“I have no idea, but relax. Whoever it is, I’ll get rid of them.”

“Thanks. I have to make this casserole.”

He went to the front door and opened it.

“Hi, sweetie.”

“Hi, Mom.” He hugged and kissed his mother, and whispered to her. “I didn’t tell Liz I called you.”

She patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry.”

He followed his mother into the kitchen. When Liz looked up, she registered a combination of shock and dread. But then she managed a smile.

“Oh. Mom. Hi.”

“Hi, Liz. I thought maybe you could use some help.”

Liz’s gaze flitted from his mother’s to his. And he read the panic there

“That sounds like a great idea, Mom,” he said. “Though I think Liz is doing a fantastic job.”

“Of course she is, but I’m always grateful for extra hands when I’m trying to do everything.”

Thank God for his mother. “If you all don’t need me, I’m going to get out of your way.”

“That’s a really good idea, son. We’ll call you if we need you.”

Liz didn’t know whether she wanted to grab onto Gavin like a lifeline or kick his ass down the basement stairs. She’d wager anything he called his mother and told her she was losing her mind.

Which she was.

“How’s it going here?”

“Oh . . . fine. I have the turkey cleaned and ready to go into the oven tomorrow morning. The side dishes are plotted out and well in hand. Some I’m prepping today, and others will be done tomorrow. I’m working on hors d’oeuvres right now.”

“Hors d’ouevres?”

“Yes. I’m doing individual shrimp cocktails, stuffed figs, an olive and cheese spread, spinach and artichoke dip.” She paused. “I know there’s something else. Let me go grab my menu.”

Mom nodded. “Uh-huh. You do realize it’s just family, and that you’re not serving Christmas dinner for the President of the United States, right?”

Liz laughed and waved her hand. “Of course. It’s just that there’re so many, and I want to make sure there’s enough. Anyway, here’s my list if you want to take a look and tell me if you think I’m missing anything.”

Liz worried her bottom lip while Gavin’s mom perused the list. When she looked up, Liz noted the look of concern on her face.

“Oh, crap. I’ve forgotten something, haven’t I?”

“Yes. You’ve forgotten we’re just the Rileys. We’re very simple. Have you ever seen me serve anything like what’s on this menu?”

“Well . . . no. But I thought I’d fancy it up a little.”

“And there’s nothing wrong with that, as long as you don’t have a complete meltdown trying to do that. You know, once the family started to expand, I decided that holidays would be more like potluck, with everyone bringing a side dish. And I also enlisted help. Cara came over and started helping out with cooking the main dishes.”

“Right. But I thought—”

“That you could manage doing it all yourself.”