She nodded, but felt miserable, like an invisible wall had just been raised between them.
“I’m going into the living room so they don’t wonder what we’re talking about in here.”
“Fine.”
She walked out, leaving Ty alone in the kitchen.
Well, that went well.
TYLER GRABBED A SODA FROM THE REFRIGERATOR, needing a few minutes to cool down and collect his thoughts. He took a step outside in the backyard.
It was cold out. He should have grabbed his coat. Ah, fuck it. He’d survive. He lived on the ice, anyway. The cold might clear out his brain cells, give him some clarity where Jenna was concerned.
“You training for some iron man endurance contest?”
He looked up to find Mick standing on the steps. Mick closed the door behind him.
“Uh, no. Are you?”
Mick laughed. “Hell no. It’s bad enough I have to play football in the cold. Not a big fan of it.”
“And here I thought you were the tough, macho quarterback.”
“Hey, I like dome stadiums. Comfortable seventy-two degrees. Don’t ruin my rep by leaking that one to the media, though.”
“Now I have ammunition to use against you. Bad move on your part.”
“Come on.” Mick moved off the steps and led Tyler to the garage. They went in through the side door. It wasn’t heated, but it was a damn sight warmer than standing outside with the bitter wind biting through their clothes.
Mick leaned against one of the two cars that sat covered in the garage. “So what’s going on with you and my sister?”
Tyler arched a brow. “In what way?”
“In the I-heard-you-arguing-in-the-kitchen way.”
“None of your business.”
Mick’s lips lifted and he scratched the side of his nose. “Probably what I would have said to someone who tried to interfere in my relationship with Tara.”
“There’s nothing going on. I care about Jenna. We just don’t always see eye to eye on things.”
“My parents like you, and so does Jenna. I can tell.”
“Then that should be good enough for you.”
“It should be.”
“But?”
“You know, as the oldest, and especially having a little sister, it’s always going to be my job to look out for her.”
“Of course.”
“But I also know she’s stubborn as hell. She doesn’t make it easy for guys.”
Ty decided to listen and see where Mick was going to go with this.
“She can be…difficult.”
“Understatement,” Ty said.
Mick laughed. “She’s independent, tough as any man, and she’ll dig in her heels if you try to change her.”
“I wouldn’t want to change her. I like who she is.”
“But she’s also fiercely loyal to the people she loves. And she’s never brought a guy around before, so she thinks you’re something special.”
Ty looked down at the ground, then gave Mick a sidelong look. “Well, thanks for that. I think she’s pretty special, too. I just don’t know how to give her what I think she really wants.”
“What do you think she really wants?”
“That’s not for me to say.”
Mick crossed his arms. “Okay, now I’m confused.”
“Sorry, man. There’s only so much I can say without betraying a confidence.”
Mick pushed off the car and slapped Ty on the shoulder. “That’s okay. She trusts you with her secrets, and you keep them. That’s good. And I don’t know how to talk about something I don’t have all the facts about, but if you think there’s something she wants and she isn’t going after it, push her.”
“You think so?”
“Yeah.”
“She’ll hate that.”
Mick laughed and nodded. “Yeah, she will. But do you think she’ll ever be really be happy if she doesn’t get what she wants?”
TWENTY-TWO
JENNA WAITED FOR A WHILE, CHEWING ON A HANGNAIL while Ty cooled his heels in the kitchen. Mick had gone in there, so she figured he was shooting the breeze with her brother.
He finally surfaced and hung out with the family for a while, but it was obvious the dynamic had changed between them. Ty took a seat next to her dad and focused his attention on the race. Jenna sat with Liz and Tara, listening to wedding planning, but she didn’t give the conversation her full focus. She kept skirting glances across the room at Ty, who hadn’t looked at her at all.
He was mad. Or hurt. Or something
She couldn’t help that. She knew what she wanted, and what she didn’t want.
Another bar would be nice—one where there’d be music and singing instead of sports, but that was a fantasy that would never come true. Ty pushing her about it wasn’t going to make it happen.
She should have never sung for him, should have never allowed herself to even think it was a possibility. Then he’d never know, and they wouldn’t be having this ridiculous fight.
“Jenna, would you help me in the kitchen for a minute?”
She pulled herself out of her thoughts and stood. “Sure, Mom.”