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“He’s not,” Shannon insisted quickly. Too quickly.
“What about me?” Grant got in her face, trying to block her view of me. “You said I was pretty.”
“You are but you’re a different kind of pretty,” she pinched his cheek. “And you’ll do just fine since your friends are taken.”
“Gee thanks,” Grant muttered but I could see the smile in his eyes, he was happy to find a woman who gave him a hard time.
“Miles isn’t taken,” Shannon insisted. Again.
Brenna turned to her, blue eyes bouncing between us. “Oh honey, he is. And I value our new friendship too much to prove it to you the hard way. Just trust me.”
The waitress returned to the table with a helper carrying what seemed like too many dishes for six people. Plates sizzled as they were set down and Shannon made a strange sound that drew my attention.
“You okay?” Her skin was ghostly white and she shook her head.
“No. I gotta…go.” She pushed her chair back, barely missing a passing waiter as she took off and darted to the back of the restaurant, presumably to the bathroom.
I stared after her, wondering what in the hell that was all about. Something was going on with Shannon and it was bad enough that she didn’t want to share the news with anyone.
Even me.
“Just go, man. You know you want to.” Grant’s tone was half-amused and half-annoyed, but he was right and I stood slowly, righted Shannon’s chair and followed her to the back of the restaurant.
Grant was right, I was itching to go after her and my feet moved, fast, until I spotted Shannon’s slow, crooked walk across the parking lot. “Shannon!”
She shook her head but she didn’t stop walking so I ran until I caught up with her. “Not right now, Miles.” She was even paler than a few moments ago, her breaths came out short and gasping. “Please.”
“Shannon, you need to see a doctor.” The woman couldn’t possibly be this stubborn. “Come on.” I hooked an arm around her waist and turned her back towards where my car was parked. “Let me get you home.”
She shook her head and pushed at my chest. “I can walk home. The fresh air will do me good.”
“I’ll let the windows down, how’s that sound?” Shannon grunted an incoherent response but she didn’t put up much of a fight, which told me that she was worse than I thought.
Shannon
“You didn’t need to drive me home, Miles. My legs work just fine.” It was embarrassing enough that the smell of lobster quesadillas, which I’d been the one to order, had made me sick when I was so proud—to the point of being cocky—that I would be able to enjoy something delicious and greasy and cheesy again, something that wasn’t crackers and ginger ale. It was a calculate risk, I knew that, but the nausea had been gone all day and I was really hungry. Still was, in fact. “And you didn’t need to carry me inside.”
“I wasn’t going to let you walk home alone when you’re sick and wobbly and probably dizzy too.” The words came out on an angry growl and I looked up at him from my spot on the sofa with a frown.
“Who said I was dizzy?”
“Your wobbly damn legs, Shannon, that’s who.” Worry darkened his brown eyes as he dropped down on the other end of the sofa and put my legs in his lap. “Are you ever going to tell me what’s going on with you? I thought we were friends.”
That was a low blow. Totally deserved, sure, but it was still a low blow. I sat up and shot him a narrow gaze. “Do Navy SEALs never get sick?”
“Very funny.” His tone was emotionless and I knew I wouldn’t get out of this without some sort of explanation. “I’ll make you some tea.”
“Thanks.” The word came out on a whisper because that one small gesture, was sweet and kind, and worse, it showed how much Miles really did care about me. And here I was, lying to him. Keeping the biggest secret of his life from him, which only made me a big fat lying liar.
I need to tell him. That voice kept up steady pressure in my head, which only increased my guilt. I knew I needed to tell him, except I couldn’t. Miles didn’t deserve the unwanted burden on his life, not when he’d just moved and was still building his business. It wasn’t fair and the truth was, I wasn’t ready to lose Miles.
Not yet.
When Miles returned to the living room, my eyes were closed so his heavy footsteps were the only clue he was done in the kitchen. “Did you have to grow the tea leaves yourself?”
Miles chuckled, and the sound was close enough that I could feel his breath on my skin. “You’re full of jokes today, Shannon.”
