a little boy. Just a child,” Mitzi murmured.
“Not after that day.” Betsy’s voice broke.
“Your mother was a monster.” Mitzi spat the words, tears leaking from her eyes, but she didn’t care.
Betsy’s gaze searched Mitzi’s face. A ghost of a smile touched her lips. “You love my brother.”
“Who doesn’t love Keenan?”
“Before you, he’d never trusted a woman. So hear me on this, Mitzi.” Steel filled Betsy’s voice. “If you hurt my brother, you’ll answer to me.”
Odd, but the fierceness on Betsy’s face comforted Mitzi. She liked knowing Keenan had a strong ally in his sister.
“He’s lucky to have you and Ryan in his corner.”
“A fact we remind him of all the time.”
As she’d probably intended, Betsy’s quip lightened the mood.
Mitzi thought of the former bull-riding-champion-turned-attorney. She remembered the stricken look on Betsy’s face the time Mitzi had strode into a party with the man Betsy secretly loved at her side. Yes, she still had some making up to do.
“Other than friendship, there was never anything between me and your husband,” Mitzi blurted out.
Betsy waved a dismissive hand. “That was a long time ago, way before Ryan and I got together.”
“I never slept with him,” Mitzi assured her. “We didn’t even kiss.”
She’d never thought of Ryan as anything more than a friend. Not like Keenan. With him, friendship had never been enough.
“Ryan told me,” Betsy said softly. “I appreciate you wanting to make it clear.”
“I’d like it if you and I could be friends.”
“I’d like that, too.” Betsy reached across the table and squeezed Mitzi’s hand. “In fact, I predict we’ll end up being great friends. Which is fortunate, considering my brother is in love with you.”
Mitzi’s heart leaped even as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “Keenan has never, ah, said he loves me.”
He’d shown it in so many ways. But he hadn’t said the words to her. Not yet, anyway.
“I know my brother. What he feels is in his eyes every time he looks at you.” Betsy’s lips curved in satisfaction. “I see love in your eyes, as well. I’m happy for it. But please don’t hurt him.”
“I would never hurt him.” Mitzi opened her mouth then shut it. If her goal was to protect her pride, this would be the time to lie and tell Betsy she wasn’t sure what she felt for Keenan. Even though Mitzi knew without a doubt she was completely and irrevocably in love with him.
It was time to seize the moment, lay the cards on the table, face up.
Mitzi had been honest with herself.
Tonight, she’d be honest with Betsy.
Then it was time to be honest with Keenan.
Chapter Eighteen
Mitzi had barely gotten home from Perfect Pizza when her phone rang. She smiled at the readout. “I miss you.”
For a second silence was all she heard. Then Keenan chuckled. “Do you even know who this is?”
“Batman, of course.” She lowered her voice to a seductive whisper. “Or should I call you Bruce?”
He laughed. “For now, why don’t you call me Keenan? And hey, I miss you, too.”
Mitzi smiled into the phone and dropped onto the sofa. Her mood, which had been partly cloudy only moments before, was now bright and sunny. “How’s it going in Oma-ha?”
He told her about the flight and the small motel room where he was staying. As they talked about their days, she found comfort in sharing the mundane.
“I had a sub and chips for dinner,” Keenan said. “I hated missing movie night.”
“Bitty did her best to keep me company.” Mitzi slanted a glance at the kitten, currently busy washing herself. “It wasn’t the same. She didn’t laugh once, and it was a really funny movie.”
“Give her time. She’s just a kitten. Her sense of humor is still developing.”
“By the way...” Mitzi forced a lighthearted tone. “I ran into your sister when I was picking up the pizza.”
“Betsy?”
“You have more than one sister?”
“Not as far as I know,” he said easily. “Were she and Ryan having a date night?”
“Actually it was just her. She was picking up a pizza at the same time, so while we waited we sat and talked for a few minutes. We had a nice chat.”
“What did you talk about?” he asked, and she heard the caution in his voice.
“Girl stuff mostly.” Mitzi kept her tone light. “A little about men.”
“Men?” His tone turned wary.
“I’ll just say we bonded over our mutual admiration of the same man.”
“Well,” he said after a long moment, “you and Ryan had a history and —”
“Ryan,” she sputtered. “We weren’t talking about Ry—”
His