her gaze to Tara, then to Jenna, who kneeled in front of her. “Thank you both, too. I’m so embarrassed.”
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?”