Ava felt a stab to the heart as Mac’s mouth twisted when she reluctantly took Gage’s proffered arm, but he didn’t object. He stood there still as stone and let her walk away so that he could wait for Gwen. She tried to laugh at Gage’s jokes, but her heart just wasn’t in it. When they reached her floor, she turned to smile. “Thanks, Gage. I think I’ve got it from here.”

Instead of letting her walk off, his words stopped her. “What’re you doing, little one?”

“Er . . . going to my office?”

He gave her his usual lazy grin, but she could see a touch of seriousness that wasn’t usually present. “Big picture, sweetheart. You got my boy tied up in knots again.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she protested.

“Ah, come on, Ava. I like you, I always have. You’re smart, pretty as hell, and a real class act. If not for the fact that Mac would kill me, I’d have asked you out myself. But we all know how he feels about you, and none of us would ever disrespect that. Now, I don’t know what’s going on with Dom and you, but I damn sure know it’s not sexual. Our brotherhood always comes before women.”

Holding up a hand, Ava warned, “I swear if you say something like bros before hoes, I’ll hurt you!”

Gage sputtered, choking on his laughter. “I’m not that crazy, honey. That’s strictly a man-to-man quote there. Sounds damn funny coming from your lips, though. What I’m trying to say is whatever you’ve got going on, it had better be for real. Don’t be trying to go after Mac just because you’re jealous of Gwen.”

Finding Gage’s honesty oddly touching, she felt the need to be straight with him as well. “So I should just let him go with Gwen and give up. Is that what you’re saying?”

Shaking his head, he said, “Well, hell no, that’s not what I’m saying. If you really love Mac, then go after him. Just make sure it’s for all the right reasons. No retreat, little one. Balls to the wall all the way.” At her look of disgust, he added quickly, “Boobs to the wall? That work better for you?”

She put her hand over her mouth, smothering a grin, as he turned to walk off.

She was still grinning when Emma walked up, saying, “Did that hot hunk of male studliness just say ‘boobs to the wall’?” At her nod, Emma moaned. “God, if your brother hadn’t already completely taken care of me this morning, I’d be following that man like a dog in heat right about now.”

Ava looked around quickly, relieved that no one else had witnessed either Gage’s audacious comment or Emma’s sexually charged response. Thankfully, the hallway was clear as she turned and walked to her office door, trailed closely by Emma. “Can you please not talk about Brant and sex? Didn’t we set boundaries about that?”

“I know, I know.” Emma mimicked her words. “I can mention sexual thoughts about your brother on every third Friday of the month. If Ella comes into the office, under no circumstances are we to talk about Declan or Brant naked in any way. That doesn’t cover Gage, though. So, what was that man talking about?”

“You’re impossible,” Ava groaned as she walked through Emma’s office and into her own. She took a few moments to give Emma a run-through on what had happened with Mac yesterday and then this morning.

When she was finished, the other woman looked as though she was deep in thought for a moment before asking, “So, what’s next on your list? By the way, you look awesome in that dress. I bet Mac almost swallowed his tongue when he saw you.”

“Um . . . thanks. I’m not sure what’s next, though. I need to give it some thought.”

Looking excited, Emma ran to her desk and picked up a piece of paper, waving it in the air. “I’ve got ya covered. I saw this on the bulletin board at the grocery store last night and thought of you.”

Ava took the paper from Emma’s hands. Her eyes widened as she read the large print: LEARN TO HANG GLIDE. “Are you crazy! I can’t do that. People end up plastered on the sides of mountains or buildings doing that.”

Emma giggled, holding up a hand and waggling a finger at her. “No, no, that’s the beauty of the whole thing. You don’t actually have to go through with it. You can go for the free seminar they’re offering. Mac usually makes his rounds in the evening before he leaves Danvers, so I’ll get Ella or one of the other girls to join me in a fake conversation about your newest hobby so that Mac can overhear. I’ll make it sound really good and dangerous. That should be enough to push him off the deep end without you having to actually break your neck. Whatcha think?”

Staring at her future sister-in-law, Ava felt a grudging admiration for her deception skills. She was both impressive and scary sometimes. Poor Brant, he would never be able to sleep with both eyes closed again. “That’s not bad,” she admitted. “It would be nice to have one new fearless sport that I didn’t really have to fear.”

“Cool!” Emma enthused. “Because I already signed you up online. Your class is on Wednesday at seven. That gives me a couple of days to give Mac the four-one-one on your new death wish.”

Ava grimaced but gave a resigned smile. Even if it seemed crazy, she was at her best when she had some kind of plan in place. Just as a backup, though, she vowed to hit the store at lunch and buy another armful of magazines. She had a feeling that she was going to need new ideas . . . fast.

Chapter Eleven

“I’d love to be your partner, gorgeous. It would be my pleasure to help you get into a harness.” Ava cringed as the man sitting next to her in her hang gliding class continued to spray her with verbal diarrhea. From the moment she had taken her seat an hour ago, he had attached himself firmly to her side, and no matter how much she tried to deter him, nothing seemed to work. He was starting to make her uncomfortable as some of his comments veered toward being sexual and inappropriate.

Aggressive men, especially strangers, tended to throw her back to a dark place in her life, and she felt her pulse quicken as the man trailed a fingertip down her arm. She jerked away, giving him a frown and turning her body sideways to escape the unwanted attention. Just when she thought she would be forced to flee before the class ended, the instructor called an end to the evening and Ava bolted out of her seat. When the man followed her out of the room and into the parking lot, she said over her shoulder, “I’ve got to run, my husband is waiting on me at home.” She hoped that if he thought she was married, he’d back off.