Meanwhile, Shane fumed. He knew Diana, and whatever their son might wish, she wasn’t back for good. She had a life of stardom in California, and she wouldn’t leave it willingly. She’d come back for a very specific reason—with a goal in mind—and he wanted to know what it was.
“Why?” he demanded.
“Dad!” Dylan stepped in front of her, shielding her from him. As if Diana had ever been the one who needed protecting. She always had every situation under control. Dylan eyed him meaningfully. “She’s here to see us.”
“Daddy?” A high-pitched voice had them turning around. Hunter stood in the hall with his thumb in his mouth and a toy dinosaur tucked under his arm. “Who’s the strange lady?”
They all froze. Then Diana’s eyes narrowed. “Don’t you recognize me, darling?”
Hunter backed up, shaking his head.
She knelt and opened her arms. “I’m your mummy. Come give me a hug.”
If she was expecting a tearful reunion with her younger son, she was in for a shocking disappointment. Hunter was shy at the best of times, and considering the tension in the house for the past couple of days, he was even more reserved than usual. He stumbled backward, and then spun and raced around the corner to hide inside his bedroom. Diana’s jaw dropped. She didn’t seem to know how to react. He supposed she was used to people throwing themselves at her. She was beautiful, talented, and successful.
Fucking heartless.
“You poisoned him against me,” she accused, rising to her feet, her pale eyes flashing. “My own baby doesn’t know who I am.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” he said, refusing to participate in her theatrics. “I didn’t need to poison him against you. You left when he was three months old, and you haven’t been back. Why on earth would he know you? You’re a stranger to him, and he’s a shy kid. That’s all there is to it.”
Diana looked at Dylan, seeking confirmation. Dylan nodded, his gaze whizzing back and forth between them. “Yeah, Hunter takes a while to warm up to people.”
Shane crossed his arms, pleased that Dylan had backed him up. With the hero worship written across his face, he’d half expected the kid to toss him under the nearest bus if it meant keeping Diana happy. As it was, she couldn’t say a thing, and it was priceless because the only person Diana had to blame for Hunter’s reaction was herself. Shane and Diana stood there in the entrance, at an impasse.
“Aren’t you going to invite me in?” she asked eventually.
“No.” Not in his lifetime. “How long has this trip been in the works? Why didn’t you tell anyone you were coming?”
She shrugged one slender shoulder, and for the first time, he noticed that her formfitting jersey had a low V-neck that displayed the tops of her breasts. Breasts he recalled having been considerably smaller. He frowned. Was she intending to seduce him into letting her stay until she’d had enough of playing house? Because she would grow weary of it. That was inevitable. Whatever she was doing here, it was all a game to her. To him, it was their lives.
“I decided to visit after Dylan called on Saturday. He sounded upset, and I wanted to make sure everything was all right.”
Shane glanced at Dylan, who hung his head, cheeks flaming. While the situation frustrated Shane, he didn’t blame his son. None of them had handled things well, and he should have taken the time to explain everything earlier. But he also didn’t buy Diana’s explanation. Dylan had cried and begged and pleaded with her to come back dozens of times over the years, and she’d never set foot on New Zealand soil. Why now?
The voice in the back of his head told him that this was about Faith. Diana had a competitive streak, and he doubted she liked the thought of someone taking her place—even though she’d given it up a long time ago. If Diana had spoken to Dylan on Saturday evening, it had probably been before he pretended to be sick and before Shane had told him the arrangement he’d made with Faith, which meant Diana would have no idea they weren’t actually dating.
He wouldn’t enlighten her. Partly because it was hypocritical of her to think she had any right to weigh in on who he dated, and partly because, if she intended to stay in town for a while, it would be nice to have a shield between them.
“How can you afford to be away from filming?” he asked, still not stepping aside to allow her further into the house. She’d never lived here—he’d bought it after she’d gone—and she wasn’t welcome now.
Waving a hand in a typically flippant move, she crossed to Dylan’s side and rested a hand on his shoulder. He tilted his head up, practically glowing. Shane wanted to wrench her away. Did she even care that she was toying with their children’s emotions?
“Filming has ended for the season. I have six entire weeks of vacation before I’m due back.” She smiled cattishly. “Isn’t that wonderful?”
Diana was in her third season of filming a popular television series about three women battling their way to success on Wall Street. If they had six weeks off at the end of filming, that meant she’d had two such holidays previously and made no attempt to return to Haven Bay.
“Good for you,” he said tightly. “But you can’t stay here.”
“Please, Dad,” Dylan said, turning wide eyes on him. “Please, please, please.”
Shane shook his head. Diana had chosen fame and fortune over family, and they all had to deal with the consequences of that choice. “No.”
“There’s nowhere I’d rather be.” This time it was Diana’s eyes that were big and pleading. Bitterness curdled his stomach. Did she really think she could manipulate him the same way she used to?
He jerked his head toward the door. “Can I talk to you outside for a moment?”
Her lips curled, and he knew what was coming the moment they stepped outside. She pressed herself to him and batted her eyelashes. Once upon a time, his body would have reacted hotly, but no longer.