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Her heart still belonged to him, but for how long, she didn’t know. At this point she couldn’t see a reality where she would ever stop loving Shane. He was the one she wanted to be with for the rest of her life.
Eloise looked at Marc. “I want you to know that I appreciate you. Just listening to me today has been really nice.”
“Sorry I couldn’t be more help.”
Eloise snorted. “What more could you do? It’s not like you know what’s going through Shane’s head, right?”
Something flashed across his face. It was short, but she could have sworn she saw an emotion that might have given her some information if she’d been more diligent. Her eyes narrowed as she studied him, wondering if it would appear again. But then Marc looked away. He took a few steps back and then turned away from her. “I don’t know Shane nearly as well as I would like. He barely tolerates my sister and me.”
She recalled Shane had mentioned something to that effect. Marc was capable of nefarious stuff. Still, she couldn’t see it. Marc had been nothing but sweet and supportive.
Perhaps she needed to accept that not everything was as it appeared. There were still things that she would never understand or figure out.
And Shane’s relationship with his cousins was one of those things.
23
Shane
The country club was filled to the brim with locals and people that Madeline had insisted Shane invite for a soiree. She’d pulled out all the stops, hiring an out-of-town caterer as well as a country music group. She’d insisted this was her way of introducing herself to Copper Creek.
Whatever kept her busy was fine by him. He just wanted her out of his hair while he tried to come up with everything he needed to put in his part of their contract.
“You look absolutely terrible.”
Shane turned toward the person speaking, but he already knew that voice. Brielle was dressed in a black dress that clung to her frame and accentuated it perfectly. He had been waiting for this to happen. He knew better than to believe Eloise would keep this from the only sister who knew about their relationship. “Thanks,” he muttered.
“No, seriously. I have never seen you look so… like you’ve been hit by a train.”
He sighed.
“Make that fifty trains,” she added.
“I get it, Brielle. You don’t have to rub it in.”
She reached for a glass of champagne from a tray that floated by on a waiter’s hand. “Um, that’s where you’re wrong. Don’t you understand? You broke my sister’s heart. For that fact alone, I will do everything in my power to make your life miserable.”
He glanced at her, no energy to utter a single argument. He was already miserable and he deserved every second of it. He was taking this cosmic punishment with as much grace as he could muster.
“What? Cat got your tongue? What iswrongwith you? Itoldyou not to fall in love with her. Itoldyou to leave her alone after you got Marc away from her. But I guess the joke’s on me because Marc is still hanging around like a bad cough.”
Shane stiffened. His pulse quickened as he let this realization wash over him. Marc was supposed to leave Eloise alone. Madeline had assured him that they wouldn’t have anything to do with the Callahans after he’d agreed to give her half of everything. He worked his jaw, his eyes scanning the room until they landed on Madeline.
His future business partner stood in a group of prominent ranchers, laughing and visiting like she belonged here. That vile woman was the symbol of everything he hated, and if Eloise wasn’t caught up in the crossfire, he would have gone all scorched earth on her.
“Shane. I’mspeakingto you.”
“I’m sorry, Brielle, but I’m not in the mood.” He raked a hand through his already mussed hair, praying he wouldn’t run into Eloise at this event. Everyone, including the Callahans, was invited. Brielle was the first he’d seen of the lot.
Even while he prayed Eloise wasn’t in attendance, he searched for her. His gaze scanned the entire ballroom, and a mixture of relief and anguish filled his stomach when he didn’t find her.
Good. If she wasn’t here, then she wouldn’t have to deal with Madeline. He wouldn’t be surprised if she had something up her sleeve when it came to messing with the woman he loved. Brielle could hold her own. It was Eloise he was worried for.
He moved through the crowd, darting in and out of groups, avoiding speaking to anyone. Brielle was right. He hadn’t gotten any sleep since he’d sent that text message to Eloise, and that was two weeks ago.
On top of his terrible sleeping habits, he had lost his appetite and had already dropped ten pounds. His only saving grace was that his businesses were practically running themselves. He had hired excellent people who were great at running the basic operations.
Shane found a quiet, dark corner where he could nurse a drink with a slightly higher alcohol content than the champagne that everyone else was enjoying. He swirled the two fingers’ worth of whiskey, staring at the liquid for a moment before glancing around the room again. On the one hand, he wanted to drown his sorrows. He needed more than something that would just take the edge off. He needed sleep. And he needed to drown his sorrows.
