Page 69 of Just One Fake Date

Ty stared in shock. He recalled, a bit too late, that he was the one who had concluded that Shannyn had an ex who had left her. She’d said the house was spoils of war, which could mean a lot of things. She hadn’t even agreed with his guess that someone had moved out, taking his paycheck with him. Ty had assumed divorce or separation. He was the one who’d concluded Shannyn had a broken heart. But a contributing paycheck could be gone for reasons other than a divorce—like a trip across Europe.

He straightened and remembered the maps.

Ty had never asked if Shannyn was seeing anyone, either. He’d just made assumptions about the change in her cash flow. Those maps could explain so much: particularly that she was lonely enough to be impulsive about sex, but kept pushing him away, trying to keep things from progressing. She’d been adamant about having no emotional bonds, and Ty thought he understood why.

In fact, the mystery that was Shannyn was suddenly crystal clear.

The same cologne. She couldn’t have been pretending she was with some other guy. She couldn’t have chosen him just because of his cologne.

Could she?

Ty didn’t know.

He had to talk to her. He had to know for sure.

He dried up, rolled down his sleeves and put his watch back on. He brushed down his trousers, then headed outside. Derek was in the driveway working on his bid. Shannyn gave Ty a brilliant smile and started to walk toward him just as a cab pulled up at the curb. A lanky guy got out of the cab, slinging a duffle bag over his shoulder as he surveyed the house and then them.

“Taz!” He shouted, then grinned, striding toward Shannyn.

Taz? Was this guy at the wrong house?

Shannyn gave a little squeal. She ran toward the new arrival. “You said not until August!” she cried, proving that he was not at the wrong house.

“I lied,” the new arrival said without remorse. “I wanted to surprise you.”

“Mission accomplished!”

Derek glanced at him but Ty just shrugged. His throat was tight and he knew he had to leave, but he wanted to know more.

Who was this guy? Ty was pretty sure he knew. Whoever he was, the guy definitely knew Shannyn well. He caught her close and swung her around in the air as they laughed together, then tossed her over his shoulder and began to tickle her.

He also knew exactly where she was ticklish, which wasn’t encouraging.

Why did he call her Taz?

“Aidan!” she shouted, fighting against him and losing badly. “I thought you were in Tashkent.”

Aidan. She’d never even mentioned an Aidan.

“Not since last September, Taz, and you know it.”

The maps meant she was tracking Aidan’s progress. Ty’s gut went cold. She’d thought Aidan wasn’t coming home until August, which meant it hadn’t been relevant to tell Ty about him. Their deal would be done long before Aidan’s scheduled return.

Shit.

Ty felt like he’d been kicked in the gut. He had one hard and fast rule and that was he never cheated. He never got involved with anyone who was still involved emotionally with anyone else.

But this was his own fault: he’d never asked about Shannyn’s romantic life. He’d assumed, and Ty knew the old phrase.

How could he have been so stupid? Ty didn’t need to ask questions any more. He just needed to leave.

The problem was he couldn’t leave, not with Derek’s truck parked behind his car.

Aidan had to be more than a foot taller than Shannyn. She kicked and squirmed but he held her in the air and tickled her mercilessly. He was blond and good-looking, one of those wiry guys who are stronger than they look. He was about the same age as Ty and obviously used to carrying Shannyn around. She couldn’t break free of him, and Ty wasn’t sure she wanted to.

“Beijing, then,” she said, breathless.

“Missed it this time.”

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