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His arms came to rest on hers, and the look of devastation on Jamie’s face hit him right in the gut. “Shannon, Jamie …” He couldn’t stop his voice from catching on Jamie’s name. “This is Dréa.”
Shannon held her hand up in a little wave. “Hi, I’m Duncan’s sister, Shannon. And this is my friend, Jamie.”
“The photographers, right?” Dréa asked.
“Right.”
Jamie said nothing.
“It’s nice to meet you both. Duncan’s told me so much about you.”
“Dréa,” Nana called from the kitchen. “Can you come help me?”
“Coming, Nana,” she replied and headed to the kitchen with Mama on her heels.
“Nana?” Jamie blurted, looking like she might burst into tears.
Duncan hated that it was because of him. His eyes flitted from Jamie’s to Shannon’s and back and forth again. “I told you I brought a surprise.”
“That’s not the surprise I thought you were talking about,” Shannon said. “I thought you brought me a sweatshirt or a coffee mug or something.”
Duncan looked at Jamie then. His heart broke at the pain so clearly displayed. “I’m sorry, Jame. I didn’t know you were coming. I just …” He didn’t know what else to say, so he awkwardly turned and walked back into the kitchen, but not before hearing Jamie’s words to Shannon.
“I think I lost my appetite.”
Having Jamie there was unexpected and unsettling. Every time he glanced at her, she was either watching him or looking anywhere but at him and Dréa. He tried to keep his focus on the lovely woman beside him, but he couldn’t shake his unease. Especially as the meal ended and Dréa reached under the table to squeeze his hand, giving him the signal that it was time.
Duncan blew out a breath and stood slowly, glancing around the table with uncertainty. He looked from face to face, his gaze skipping over Jamie. If he looked into her eyes right now, he wouldn’t be able to go through with this.
“Uh, I have something …” He paused with palms sweating. “I have an announcement to make.” His eyes locked with his sister’s briefly, and she looked about as nervous as he did. “Dréa and I are engaged.”
Everything was a blur after that. Mama and Nana gasped and covered their mouths. Dréa said something about how hard it was to keep the ring a secret the whole time she’d been there. The ladies of the family moved around the table to hug and congratulate them.
It was meant to be a happy moment, so why did he feel anything but?
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Jamie stand and take off across the yard. Crap!
Shannon looked over at him and gave him a look of disapproval before taking off after her.
A sudden urgency overcame him, and he withdrew from Nana’s hug and raced after Shannon, entering the house behind her.
“Shan.”
Her long, dark hair flipped away from her face as she looked back at him.
“Can you please tell her I’m sorry she found out like this.”
Shannon stared at him for a heartbeat. “What is the deal with you two?”
His heart leapt into his throat. “Nothing.”
“Then why does it matter if she found out at all?”
“I don’t know. I just … I know I’ve hurt her, and that kills me.”
Laughter and chatter was coming from the yard, and he knew he should be outside with his fiancée.
“Who is this girl you’re marrying?” Shannon asked. “You just met her.”