Tara squeezed her hand. “Honey, this is paradise. It’s hardly what I would call running us ragged.”
“I just don’t want to exhaust all of you. I know you live busy lives.”
“And you don’t?” Liz asked. “You have the club to run, and I know that despite the fact you turned over Riley’s bar to a new manager, you still have your thumbprint all over that place.”
“I do not. Dave’s doing a great job managing the bar. He doesn’t need me meddling.”
“But it’s still a family-owned business, which means someone in the family has to watch over it, right?” Alicia asked.
Jenna shrugged. “I might look in every now and then. So does Dad.”
Liz shot her a look. “Dad is happy being retired and stopping in the bar every now and then to visit with his old friends. Not check on liquor stock, personnel, and accounting.”
Jenna sighed and cast a pleading gaze toward Savannah.
“Don’t look at me,” Savannah said. “I agree with them. I think you have your hands full and you take on too much.”
“Well, someone has to do it. Dad has the health issues and he has to take it easy, so he can’t deal with the stress. Mom can’t deal with the financial issues because it’s not her thing. I ran the bar for years before I started the music club. I know Dave is doing great as a manager and we all trust him completely . . .”
“But he’s not a Riley,” Liz finished for her.
Jenna sighed. “The family has to oversee the family business. That’s just the way it is. The bottom line is, it’s our business and we have to run it. I thought I could step away, but I just haven’t been able to walk away completely yet.”
Alicia turned around and sat sideways in the chaise so she faced Jenna. “I think you’re just having trouble letting go. Do Uncle Jimmy and Aunt Kathleen believe there’s any issue with trusting Dave to run Riley’s bar?”
Jenna looked at Alicia for a few seconds before shaking her head. “No. They have complete confidence in him.”
“Okay. So do you have any issues with Dave?”
“No.”
“Then maybe you’re the one who has issues with letting go of something that was yours to manage for so many years,” Liz suggested.
“You’re probably right. I do have a problem with letting it go. I’m afraid something might happen. Something could get screwed up, and if it does, it’ll be my fault.”
“Why?” Savannah asked. “Because you wanted something for yourself? Because you had the nerve to chase your dream?”
Jenna looked down at her hands, then lifted her head, her gaze scanning all of them. “Yes. Part of me still feels like I don’t deserve all of this.”
“Okay,” Liz said. “That’s normal. You’re happy. You have the career of your dreams, the man of your dreams, and I don’t think there’s any one of us who hasn’t been in the same position and felt like it’s too good to be true.”
“Liz is right,” Savannah said. “Once we get that happily ever after, where everything falls into place with career, and we’re lucky enough to find someone who loves us for who we are, we can’t help but have those self doubts creep in. Are we deserving enough? Surely something is wrong with this picture. When will something come along and screw everything up?”
“We’re our own worst enemies when it comes to our happiness,” Tara said.
“Why is that?” Jenna asked. “Why can’t I just be happy about having everything I’ve ever wanted?”
Liz laughed. “The nature of women, I guess. As soon as we think we have everything we could ever want, something comes along to screw it up. Or at least we think something is screwing it up. Even if it’s all in our heads and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with our perfect lives.”
Tara frowned. “Uh-oh. That sounds like a personal cry for help.”
The waiter came and they ordered another round of drinks. Liz ordered a club soda this time.
“You’re not drinking,” Savannah said, giving her the once-over.
“I’m not pregnant, if that’s what you’re thinking,” Liz said, taking a sip of her club soda. “And that’s the problem. I want to be and I can’t make it happen.”
“I’m sorry,” Savannah said. “I didn’t know you’d been trying.”
“For over a year. It’s frustrating. I’m someone who gets what I want—at least in business. Even with Gavin. I secretly loved him for years. And he fell in love with me. It bowled me over that I got the man of my dreams. So why can’t I have this, too?”
“This isn’t exactly business, Liz,” Alicia said. “And you ended up with Gavin because the two of you loved each other. But as far as fertility? That’s something you have no control over.”
Liz sighed. “Tell me about it.”
“Is there a problem?” Savannah asked. “Have you talked to your gynecologist?”
“Yes. She’s run tests on me and says all my girlie parts are fully functional, and Gavin’s got champion sperm.”
Savannah laughed. “Good to know.”
“So it’s really a matter of things just not . . . happening yet.”