Rush (Breathless #1)(71)

“I’ll take care of it,” Jace said. “Tell Caro not to worry. I’ll have him checked out first thing tomorrow morning.”

“You’re the best,” she said.

Jace smiled indulgently at her in the rearview mirror. “I’ve missed you, baby girl. We haven’t spent much time together lately.”

“I’ve missed you too,” she said softly. And she had. Lately, though, it seemed they’d gone their separate ways, even before the thing with Gabe. Jace had been busier than ever with work. It was why she’d purposely gone to his grand opening. A night that had changed the course of her life. Looking back, she’d never have imagined how the decision to go to something as innocuous as a boring cocktail party would change everything so dramatically.

They had to park a block away from the pub, and Ash opened her door, offering his hand to help her out. Jace and Ash flanked her as they made their way down the busy street as dusk settled around them.

The pub was still relatively quiet. It was early to eat yet, and the pub wouldn’t fill to capacity until later in the night. Ash directed them to a corner booth that overlooked the cross street, and a peppy waitress was extremely fast to pick up their table. She eyed Ash and Jace like they were her next meal and she was about to dig in.

She was younger than Mia. She had to be. She looked to be maybe twenty. Probably a college student waiting tables for extra money. Which meant there was an even bigger age gap between her and Jace and Ash. Eighteen years? Not that it was that much more than the difference between her and Gabe, but it just seemed creepy to watch as someone who looked like a teenager flirted with her brother and his best friend.

They managed to get their food ordered after the flirt session. Mia was in the mood to indulge. Since fudge was waiting for her at home, why not just let it all hang out? While she may eat a salad with Gabe, she had no reservations with Jace and Ash and she ordered nachos fully loaded.

That didn’t stop her from mooching off Jace’s and Ash’s plates.

They laughed and joked and talked about everything and nothing. After she’d shoved her plate forward, so stuffed she could barely breathe, she impulsively leaned over and hugged Jace.

“Love you,” she said fiercely. “Thank you for tonight. It was just what I needed.”

Jace hugged her back and kissed her temple. “Everything okay with you?”

She pulled away and smiled. “Yeah. Perfect.”

She hadn’t lied. Tonight had been exactly what she’d needed. Her relationship with Gabe was intense and all consuming. It was easy to get so caught up in him and his demands that she lost sight of everything else. Her family—Jace. Her friends—Caroline and the girls. Herself.

“Are you sure everything’s okay with you, Mia?” Ash asked.

She glanced over to see him studying her, his shrewd stare boring into her.

“Are you happy at work?”

Jace picked up on Ash’s question with a frown. “Is there something going on I don’t know about?”

“Jace, I’m fine,” Mia said.

She was utterly sincere. Maybe she wasn’t always absolutely certain about her direction. Of where she was going with Gabe. But she knew she was fine. Whenever the ride was over, she’d be okay. She’d be better than before.

“You’d tell me if you had a problem,” Jace said in a soft voice, his gaze solidly fixed on her.

It wasn’t a question and it wasn’t voiced as one. It was a statement of fact he wanted her reinforcement on.

“You’ll always be my big brother, Jace. That means, unfortunately, that I’ll always run to you to fix things for me.”

She finished with a wistful smile, remembering all the times when she was a girl that he’d been so patient with her. She always wondered if the reason he hadn’t married and had kids of his own was because he’d spent so much time raising her. It saddened her because he would make such an amazing father. But he’d shown no signs of settling down with one woman. And well, if he and Ash were always in bed with the same woman at the same time, she supposed it would make it a little awkward to forge a more traditional relationship.

“There’s no ‘unfortunately’ to it, baby girl. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

“And hey, just so you know. My office is always open if Jace isn’t around,” Ash interjected.

They were genuinely concerned. Was it so evident that she was unsettled? Did she wear the evidence of her association with Gabe on her face? She didn’t feel different. Didn’t think she looked different. But everyone around her had sensed her disquiet.

“You’re both sweet,” she said. “But I’m good. Gabe was right. I was hiding by working at La Patisserie. I needed that jolt he gave me to get me moving in the right direction. I’m not saying I’ll work as a personal assistant forever, but Gabe gave me the opportunity to gain some experience that wasn’t about refilling a coffee cup.”

“As long as you’re happy,” Jace said. “I just want you to be happy.”

She smiled. “I am.”

They sat and talked for a while longer before Jace motioned for the check. After the waitress dropped it off, Jace took out his credit card. As he slid it inside the leather folder with the check, a tall brunette walked purposefully in their direction.