Page 57 of The Chase

Mom really needed to get out more. “Tony’s right,” I said. “And there’s nothing wrong with it.”

“Does Devin have tattoos?” she asked.

“One on his chest.”

“This man is going to drive me batty. First he makes the two of you late; now he’s persuading you to deface your body. What’s next?”

Yup, my mom was the biggest prude.

By midmorning, almost all the guests had arrived. Tony’s family was the first to join the festivities. I chatted with Tony’s two nieces for a while. They had been my childhood friends when Mom had relocated us to Cortese, and I hadn’t seen them in ages. I introduced them to Devin. They giggled when Devin made several mispronunciations, but I could tell they found him as adorable as I found him, and I appreciated the effort he was making to learn Italian.

After lunch I sat by the pool, my feet dangling in the water. Eva sat beside me while the boys played in the water with Rafe and Catia. It had been a long time since I’d had a good chat with Eva. I wished I saw more of my sister-in-law, but Eva had no interest in following her husband all around the world, and I really couldn’t blame her. Not with three little boys to look after. She was more content trying to provide her children with normal lives.

“I see you’re still happy with that man of yours,” Eva said, smiling and taking my hand. “Rafe says you’ve never been happier.”

“He’s right.” It still surprised me that Rafe could see the positives of my relationship.

“But he still doesn’t like him.”

I laughed. “I’m well aware of that.”

Eva sighed, and I knew instantly that something was wrong.

“What’s going on?” I asked.

“Uh, nothing.”

Nope. Something was definitely bothering her. I squeezed her hand. “I think it’s something. Maybe you should tell me?”

She considered. “It’s Rafe. He’s under so much pressure, mostly of his own doing. I think it affects his sleep. I can’t tell you how many times I wake up and he’s pacing the bedroom. I don’t know what to do.”

This was a revelation. I’d always thought he had everything under control and compartmentalized. To know he wasn’t sleeping was concerning. “Is this about the finances?”

“I think so. I think he worries the team will bankrupt everyone.”

“Not Mom,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. Mom had made sure to keep her finances completely out of it.

“Don’t you worry about it?”

“Not really.” Mostly because I hadn’t looked into it. Maybe that was a good thing, or maybe I was being naïve. “But if they are really that bad, I can talk to him. We have Wheaton on board and a bunch of other sponsors.”

“I’m going to tell you something I never want you to tell him. Can you promise that?”

“Of course.”

She looked around to make sure no one was listening. “I can’t wait for this career to be over. To have my husband around to play with his sons. It’s like he’s a part-time father, and that’s not fair to them. I know he wants us with him, but I need stability for the children.”

That was a stab to my heart. “Are you thinking of leaving him?”

“No. Nothing like that. I love him too much to do that. But I don’t know how much longer I can do this. And what happens when he retires? He takes over the team and nothing changes. He’s still gone.”

I didn’t want to make an overt show of comfort to tip off my brother that something was amiss in my conversation with Eva, so I kept a pleasant smile on my face. “Do you want me to talk to him? To set him straight? I don’t like that you’re not happy.”

“No, it’s fine. I’ve learned to live with it.”

I maintained that smile as I said something I hated saying. “No, you don’t have to do that. Your happiness is important too. Don’t let Rafe dictate how you live. Maybe …” I took a deep breath as the solution suddenly hit me. “Maybe the right thing to do is to sell the team.”

She gasped. “That would kill him.”

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