“I wasn’t as much stressed as worried,” Traci explained. “I hate feeling out of control, and that was definitely how I felt this afternoon.”
“You had reason,” Kimber said. “It had to be hard.”
“But Dylan hung in there,” Shannon said.
“He was doing his best, but to be honest, he was a real mess and I kind of was, too. I’ve walked into some really bad situations over the years, but spending the day with a cop who is dwelling on every awful scenario that could have happened to his sister? It was bad.”
Shannon gulped. “How did it go when y’all found her?”
“Honestly, I think by that time we were all so wrecked, I didn’t feel anything but relief.”
“And Dylan?” Kimber asked.
“Poor guy. I think he was trying not to dissolve into a pool of tears.”
Kimber patted Traci’s arm. “Hey, you did it though, right? She’s okay. That’s something.”
Traci’s frown slipped into a half smile. “Yeah. It was a good day. It could have been so much worse.” Raising a glass, she said, “Here’s to happy endings on stressful days.”
Kimber chuckled. “I need to remember this toast.”
Shannon clicked her glass and attempted to feel more optimistic. Of course she was very thankful that Jennifer was okay, but Dylan’s blame was still weighing heavy on her heart. She’d thought that after her workout she was better . . . but maybe not.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Traci asked.
“Me? Oh, nothing.”
“Okay. So . . . Kimber told me about your country music ballet.”
“What?” Horrified, she glanced at Kimber. “What did you see?”
“Only you in a pair of toe shoes doing things that I’ve only seen at the Kennedy Center. You, girl, have been holding out on us.”
Still trying to get over the idea that Kimber had watched her dance and she hadn’t realized she’d had an audience, Shannon shook her head in dismay. “Come on, you knew I was a dancer.”
“I knew you fox-trotted around your studio to boring music. I didn’t know you were a ballerina.”
“I can’t believe I missed the show,” Traci said. “Tell me when you do an encore.”
“You didn’t miss anything,” Shannon said quickly. “I was just messing around.”
“You were leaping and twirling on one foot to a bunch of country songs. It was amazing,” Kimber said as she sipped her wine.
It was official. She was embarrassed. “Whatever. I don’t do ballet much anymore. Just when I’m having a tough day,” she added as their server brought over two huge pizzas and placed them in the center of the table.
After placing a thick slice of pepperoni and mushroom pizza on her plate, Kimber said, “What happened with you?”
Did she really want to go there? She wasn’t sure. “Something happened with Dylan.”
“What?” Kimber asked.
“I’m not sure I want to talk about it.”
“I think you should,” Traci said. “I wasn’t going to mention it, but I heard Dylan’s part of the conversation.”
That made her feel even worse. “If you heard what he said, then you probably have a good idea about why I don’t want to talk about it.” Like, ever.
“For what it’s worth, I told Dylan he was wrong to chew you out like that.”
“What did he say?” Kimber asked, her voice a full octave higher.
“He, um, he pretty much said it was my fault that Jennifer was missing.”
Traci dabbed her mouth with the paper napkin. “I could say that he had a good reason for freaking out and saying something so stupid, but I don’t know.”
“How was it your fault?” Kimber asked, her voice outraged.
“Because I didn’t try to keep her from going to have lunch with that guy.”
“But you aren’t her mom. And besides, he was really nice. I would’ve had lunch with him, too.”
Shannon shrugged. “I thought the same thing. Plus his mom was so nice. That means something, don’t you think?”
Kimber nodded. Traci just looked sympathetic. “When we saw Jack he was as upset as the rest of us. This wasn’t on him.”
“What are you going to do when he calls to apologize?” Kimber asked.
After a momentary burst of hope, she tamped it down fast. “I don’t know if Dylan will do that.”
Kimber pursed her lips. “But Shannon, what if he does?”
“If he does call, I don’t know if I’ll answer.” She cast a glance at Traci. “Sorry if this puts you in a bad spot.”
Traci shrugged off her comment. “Don’t worry about me. Like I said, I told him what I thought about him talking to you that way.”
After finishing her second piece of pizza, Shannon decided to go ahead and say what she was thinking. “Y’all, this year—discovering I had sisters, starting my business, moving . . . all of it—well, I’ve given a lot up and made a lot of changes. It’s been hard.” She looked at both of her sisters. “At least it has been for me.”
“You aren’t lying, it’s been real hard.” Kimber agreed.
“That’s what makes me think I don’t need to get into a relationship like that.”
“Like what?” Kimber countered. “Shannon, you really like him.”
“I know.” But did she want to fall in love with a man who could blame her so easily? And had she really just thought about loving Dylan Lange?
Oh, for Pete’s sake. Did she even know what love was?
“Listen to me, sister. You don’t have to decide anything right now.”
“Kimber’s right,” Traci said. “Guys are fine, but they can be a pain in the rear even on their best days. Try not to think about Dylan.”
After motioning for the server to bring her a second glass of wine, Shannon smiled. “As far as I’m concerned, he’s already out of my life.”
After sharing a look with Kimber, Traci raised her glass. “Cheers to that.”
As their drinks clinked, Shannon realized right then and there that she actually did know what love was.
Love was when her sisters didn’t point out that she was lying through her teeth.