Deacon supposed that to anyone else, it would sound very inviting. “Well, you’re my only friend in town, so again, I’ll pass. You go on and eat a finely prepared steak on my behalf.”
Shane finally gave up, nodding and throwing up a hand in goodbye.
Deacon watched him go, relieved that he managed to get out of dinner. He had many reasons for avoiding the clubhouse, but the biggest one was Cecelia and Chip. He knew that both of them were members, and he had no interest in running into either of them tonight. Not after she’d spent the afternoon twisting his insides into knots.
No, he needed a little time before he saw Cecelia again. He needed to remind himself how badly she’d hurt him and how much he wanted her to regret what she’d done. To keep his head on straight, he had to stay away from her.
A steak, a stiff drink and a Netflix binge would do it.
He hoped.
Three
When Cecelia got back to her office later that afternoon, she found a giddy Simone waiting for her in the lobby. Cecelia loved Simone, she was one of her best friends in the whole world, but after the day she’d had—hell, after the week she’d had—she wasn’t really in the mood. She had to jump on this Bellamy job right away if they were going to make the grand opening deadline.
Simone obviously didn’t care, ignoring the stressed-out vibes Cecelia knew she was sending out. She followed Cecelia down the halls of To the Moon to her private office. “Have you heard the latest news?” Simone asked after she slipped into the room behind her.
Cecelia dropped her things down on her desk and plopped, exhausted, into her chair. “Nope. There’s news?”
Simone rubbed her hands together in excitement and rushed over to sit on the edge of her desk. “So,” she began, “word is that Maverick is at it again. A message went out on social media to everybody in the Texas Cattleman’s Club today.”
Cecelia held her breath as she waited to hear the latest news. She’d been too busy with The Bellamy project to check her phone. Had Maverick taken her money and spread her secret anyway? “So, what did the message say?”
Simone pulled her cell out of her purse and flipped through it to find the message. Locating it, she handed the phone over to Cecelia. The message was short and blessedly vague. It read: Someone in the Texas Cattleman’s Club is not who they say they are.
Cecelia shrugged it off and handed the mobile back to Simone, feigning disinterest. “That’s hardly big news. I’d say half the people there aren’t who they pretend to be.”
Simone returned her phone to her bag. “And to think that folks still believe we’re the ones behind the attacks!”
“I have to say I’m thankful this last message went out when I couldn’t possibly have sent it. I’ve got a room full of witnesses.”
Simone just shrugged. “That doesn’t mean they don’t still think Naomi and I are the culprits, that we’re all in on it together. If I had the time, I just might be the kind to do it. You’ve got to give the guy credit. Royal has been pretty dull lately. Maverick has brought more excitement to town in the last few months than we’ve had since the tornados hit.”
Excitement? Cecelia certainly wouldn’t consider extortion or extreme weather exciting. They were both terrifying in their own right. “You know, you might not want to act so excited when that stuff comes out. It makes us look guilty.”
“Hey, I thought you would enjoy this more. What’s wrong with you today? You don’t seem like your usual self.”
Cecelia wanted to shout, “Because the real Maverick is blackmailing me! That message was about me!” But she wouldn’t. Instead she said, “I’m just stressed out and tired. I had that big presentation today at The Bellamy.”
Simone perked up again. “So, how did it go? Did you dazzle Shane with your designs? Is he going to dump Brandee and run away with you? Please tell me that at the very least he wasn’t rude.”
“He was fine. And Brandee didn’t even come up. You could say that I dazzled him, since they offered me the contract. It seems I also dazzled his silent partner, Deacon Chase.”
Simone’s nose wrinkled in thought as she tried to place the name. “Deacon Chase. Why do I know that name?”
“Because,” Cecelia explained, “that was my first boyfriend in high school.”
Simone’s eyes grew as wide as saucers. “Are you kidding me? Is that Deacon Chase Shane’s silent partner? Didn’t you lose your virginity to him?”
Cecelia looked around nervously to make sure that none of her employees overheard their discussion. Getting up from her chair, she ran to her office door and shut it. “Say it a little louder, Simone. Yes, Deacon was my first.” Those weren’t exactly helpful memories considering he was in town at the moment, but they were true. Deacon had been the first boy she ever loved. The last boy she’d ever loved.
“Does Chip know he’s in town?”
“Does that matter?” Cecelia asked. “Chip and I didn’t date in high school. We didn’t even date in college. He’s got no reason to worry about Deacon.”
Simone wasn’t convinced. “Yeah, but he knows you two dated and were pretty serious. You don’t think it’s going to bother him that Deacon is back in Royal?”
If there was only one thing t