Into the Storm (Signal Bend #3)(21)
There was only Tuck and his wife, Rose, so it was faster to go up to the bar, but Shannon didn’t want him standing right next to Havoc, who’d also noticed them come in. “The bar—I’ll go. What do you want?”
Keith shook his head. “You sit tight. Still drinking whiskey sours?”
“Sure.” She hadn’t had a mixed drink at Tuck’s—this was more a beer and straight liquor place—but she figured they’d have sour mix somewhere. Keith nodded and turned toward the bar.
While he was away, Shannon watched him, hoping none of the Horde would talk to him. He stood next to Havoc, who turned and gave him a look but said nothing. Good. She felt eyes on her, though, and knew whose they were. She tried to keep her eyes on Keith and ignore the stare heating up the side of her face, but finally she succumbed and turned her head. Yes, Show was staring at her, and, unlike every other damn time she’d tried to look at him, he didn’t shift his gaze when she met it. He looked pissed. What the hell? He could have had her if he’d wanted her.
In a heartbeat, she was angry—livid. Short of jumping on him and screaming “Fuck me now,” she didn’t think she could have made her interest more clear. He’d backed away at every turn. Since the wedding, he’d been ignoring her outright, going out of his way to keep clear. What damn right did he have to be pissed now? She had half a mind to call him out on it right now. But Keith was walking back with his scotch and her whiskey sour, so she turned away from Show and pulled Keith close for a kiss as soon as he sat.
He deepened the kiss, his hand going to hold her head, and when they pulled back, he murmured, “That’s more like it.” He searched her eyes for a second, then asked, “Something going on with that big guy at the bar? The one who looks like he wants to break my face? Is that what’s got you out in space today?”
Keith was a trial lawyer; he was an expert at reading people. Shannon knew she needed to bring her game up and give him her full attention this weekend. She pushed her fingers into his gorgeous hair and smiled. “No. He’s just a sour-tempered guy. I’m here. Let’s have our drinks and go back to bed.”
oOo
The weekend went fine. Shannon managed to focus on Keith, and they spent all of Saturday in her apartment, in bed or curled together on the couch. On Sunday, they drove out of town in his sleek black Mercedes and had breakfast in Worden. That afternoon, they stood on the gravel next to his car, his packed suitcase at his feet, and he held her for a long time.
“You don’t seem like you’re happy here, Shannon. Come back. I really miss you, beautiful.”
She was happy. She loved this job. Here, she was in at the start of something that could become big.
She was growing to love the town and its quirky citizens. If she could get over this damn crush on Show, she’d be great.
What Keith was picking up on, though, was her realization that she’d been treading water in Tulsa—for her entire adult life. Even as she’d moved steadily upward in her career, even as she’d acquired the trappings of success, she’d been going nowhere in her life. And he was part of that. Not his fault—he was the kind of man she was crazy not to want. But she didn’t want him. She’d faked every orgasm all weekend long, feeling distant and disconnected, lost in her own head while he did his level best to make her feel good—to make her feel loved.
“I’m good here, Keith. I needed a fresh start. I am happy.”
With a sad shake of his head, he kissed her.
While Shannon was still in Keith’s arms, Lilli pulled up in her classic Plymouth Barracuda. Driving that car meant she was without Gia; she drove their SUV when she had the baby with her. She got out as Keith put his suitcase in his trunk, and she walked over to them. Shannon was going to have to introduce them.
Keith took care of that himself. He closed the lid of the trunk and came forward as Lilli stopped next to Shannon. “Hi. Keith Durham. Friend of Shannon’s.”
Lilli held out her hand. “Lilli Lunden.”
“Lilli owns the inn,” Shannon supplied, feeling uncomfortable. She’d have preferred it if Keith had gotten away before Lilli showed up.
But he smiled broadly—his public smile. “Oh! Well, this is a beautiful place. I’ve really enjoyed it this weekend.”
“Thanks. I’m glad.” They all stood there awkwardly, and then Lilli said, “Well, I’m going to head down to talk to Badger. If you have a minute later, Shannon?”
“Sure. I’ll see you inside.”
With a nod, and a friendly smile at Keith, Lilli turned and walked down the gravel drive to the barn.
Keith kissed Shannon’s cheek and then got into his Mercedes and drove away. She was fairly certain she’d never see him again. Not because he wouldn’t want to, but because she wouldn’t.
Shannon stood on the sparkling gravel drive long after Keith was out of sight. A heavy, dark depression had settled on her. She had no one of any kind of permanence in her life. As if she were coated in Teflon, every friendship, every romance, hell, even her family, seemed to slide away and leave not a trace. There was something wrong with her.
oOo
She was in the office, going through the kitchen order Beth had placed, when Lilli came in and sat down on the loveseat across from the desk. There was only the one desk in the manager’s office, and Lilli had ceded it to Shannon as soon as she’d taken the job. When Lilli needed desk space to work, she generally sat in the dining room, when it was empty, or at the front desk. Shannon was thankful that, as hard as Lilli was finding it to step back and let Shannon run the place as she’d been hired to do, she understood the boundaries of respect. And she was slowly getting better about giving Shannon the reins.