Bawling like a baby.

"Son of a bitch." Dare released him and Brian collapsed on the bed.

He hadn't expected this. He'd anticipated a confrontation. A part of him had even been looking forward to it. But this sobbing, defeated man needed help, not a fight.

Watching him, for the first time Dare understood why Liza helped him. Enabled him. Cared about him. Because Brian McKnight was incapable of caring for himself.

"Hey." Dare shook his shoulder. "Your sister's emptying her savings to pay off your debt. She's meeting with this Mikey character at her office today." And with everything in him, Dare wanted to be there, but Cara threatened to castrate him if he went near the building.

Liza needed to do this for herself, she'd said. And he needed to find another way to prove he wasn't the asshole he'd shown himself to be. So here he was, working on the one thing he knew would show Liza he accepted her, family and all. Brother and all. She needed to know he could put the past behind him once and for all.

Hell, he needed to know the same thing. And Dare finally did. He knew now he could let it go. Because all the anger he had been holding on to and directing at this man had been Dare's way of not turning it on himself, but in the end anger was just as lousy a coping mechanism as Brian's alcohol crutch. Nothing could change what had happened and Dare had done the best he could with his life. He saw that clearly now.

"She's always been there for me," Brian said, bleary-eyed.

Though it galled him, Dare nodded and replied. "Well, she said you were there for her too. You took the rap for a broken vase after her boyfriend hit her."

"It wasn't all that hard to guzzle a bottle and say it was my fault. My folks were never as hard on me as they were on Liza."

And look at the spectacular results of that brand of parenting, Dare thought, studying the other man.

"I'd do anything for her," Brian said.

Bingo. "Really? Then let's go."

"Where?" Brian asked warily.

"To rehab. You're going to call your parents and tell them they're paying for your inpatient stay." Dare had gotten a list of places from Alexa, who'd also made a few calls and secured a bed. "And after you check in, you're going to call your sister."

"But-"

"Unless you didn't mean what you said? That you'd do anything for her?"

"The best thing I could do for her would be to disappear."

Dare let out a laugh. "No, that's the best thing you could do for me. Liza wouldn't survive that." And Dare wouldn't survive losing Liza.

If there was one thing he'd learned in the last few days, it was that. She was his heart and he didn't want to go forward without her. He just hoped she felt the same way about him.

He started for the door.

"Hey, where are you going?" Brian asked, sounding panicked.

"To my SUV. You've got five minutes to decide whether we're taking that trip or not. But if you show up? Don't do it for your sister. Do it for yourself. Otherwise you'll end up right back where you started, and if you ask me, that's a shit place to be."

Without looking over his shoulder, Dare walked out, slamming the door behind him.

Nineteen.

Liza drummed her fingers against her desk. She tapped her foot against the floor. She played basketball with balled-up paper. And she waited for a loan shark to walk into her office and take the money she and Cara had painstakingly stuffed into two cardboard tubes that usually held architectural plans.

Fifty thousand dollars, she thought in disbelief.

A knock sounded on her door.

Her stomach jumped and she rose to her feet. "Come in."

A third man she hadn't seen before strode into her office. He wore a suit and tie and looked like any other client. "May I help you?"

"I'm here for the package, Ms. McKnight."

Hands shaking, Liza pointed to the two tubes.

The man opened the white cap on the end of each, saw the money inside, and nodded. "This all of it?"

"Do you think I ever want to see you again? Of course that's all of it." I like my kneecaps, thank you very much, Liza thought.

The man turned and treated her to what looked like a genuine smile. "Then it's been a pleasure doing business with you. More so than with your brother." He popped the covers back onto the tubes and gathered them in his arms.

"Umm...would you be insulted if I asked for a receipt?"

The man tipped his head back and laughed. "Tell you what? I'll go home and count it, and if it's all there, I'll send it in the mail," he said, still chuckling.

"You trust me and I trust you. Fine." She nodded, wondering when she'd lost her mind.

The man lifted his hand in a wave and walked out the door.

Liza's knees shook and she shut the door behind her, grabbed the garbage pail, and threw up.

Liza had been home for all of an hour. Her nerves were still shot, her legs still shaking, but it was over. She'd handled the payment by herself. She'd alerted Jeff that something serious was going on and he knew to listen in case she called for help. In that way she wasn't alone. But the knowledge hadn't lessened her nerves. She couldn't remember the last time she'd gotten sick. She'd called Cara, who'd been sitting in her car around the corner, and assured her all was well. Then Liza had insisted on going home by herself.

Once there, she showered and washed her hair and came out feeling clean, fresh, and completely alone. Her life had officially returned to the status quo she'd known so well before Dare Barron had taken over.

She hated it and she hated him for teasing her with a glimpse at what could have been. Being part of a family, being cared for and maybe even loved.

"Suck it up," she muttered to herself. This was her life.

Her phone rang and she picked it up on the first ring. "Hello?"

"Hi, Liza Lou."

"Brian!" Her heart flipped over in her chest. "Where are you?"

"Will you meet me?" he asked.

