make an amazing life and be happy even without her, so it had been easier to say good-bye to him than to the family that did need her.
Allie felt her throat tighten and had to blink to keep him in focus. “You still don’t need me.” He’d left her and done just fine. She grabbed his arm as he leaned back. “But it’s a relief, Gavin. That’s what I need. I’ve got nothing left to give right now.”
“I need to have you here with me,” he said, his voice quietly intense. “I need to know you’re okay, that you’re healthy and happy, Allie. I need that a lot.”
She swallowed hard. He looked determined. She was starting to like that look on him.
“I’m feeling a lot more of all of that when I’m here with you.”
He looked into her eyes for what seemed like an eternity. Then he leaned in and kissed her softly.
The gentleness of it almost knocked her over. More than all of the passion and heat and intensity she’d experienced lip to lip with Gavin, this was the one that nearly undid her.
Stupidly, tears filled her eyes, and in spite of her best effort, one escaped. Gavin just watched it slide down her cheek. Then he lifted his finger and wiped the wetness from her skin. He didn’t panic and he didn’t insist she talk about it. He just took her hand.
“Let me show you around,” he finally said. “I want you to see my clinic, the rest of the house, the property, the town—everything I’ve got here.”
He’d kissed her, he’d carried her in his arms, he’d made her come with his mouth and tongue, and yet his hand holding hers was what made her chest warm and her mind quiet. As long as Gavin had a hold of her, she’d be okay. He seemed determined not to let go.
Allie followed him back into the kitchen. Lydia’s back was still to them and she just gave a noncommittal “uh-huh” when Gavin told her he was giving Allie a tour and to page him if anyone needed anything.
Gavin gave Allie a wink as they stepped into the short hallway off the kitchen. “She’s suspicious of you.”
Allie shrugged as they walked along the bright hallway with windows everywhere. “She should be. I show up here in the middle of the night in a wedding dress, unconscious, with no explanation? Seems weird, you have to admit.”
“I think it’s more about her not thinking any woman is good enough for me.”
She looked up at him. “Thought you said nothing was going on there.”
“She actually feels more…motherly toward me, I think.”
“Sure.”
He laughed. “Seriously. She’s always picking up after me, feeding me, criticizing me. And she tells me which women in town want to date me and why I should steer clear.”
“Because she wants you all to herself,” Allie said. Men were really dumb.
He shook his head. “She and I have talked about this. Her reasons are things like the girl being slutty, or having a bad temper, or drinking too much.”
“You and Lydia have talked about this?” Allie rolled her eyes. Of course they had. Gavin was in-your-face honest. There was little that was subtle about him. If he had an opinion, a question or advice, he let you know it. He did it nicely. But if you asked Gavin if your hair looked good, you’d better be prepared for the truth.
“Yeah.” He pushed the door at the end of the hall open and they stepped into what was clearly his office. “I was wondering why she was so critical of all the women too, but when I asked if she was in love with me, she crossed her arms, looked me up and down, shook her head and said, ‘Sorry, but no’.”
Allie felt her mouth curve. “She apologized?”
He nodded. “She was very gentle on my ego. She said she liked me, felt loyal to me, like I said, and just didn’t want me to get with a girl who wasn’t good enough, but that she had no interest in me beyond that.”
“And you believed her?” How could any woman not want Gavin? He had it all. She sighed.
“Yep. She told me, very politely, that she thinks I’m a great guy but she’s not attracted to me, there’s no spark.”
Allie laughed. “Clearly she’s not normal.”
He tugged her toward him. “I love when you laugh.”
She looked up at him and couldn’t reply right away in the face of the warmth in his eyes. “I