Summer Nights (Fool's Gold #8)

The Mountaineers’ pitcher struck out the first three at bats. The first hit for the home team was an over-the-fence home run. Shane yelled with everyone else, enjoying the home team’s skill. Josh and Raoul joked about who was more famous in town. Ethan offered Shane advice on the house Shane was having built. Simon and Cameron talked different breeds of dogs with Finn. Tucker and Kent debated mathematical averages in trying to beat the house in casino gambling.

Shane enjoyed the afternoon, the game and the company, but in the back of his mind, he couldn’t stop thinking about Kent and Cameron and the women in their lives. Both men had suffered through disastrous marriages. Kent was stuck—still hurt, still waiting for Lorraine to return. He had his kid and his work, but was he happy? Was there contentment, or just a sense of longing for what he would never have again?

Cameron had gone another direction. He, too, had dealt with a child as a single father. But instead of retreating, he’d opened his heart to Rina and was now happily married. He’d let go of the past—something he had to do before he could move on.

Shane knew he could go in either direction. He could stay lost in anger and bitterness, remembering what had happened until he didn’t have room for anything else. Or he could let go and move on. The choice was his, and whatever he chose, there would be consequences.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“YOU MUST REALLY LOVE HER,” Shane said as Khatar tossed his head after flawlessly executing the complicated step sequence they’d been working on.

The horse pranced a couple of paces to the left, then went to the right, starting the steps over again.

“You don’t need me here, do you?” Shane asked. “You can do this all on your own.”

Khatar moved closer and gently butted him. Shane rubbed the horse behind the ears.

Since falling for Annabelle, the once-difficult stallion had become a friendly, easygoing animal. Shane wasn’t about to turn him loose in a playschool, but the change was remarkable. He wondered if Khatar’s previous trainers had simply assumed he would be difficult and had treated him accordingly before he’d had a chance to prove himself. He’d reacted to their assumptions. Or was he giving the horse too much credit?

He led Khatar across the yard, toward the large pen next to Priscilla’s. After a morning of hard work, Khatar deserved a little freedom in the big one-acre fenced area.

A black Mercedes drove up by the stable and came to a stop. Shane recognized the vehicle and the man who stepped out of it. His good mood faded and he was ready to put his fist through something. Or someone.

“Good morning,” Lewis called. “I’m here to see Annabelle.”

Shane felt Khatar tense. The horse raised his head, as if trying to appear even bigger.

“Right back at you,” he muttered to the horse, then glanced over at Lewis. “She’s not here.”

Lewis raised his eyebrows. “She doesn’t live here?”

“No. She has a place in town.” He was about to say she worked at the library, but decided he wasn’t going to give the other man any more information.

“Interesting. I thought…” Lewis gave him a quick, meaningless smile. “Thank you.” He turned his attention to Khatar. “Amazing animal.”

“He is. Do you ride?”

“Me? No. Never been one for outdoor sports.”

“Annabelle does.”

Lewis blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

“Annabelle rides Khatar.”

“You must be mistaken.”

Khatar chose that moment to lunge for Lewis. When Shane held him back, he rose on his back hooves, front legs pawing toward the other man.

Lewis scuttled back for safety. “That horse would kill her. How can you allow it?”

“It wasn’t my decision.”

Shane hadn’t been pleased to see Lewis, but he suddenly found himself enjoying the conversation. Still, he didn’t want Khatar to hurt himself, so he led the horse over to the closest corral and secured him behind the gate.

“I’ll be back,” he told the horse in a low voice. “Then you’ll have your afternoon of running around.”

Khatar ignored him and glared at Lewis.

Shane walked back toward the man hiding behind his car.

“I can’t imagine what she enjoys about being here,” Lewis said with a sniff. “She’s not the outdoor type.”

“How long were you married?”

“Two years.” Lewis paused. “Closer to four now, what with us still being married.”

“How did you find out the divorce wasn’t final?”

“My lawyer bought into another practice. In the process of moving, he went through his files and realized we’d never received the final paperwork from the clerk.”

“So you came to see her rather than let her know by phone?”

Lewis smiled. “I knew that by now Annabelle had to be regretting the divorce. She doesn’t belong in a place like this. Fool’s Gold.” His lip curled in a sneer. “What a ridiculous name. Have you seen the town? Like something out of a 1960s TV show.”

“I wouldn’t know. I wasn’t around then.”

Lewis bristled. “I’m simply pointing out that it’s hardly a regular sort of place. Not anywhere Annabelle would be happy.”

“You two lived in North Carolina?”

“Yes. Raleigh. I have a lovely house. Very quiet and spacious with good light. I’m a writer.”