Page 30 of The Bachelor

The flare up of anger he felt whenever Billy Hart came into conversation frustrated him. He shouldn’t get so defensive and he knew it. Every time he did, he felt shades of their father in his behavior and he despised that with every ounce of his being. So he concentrated on relaxing his shoulders and breathing through his nose. The irritation passed and he carefully took a swallow of his coffee, burning his tongue. He welcomed the pain.

“Jo, this is the kind of girl that if I screw this up, I could break her. Do you know how overwhelming that feels?”

The look on her face told him immediately he’d revealed too much. Her eyes widened and she grinned.

“Shaney,” she exclaimed. “You like her, like her.”

He did. “What gave it away? Me asking Chance for advice on interpreting a note?” He shook his head, suddenly amused with himself. “What the hell am I doing?”

He shoved a guacamole-laden chip in his mouth to keep himself from saying anything else. Next thing you know he’d be admitting he liked rom coms and had a soft spot for mismatched eyes.

“Uh, I think you’re finally ready to stop the revolving door of pointless one-night stands and have an actual relationship.”

“Hey. None of those one-night stands were pointless. Naked fun was had by all.”

“No details, please.” She held her hand up. “But fine, time and place. That worked while it worked but now you’ve met someone and it’s something different. This is amazing. I’m so happy for you!”

Shane groaned. “Oh, God,” he told Chance. “She has me engaged and married in her mind already.”

“One hundred percent,” Chance agreed.

“So why are you fretting over this girl? Ask her out,” Jolene said. “A real date, not meeting up at a bar.”

“Thanks for the advice, kid. I appreciate it. But it’s complicated.”

“In what way? Love is simple.”

He sat up straighter. “Now you’re at love? Slow your roll, girl. I’m just…curious about her.” That was the truth. Maybe not the whole truth, but the rest was muddled and off, and he didn’t really understand it himself, so he wasn’t going there with his sister. “So listen, I have a song for you.”

“Really?” She looked surprised. “You hardly ever bring me a song.”

“I heard it when I was walking down the hallway today at Rusted Truck. The writer had no clue I was even listening. I’m meeting with her and Pat tomorrow and I’m going to get a recording for you to hear. It’s perfect for you, Jo. It’s a tear jerker.”

“It’s been a while since we wrote a tear jerker,” she said to Chance, giving him an intimate smile.

He grinned. “It’s been a while since we wrote anything. The honeymoon is stretching out too long, darling, not that I’m complaining. But you have to admit we’ve been distracted. Maybe we need someone else to kickstart us.”

“So you’re game?”

“Sure. Let me know when you’ve got something. Who’s the writer?”

“Avery O’Leery. She is brand new, fresh from Kentucky. I think she has amazing potential.” He really did. He tended to work more with artists who blended rock and country, which wasn’t Avery’s sound at all, but even still, he could tell that Avery had some raw talent.

“Kentucky girl, huh? I wonder what part.”

He shrugged, striving for casual. “She never said.”

His sister was staring at him a little too hard. “Is she attractive?”

“What does that have to do with anything? She’s a talented songwriter.”

“It’s her,” Jolene said gleefully. “The note girl.”

Shane sighed. Damn it. His sister knew him too well. “It is.”

“Oooh, tell me all about her.”

Shane shrugged again. “I just did.”

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