“Yeah, listen to her, Mark.” Another redhead, this one natural, put a hand on Mark’s forearm. A huge diamond ring winked from her finger. She was curvy and dressed to show off her figure. A confident woman. Shane liked that. “I’m Hilary Rosenberg.”
“Soon to be my missus,” Mark said.
“I’m Jane, Iain’s fiancée.” A pretty brunette next to Iain extended a hand. It had several cuts and burns, as did the forearm behind it. “So nice to meet you, Shane. I’ve heard so much about you.”
Shane shook hands with her. She was warm and gentle, and Iain stood close, like a dragon guarding its pile of gold. She didn’t wear her ring on her finger. Instead it dangled from a platinum chain around her neck. “What do you do?” he asked.
“Personal chef,” she said. “Just getting started.”
“But very successful. She’s a genius in the kitchen,” Iain said. Her cheeks glowed rosily in response.
“So. Where’s the man who got you in that condition?” Shane asked Vanessa. She wasn’t showing yet, but he trusted Mark was right about her hormones.
“Justin’s on his way here. Work, as usual. He’s going to meet us at the restaurant.”
Shane blinked. “What restaurant?”
“Mine,” Mark said. “Éternité. It’s my latest, although it’s no longer all that new. You missed the grand opening.”
“He dedicated it to Hilary,” Vanessa said with a soft sigh. “Is that just romantic or what?”
“Am I even dressed right?” Shane asked. Unlike his family he was in a white short-sleeve button-down shirt and old, comfy khakis, and Ginger was in a sundress.
“The clothes don’t matter. You’re family.” She looped her arm around Shane’s. “Come on. Let’s go.”
He looked around, wondering where Ginger was. Finally he spotted her at the edge of the crowd. Nobody from his family tried to welcome her back, and she stood with her face politely blank. Annoyance scraped his nerve endings. Something told him she’d been snubbed before—probably by his family. They had no right to treat her like this. She was his fiancée.
“Excuse me,” he said, unhooking his arm from Vanessa’s. If his sister needed to lean on somebody to walk, she had plenty of people to choose from.
Shane went to Ginger and put a hand on her shoulder. “Hey, apparently we’re invited to a family dinner.”
“Looks like it,” she agreed, her voice not revealing anything. She didn’t seem displeased, but that didn’t mean she was thrilled either, especially given how standoffish his family was being. “I should probably get a cab and go to my place.”
“Don’t. Come with me. We’re going to Éternité.” He linked his hand with hers. “If the food sucks, I’ll buy you dinner elsewhere. Anything you want.”
She shook her head. “It’s not going to suck. It’s one of the best restaurants in the country.”
“Have you been there before?”
“No, but it has a great reputation.”
He scowled. Mark should’ve invited her to the opening even if Shane hadn’t been in the country. Ginger was practically family. He forced himself to smile, while making a mental note to talk to his brother later. “Let’s go then. It’ll be even more delicious since it’s free.”
Her mouth curved into a reluctant grin. “All right. I’ll go.”
Chapter Nine
Iain and Jane had brought a large Mercedes, and they drove Shane and Ginger.
Shane shook his head at the atrocious traffic. “Are we going to make it to the restaurant before it closes?”
“They’ll wait for Mark. He’s the boss,” Iain said. He glanced at Shane in the rearview mirror. “So. I heard from Vanessa you don’t remember much.”
“Yeah. Some kind of head injury. But things are starting to come back.”
“That’s good.”
“So where’s Dad? Too busy to join us?”