Coming Apart at the Seams (23 page)

“I'm not worried,” Quinn replied, his lips quirking in a small smile. “She likes me better.”

He gazed at her, his eyes speculative. She worked to keep her face impassive, afraid of what her big brother might see.

“You're a woman. Is Priest a distraction for you?”

You could say that.

The O'Brien family Christmas tree surely rivaled the one in the White House. Teagan stared up at the Douglas fir, which had to be at least twelve feet tall. It dominated the formal living room in her parents' house, where everyone had gathered to open presents.

Hundreds of ornaments covered the lush evergreen. Some were homemade, some outrageously expensive. But each one had a special meaning to someone in the O'Brien family.

Christmas was an all-day affair in the O'Brien household. It started with Christmas breakfast, followed by a frenzy of gift giving and then a huge dinner. After stuffing themselves, the family spent the evening either watching holiday movies or playing games. More often than not, they all fell asleep on the sofas in the family room.

Teagan's father walked up beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. He pulled her to his side, squeezing tightly.

“Merry Christmas, baby girl.”

“Merry Christmas, Daddy,” she replied, easing her arm around his waist and leaning her head against him.

Teagan was relieved she couldn't feel his ribs beneath his oatmeal-colored sweater. He'd lost a lot of weight while he
battled colon cancer and was just now starting to put back on some of the pounds he'd lost.

“Are you ready to open presents?” he asked, his eyes bright instead of dull like they'd been for the past couple of years.

“Of course. I was ready to open all of them last night.”

Her dad laughed. “Weren't you satisfied with the one you opened?”

When Teagan was seven years old, she'd begged her parents to let her open just one present after they'd returned from Christmas Eve Mass. They'd refused, telling her that she had to wait for Santa Claus.

She hadn't liked their answer, and she'd snuck downstairs in the middle of the night and opened all her presents. To add icing to the Christmas cookie, she'd hidden all her parents' presents so they couldn't enjoy them.

She had been a little brat. But instead of punishing her, Teagan's parents had created a new tradition, and now everybody got to open one present of their choosing on Christmas Eve.

Is it any wonder I'm so spoiled?

Teagan's dad gave a contented little sigh, drawing her attention from the tree. She pulled back to look up at him, since he was nearly a foot taller than she was.

After surgery, several months of radiation, and three rounds of chemo, her dad's cancer was finally in remission. It had been a long, ugly road, and he'd suffered tremendously, along with everyone who loved him.

Teagan had done her best to be supportive during his treatment. She'd attended doctor's appointments with him, driven him to his radiation appointments, and kept him company while he received his chemo. Cal and Quinn had done the same thing.

Quinn had taken their dad's illness much harder than Teagan had expected, probably because he'd been forced to take on James's responsibilities at Riley O'Brien & Co. Even though her actions regarding the women's division suggested otherwise, Teagan thought her oldest brother had done a great job leading the company.

“Our family is growing,” her dad said, a note of satisfaction in his voice. “Amelia, Ava Grace . . . two more sweethearts to join my favorite girls.”

Teagan smiled, amused that her father referred to his wife of nearly thirty-six years as a girl. Her mother loved it, though, and every time he called her
my girl
she giggled like a teenager with a crush.

To the outside world, James was a hard-ass. He was almost as quiet as Nick, and he was the perfect example of the strong, silent type. But when it came to his family, he was the proverbial pussycat.

“And Nick's here, too,” her dad continued, a huge grin on his face. “He hasn't been able to spend Christmas with us since he and the boys were at USC.”

Teagan tried not to scowl. Yes, Nick was here, ruining her Christmas. But everyone else was over the moon that he was spending the holiday with them, especially James. He adored the younger man, considering him another son.

Before Nick had broken her heart, Teagan had thought the connection between her dad and Nick was sweet. Now it made her want to puke.

But Teagan had to hide her real feelings because she didn't want her parents or her brothers to find out about what had happened between her and Nick. And Nick, damn him, was completely taking advantage of that fact. He knew she wasn't able to ignore him or slap him in front of her family, and everywhere she turned, he was there.

He had squeezed in next to her in the car as the family headed to the church for Christmas Eve services. He had stood beside her at Mass, his arm brushing against her breast at least ten times. He had crowded her in the kitchen as she made coffee, pressing his hard body against her back as he leaned over her shoulder.

The absolute worst had occurred this morning when he'd sat next to her at the breakfast table. He'd sneaked his warm hand under her skirt to caress her thigh, and when she'd stood up, she had been afraid there would be a huge wet spot on the chair.

And now he was just steps away, leaning against the fireplace mantle and watching her intently with those gorgeous green eyes.

“Okay, everyone, find a seat,” her mother ordered, clapping her hands. “It's time for presents.”

Teagan made a dash for one of the damask armchairs, determined to avoid sitting near Nick for the next hour. She exhaled loudly in relief once she sat down, tucking a leg underneath her.

She slanted a furtive glance toward Nick. He had noticed her haste, and his kissable lips quirked in amusement. He waited until everyone else had taken a seat before sauntering over to where Teagan sat. Perching on the wide arm of her chair, he leaned back slightly and edged toward her.

She got a whiff of his cologne, a delicious woodsy scent, and growled under her breath when he shifted even closer. The jerk laughed softly before settling his big hand on the back of her neck. It was hot against her skin, and she shivered.

He stroked his thumb against the side of her throat, and her nipples hardened. She casually moved her head away from him but then snapped it back when she realized her face was almost in his crotch.

“I'm so excited,” her mother exclaimed, standing next to the tree. “Look at all these presents I get to distribute! I feel like Santa Claus. Ho, ho, ho!”