"Where?" She grabbed a pen and paper and scribbled down the address he'd given her. "How far from here is it?" She didn't recognize the street name.

"It's an hour away."

She was exhausted, but she wouldn't say no. "I'll see you soon," she promised him.

Needing caffeine, she stopped at Cuppa Cafe and picked up an extra-large coffee to take with her on the drive. She programmed the address Brian had given her into her GPS and started on her way. It was dark by the time she pulled up to a heavily wooded area on the street Brian had named.

There was only one driveway on the street beside a discreet sign: MEADOW TREATMENT CENTER. Liza pulled to a stop and stared at the sign, not comprehending what she saw.

Her cell phone rang again. "It's me," Brian said. "Are you close?"

"I...I'm here. I'm also confused."

"This is the last call they'll let me make for a while. Pull in, park, and go to the entrance. Ask for me. They're expecting you at the desk," Brian said.

"Treatment center?" She still couldn't believe it.

A few minutes later, she'd reached the main desk and asked to see Brian McKnight.

A young woman led Liza down a maze of corridors and into a large waiting room, with a television and a set of matching couches. "Just wait here," the dark-haired woman instructed.

Liza knew she was trembling, but she couldn't stop. She wouldn't until she saw her brother. The minutes dragged by until finally she heard his voice.

"Liza?"

"Brian!" She turned and he stood in the doorway, looking nothing like her brother.

His normally well-combed hair was a mess, he wore a beard that hadn't seen a razor in way too long, his eyes were bloodshot, and his skin was sallow. He was dressed in gray sweats and a faded youth league baseball T-shirt, clothing he'd never normally wear. But none of that mattered compared to the fact that he stood in front of her safe and sound-and in a treatment center of all places.

Liza ran to him and pulled him into a tight hug. "I was so worried about you."

"I don't know why you haven't given up on me yet," her brother said.

She stepped back, meeting his gaze. "I don't want to, but I can't go through this again. I won't. The loan shark, the threats, people following me..." Her voice trailed off. She didn't want to relive the day.

"I'm sorry."

She pressed her lips together in a grim smile. "I know." But she also knew apologies weren't enough, not anymore. "But you're here, in this place. I'm so proud of you." She hugged him once more.

"Umm, I can't take complete credit."

She stepped back. Taking his hand, she led him to one of the sofas. "What do you mean?"

"Your boyfriend found me in a dump hotel."

"My what?"

"Your cop boyfriend. He showed up and started giving me orders. He made me shower. He cleaned up the mess I made of the room, tossed the bottles...He even gave me clean clothes." Brian ducked his head, obviously embarrassed.

Liza was too stunned to speak. Instead, she fingered the worn shirt her brother wore. Dare had done this? For Brian? A man he despised?

"He read me the riot act and then gave me five minutes to decide whether or not to let him drive me here."

Liza blinked back tears. "You came."

"He pretty emphatically told me not to do it for you but for myself. But I have to say, the man loves you, Liza Lou."

She shook her head hard, not wanting to hear those words, refusing to believe in fantasies ever again. "Dare's got a lot of his own guilt over Stuart Rossman. He lives to do the right thing now. Helping you was his way of making sure he did right by me to the end. That's all."

"Hey. I'm the one in denial in this family, not you." Brian lifted her chin with his hand. "It's no secret I hate cops, right?"

She managed a smile. "Right."

"But this is me telling you the guy's okay. And he loves you. He told me so."

"But-"

"No buts. You're going to need someone to lean on while I'm in here."

She touched his cheek. "I've been on my own for a long time. I'll be fine." But her mind was reeling from the fact that Dare had not only found Brian but taken care of him.

For himself? Or did his feelings for her play a role, as her brother believed. And even if she allowed herself to trust what her brother said, just because Dare loved her-and her heart sped up at the possibility-didn't mean he could accept who and what her brother was.

When Liza closed her eyes at night, she remembered his harsh words, heard the anger and hatred in his voice. Love? Not hardly, she thought. But she knew him, and by now he was, as Cara said, probably kicking himself for turning on her. She could forgive him for that night, but she didn't expect anything more from him.

"How long are you here for?" she asked Brian.

"I don't know. There's an evaluation period and treatment plans. I put your name down on my forms. You can call and they'll give you whatever information you want or need." He drew a deep breath. "I'm going to try my best, Liza Lou."

She smiled. "That's all anyone can do." And it was so much more than she'd had to hold on to a few short hours ago.

It was what she needed to do. When she left here, she'd gather the same strength her brother had shown, and go on with her life.

"How will you pay for this?" she asked, knowing from the look of the place that it was a high-end facility. "I can-"

"No." He barked out the word. "I'm sorry. No. Thank you. You've done enough for me. Because of me. I called Mom and Dad. They're footing the bill for this."

Liza exhaled hard. "Wow. Okay, then."

"And they're sending you a check for the money you laid out. If the police recover the money from the loan shark, you can repay them. If not...Don't worry about it."

She had to be hearing things. "Brian..."

"I told them everything. What I've done, how I stole from the business, put you in danger, and hurt you. And before you ask, it doesn't matter what they think or feel. They are who they are."