Gray opened his mouth and then shut it. “Shit,” he finally muttered. “Fine. I need you to do something.”

“If it doesn’t involve a beer and then an entire night of sleep, forget about it,” Aidan said.

“It’s Mom.”

The only two words that could have Aidan rustling through his dresser for clean clothes instead of hanging up on his brother. “What is it?” he asked. “She didn’t fall again—”

“No,” Gray said quickly. “Healthwise she’s fine.”

Neither of them liked to talk about Char’s physical limitations. On the night that their father had left, they’d had a big fight. She’d hit him with a frying pan, but then he came after her, and she’d fallen and broken her wrist and hip. They’d both been arrested for battery and assault, and his father had taken off afterward, never to be seen again.

His mom had healed, at least physically, although her hip had never been the same. After she re-injured it last week, the doctor said she was supposed to limit her physical activity for the next month.

“She’s … on a date,” Gray said.

Aidan blinked. “What?”

“Yeah, she’s wearing that blue dress she saves for weddings and everything. I tried to talk her out of it and she …”

“She what?”

“Laughed at me,” Gray said, looking butt-hurt. “Gave me some line about how our generation has lost all sense of romance. She said she was like a fine wine and deserved to be uncorked and aired out.”

Aidan stared at him.

“I know, dude, my ears are still burning too. So you’re up. And don’t even try reasoning with her. She’s completely unreasonable and illogical. She says she’s going dancing.”

“Dancing?” Aidan repeated. “She’s supposed to be taking it easy. She can’t go dancing.”

“Thank you,” Gray said. “Penny thinks I’m being overprotective.”

The phone was suddenly wrestled away from Gray and then Penny’s face appeared. She took a good look at Aidan and smiled.

Aidan cursed, tossed the phone aside, and ditched the towel for a pair of jeans.

“Gimme that,” Gray said to his wife. Then he reappeared, though he was still glaring at Penny, who was laughing.

“Does he have clothes on yet?” she asked.

“Yes,” Aidan said, buttoning his jeans and grabbing a T-shirt. Jesus.

“Too bad,” Penny said, and got serious. “Now listen to me—both of you have to leave your poor mom alone. She’s going out to The Slippery Slope tonight with Marcus Dolby. She’s a grown woman who’s perfectly capable of taking care of herself.”

“Wait a minute,” Aidan said. “Marcus?” He couldn’t think of anyone less likely to go dancing than the resort’s equipment manager.