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in behind her. The wooden steps creaked beneath his weight, and she raised her voice so he could hear her while she talked in front of him.
    “I’m grateful that my parents have given me a rent-free place to live,” she said. “But since they own the house and I live so close to Justin, well, that has plenty of disadvantages.”
    Liam was quiet for a moment. “I’m sure it’s got a few advantages, though, right?”
    “I guess, but my family is so overprotective. I feel like I’m three inches tall and they’re hovering over me. My parents retired and moved out of state last year, and my mom still manages to watch my every move. Sometimes I wish she’d just get off my back.”
    Elisa led him into a room and flipped on a light. “This is my study. If I’m not at the clinic, I’m in here.”
    When he didn’t answer, she turned around and found him looking right past her, his eyes full of pain.
    “Are you all right?”
    He blinked and met her gaze, but this time, he looked away first. “I can’t argue against having a mother who’s concerned with the well-being of her child. My mom passed away last fall.”
    Oh hell. Elisa put her hand on the back of her desk chair to steady herself. Guilt rushed through her, both for complaining about her mother and for not knowing he’d been through such a terrible loss.
    She’d met his mother once. It was Parents’ Day on campus. Naturally, she had paid more attention to Brett’s family, trying to decide if she wanted to be a part of it—oh, if only her younger self had a lick of sense—but she remembered Liam’s mother being young and beautiful, and both of his parents had seemed very proud of him.
    “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. It didn’t seem like enough, but what could she possibly say that would make him feel better?
    She didn’t ask what happened, but the question must have been in her eyes, because he answered, “Brain aneurysm. In the middle of the night. She didn’t suffer.”
    Judging from the way he turned away and looked out the window, he had—and still did. Elisa’s chest ached.
    She watched the back of his head for a moment. He was very still, as though he’d fall apart if he moved.
    She wanted to hold him.
    Her steps were light, somewhat fearful, but she made it across the room and stood at his side. He blinked now and then, but other than that, he remained motionless. It took her a few seconds and several nervous twitches of her fingers, but finally, she took his hand.
    His fingers closed around hers. She could barely breathe. She hadn’t touched him since that night so long ago, but seeing him in so much pain was more than she could bear.
    “I’m here for you,” she said softly. “I’ve lost…family.”
    “I know.”
    She squeezed his hand, a tiny bit. Then her arms were around him, and his around her, a long, tight embrace that melted away the years. His chest moved with each breath and his hands pressed against her back. She laid her head on his shoulder, let her cheek brush his shirt and inhaled the scent of him—she didn’t know if it was cologne, aftershave, detergent or something else, but it was him and she had missed it more than she’d ever allowed herself to believe.
    She yearned to tell him everything, but she would have to honor the memory of their daughter alone. He had lost his mom . There was nothing to be gained by dumping the news on him that he’d also lost a child.
    When they separated, Liam gave her a sheepish half-smile. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to unload my baggage like that.”
    Elisa couldn’t begin to speak about her own baggage. She squeezed his hand one more time and then reluctantly let go.
    He surveyed her office, which had a little more personality than the first level of the house since she spent so much time there. A bookshelf near the window stored a collection of porcelain cats, the animals she hoped she’d continue to love since she was destined to become an old lady with eighteen of