Kate knelt down and picked up a brightly wrapped package. Reading the tag, she passed it to Amelia. She repeated the process several times until the velvet tree skirt encircling the tree was empty and everyone in the room had several gifts to unwrap.

Grabbing a rectangular box from the pile next to her, Teagan checked the tag. The gift was from Amelia, and she tore off the reindeer-printed paper, eager to see what her future sister-in-law had given her.

She opened the gift box and pushed back the red tissue paper, gasping in delight and surprise when she saw a pair of redesigned Rileys nestled inside. The new jean designs weren't even in production yet, so Amelia must have made this pair by hand.

Teagan held the denim to her chest, tears springing to her eyes. She hadn't worn a pair of Rileys since she'd developed curves, and Amelia could not have given her a more perfect gift.

She waited until Amelia had finished opening one of her presents and caught her attention. She stared into her big brown eyes, trying to convey how much the gift meant to her.

“Thank you,” she mouthed, and Amelia smiled.

Nick leaned down, placing his mouth near her ear. “I'm going to love seeing your ass in those jeans,” he whispered.

She jerked away, glaring at him. She thought the jeans were fabulous, but she momentarily considered burning them just to spite him. She made a silent vow
never
to wear them in his presence.

In an effort to ignore Nick, she pulled another gift from the pile. Without checking the tag, she ripped off the shiny red paper. The cardboard box inside was taped shut, and she called out to her dad, asking for his pocketknife.

Once she had it in hand, she sliced open the box and cut through the bubble wrap inside. Pushing the protective material aside, she looked down at the gift.

She knew immediately it was from Nick. The sterling silver picture frame wasn't anything special, but the same could not be said for the picture in it, a black-and-white shot of Nick and Teagan.

It was a photo she'd never seen before, and it had been taken the day they'd gone sailing. Nick's arm was wrapped around her shoulders, and she leaned against him. While she looked into the camera with a huge smile on her face, he gazed down at her.

His expression in the photo sent chills over her. If she were looking at the picture without any knowledge of the people in it, she would have said the guy was in love with the girl.

Crazy in love.

But Teagan knew the people in the photo, and she knew their history. She knew there was only one person in the picture who had been crazy in love, and that person wasn't Nick.

She stared down at the photo, overwhelmed with emotion. She swallowed to push back the tears burning in the back of her throat and covered the image with the palm of her hand.

Nick leaned close to her, placing his hand on top of hers. He squeezed her fingers gently.

“Do you understand now?” he murmured.

*   *   *

They said a picture was worth a thousand words, and Nick hoped “they” were right, whoever the hell “they” were. He hoped the picture he'd given Teagan would tell her all the things he couldn't say.

I love you. I loved you then, and I love you now. Please give me another chance. I'm miserable without you, and I'm afraid of what the rest of my life will be like if you're not with me.

He held his breath, waiting for any indication the photo had impacted her like it had him when he'd first seen it. A few months ago, Letty had gone on an organization warpath and directed him to browse through the unopened boxes that were stored in the closet in his study.

Fearing her wrath if he refused, Nick had tackled the cardboard tower. He'd found the pictures in the second box he opened.

He had never even looked at the pictures when he'd received them in the mail shortly after their sailing trip. He'd shoved them in a drawer in his Boston condo, and Letty had packed them up when they'd moved to Nashville. When he'd finally flipped through them, he'd broken out in a cold sweat, shocked by what they had shown in black and white.

His feelings for Teagan were obvious in every picture—love, desire, admiration. Her feelings were obvious, too, especially in the photo of her looking at him when he hadn't been aware of her gaze.

That picture sat on his nightstand as a reminder that she had loved him. He prayed every night she still did, even if her love was hidden under layers of hate.

Teagan shook her head, just a small movement, but enough for Nick's hope to dissolve. He sighed. Maybe he should have given her jewelry instead.

“Hey, T, show us what you got,” Cal called out, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.

Nick tensed, worried Teagan would give in to her older brother's request. He didn't want anyone else to see that photo. It showed too much, and it was for Teagan's eyes only.

When Teagan didn't respond to Cal's comment, Nick plucked the frame from the box. He waved it around too quickly for anyone to see the image within it.

“Picture frame,” he said. “From me.”

“You put a lot of thought into that,” Cal quipped, obviously assuming the frame was filled with a stock image of strangers.

Nick returned the frame to the box before wadding up a piece of wrapping paper and lobbing it at Cal's head. The other
man ducked like the paper could actually hurt him, knocking his dark head against Ava Grace's blond one.

“Oww!” Ava Grace exclaimed, her raspy voice slightly higher than usual. “You have a hard head, Cal.”

“That's what all the ladies say,” Cal replied, waggling his eyebrows.

Ava Grace rolled her eyes. “Do they also say your good looks don't make up for your lame sense of humor?”

The singer's quip made everyone laugh, everyone except for Teagan. She continued to stare down at the photo, her hand covering the image of the two of them.

Nick wished he knew what she was thinking, but before he could say anything, she turned the picture frame over and carefully tucked the bubble wrap around it before closing up the box. She placed it on the floor next to her and covered it with the jeans Amelia had given her.

He pushed down his disappointment. He had been stupid to think a picture would change things.

He directed his attention to his pile of presents, wondering if Teagan had bought anything for him. He wouldn't be surprised if she had given him a box of candy she'd laced with laxatives. She was both creative and diabolical, just two things he loved about her.

Finally, all the presents were unwrapped, and colorful remnants of ribbon and paper littered the floor. Nick had received a bounty of gifts, including a sweater from Kate, a book on San Francisco's history from Ava Grace, a bottle of fine Irish whiskey from James, and a handmade leather belt from Amelia.