“And no more of me suggesting I should do things on my own,” I said wryly. “We’re a team.”

“Always, baby.” His fingers tangled with mine. “Everything that comes, we deal with it together.”

I released a shuddering breath. That sounded pretty perfect to me.

He led me to the car and helped me into the passenger side, then rounded the hood and got behind the wheel. We drove to his childhood home on the western outskirts of town near the golf course, our hands connected the entire time. When we arrived, he kept an arm around me as we approached the door. It flew open and Heather raced out, her arms outstretched. They closed around Liam and me, and she pressed a motherly kiss to both of our cheeks.

“I heard what happened,” she said, looking shaken. “Nate called. I’m so glad you’re both okay.”

Eugene wasn’t far behind. He seemed just as anxious as his wife, tugging Liam into a hug and then scanning me from head to toe to make sure I was unharmed.

“What happened to your leg?” Heather demanded, reaching for the hem of Liam’s shorts and lifting it to reveal the taped gash.

“It was cut in the accident,” Liam told her. “It’s not a big one though. No stitches.”

She covered her mouth with her hand and whimpered. “You could have died.”

“But I didn’t,” he soothed. “We’re both all right.”

“No thanks to that psycho,” Eugene grouched. “What the hell do they think they’re playing at?”

Guilt swelled in my chest. “I’m sorry,” I said, suddenly regretting my agreement earlier to back off from trying to do things on my own. These loving people had been dragged into a nasty situation because of me. They didn’t deserve to have me disrupting their lives. “I never meant for Liam to get hurt.”

“Oh, sweetheart.” Heather pulled me into an embrace, shocking me so much I didn’t know how to respond. “We know you didn’t. Please don’t feel guilty for this. The only person responsible is the one who destroyed the brakes and broke into Liam’s house.”

My lower lip wobbled, and for a disastrous moment, I thought I might burst into tears, but I managed to school my emotions.

“Come in.” Heather placed a hand on both of our backs and guided us toward the entrance. “You’re welcome to stay for as long as you need. As soon as I heard what happened, I put fresh sheets on one of the spare beds, and there are brownies in the oven.”

“Brownies?” Liam perked up.

Eugene clapped him on the shoulder. “She wanted to rush down to the police station, but Nate said to give you time, so she stress baked instead.”

“There are cookies too,” Heather assured Liam, “and enough dinner for everyone.”