Allen kept one hand on his date for the evening’s back as he guided her through the crowd. Houghton Barratt’s home was ridiculously large and ostentatious and it would be far too easy to get lost in the place.

Not that he would mind his date for the evening—or Logan’s, for that matter—getting lost. It would make Allen’s evening far more enjoyable, that was for certain. He’d wanted to bring Jess; she would have gotten a real kick out of this crowd. But Banks had asked him specifically to go as his sister’s escort.

So she didn’t have to go alone.

The Claireson sisters were a bit too much work for any man. Pretty enough, though no gorgeous beauties, they were just so trying—petty, jealous, unintelligent, lacking in humor, and uppity were just a few ways to describe them.

They spent most of the evening making nasty remarks about the event, and the Beck sisters in particular. The eldest sister had a real issue with Jillian’s elder sister marrying Houghton Barratt so suddenly. No surprise, she’d set her sights on Barratt a while back. The result hadn’t been pretty.

He tolerated them through the surprisingly well-prepared dinner portion of the evening, and then tuned them out completely when Barratt’s wife took the podium.

She gave a good accounting of what the charity event was for. Allen had to admit, he admired the purpose behind it. When the program on the large projector screen turned to a dramatization of what the Beck family had endured, he tensed.

He’d witnessed the effects of some of that time. When he watched the actress portraying Jillian fight for her life, he felt absolutely sick. When they mixed in actual security footage with the dramatizations, he cursed, louder than he intended.

As he did when he watched the blonde actress being beaten in the FCGH parking lot, as he did when he watched the man portraying Logan nearly die.

And then the actor portraying Allen himself was on the screen, trying with everything he had to save the lives of those women.

His date turned toward him. “I didn’t realize you were involved in that incident.”

“It was more than just an incident. Those women nearly died because of what had happened when they were just children. It was horrible. But they are healing now.”

He looked across the room where the Becks were. They had been through literal hell, but they had each other. They were lucky in that. All he had was his younger sister, now. And Logan. Until recently, he would have bet good money on Logan having his back—the man had helped Allen plan his mother’s funeral just two years ago, even—but Logan was struggling.

Allen would have to talk to his friend again. See how he could help.

Logan might not always handle people well, but his friend hadn’t deserved what had happened to him.

Allen was shocked to his core when Jillian and Lacy and Ariella performed, with more videos of what their family had endured playing behind them. He knew Lacy could sing—she often sang in the OR when she was trying to concentrate—but he had no idea Jillian was quite that talented.

He’d heard rumors she’d been on a television show when she was younger—she’d used the money for college, she’d said once—but she was very gifted.

“Well, aren’t they just all super-talented?” Brianna, Logan’s date, asked. No one missed the sarcasm.

“They are. Not only on that stage, but in their career fields.” Allen said, mildly. It was easy to tune Banks’ sisters out, but he respected and admired Jillian and Lacy and their dark-haired friend. He was more than willing to make that clear to the two women. “Well educated, too. Lacy’s one of the best in her field, already. I can promise you that. I’m making certain of it every single day. You should try getting a job sometime, sweetie. Or college. It might just change your outlook on life. I’m sure W4HAV could use some volunteers. Or the hospital.”

Allen spent the rest of the evening trying to enjoy himself, and trying to avoid his date. Something about her was just rubbing him raw tonight. He danced with Jillian and Lacy and their friend Ariella, as well as Jillian’s teenage sister. She was only a few years younger than his own sister and he found her very charming. And much like her older sisters.

She thanked him again for saving Brynna’s life.

His evening took a nosedive when his date caught him again. He had never been happier when the evening ended. When he drove by a certain woman’s apartment building and saw her light on, he impulsively made a stop.

Jess met him at the door, wearing nothing but a smile. His evening had just gotten a whole lot better.