Page 41 of Fortune's Control
I pulled out my baking ingredients.
“How long will you be here?” Shane asks.
Sophie set her phone down. “Two weeks. Vacation and other things.”
“What other things?”
“Things for me that may or may not be business related.”
“You’ll stay in the garage apartment while you’re here,” Shane said. It was a statement and an order, underpinned by hope.
Shane didn’t exaggerate when he said they weren’t close. For all that, his questions told me he loved his sister and would repair the damage if he knew how.
She flicked her hand in his direction. “Is that a request or an order?”
Aiden whistled. “I forgot how much better it is when you’re here in town, Soph.” He walked past me and whispered, “Bake faster. Please.”
Jack stumbled through the still-open door and halted. He stared at Sophie like she was a ghost who had returned to haunt him- or maybe an angel back in his presence. I couldn’t decide which. He said her name, but it came out scratchy and rough. He coughed as Sophie dragged her attention away from her phone. “I didn’t know youwere here.”
“We’ve barely seen each other in over ten years. That’s not a reason to announce my presence to the stranger next door.”
He ignored the jab. “You look amazing.”
Shane poured himself a cup of coffee and watched them.
“Lilah, darling, will you tell me when Lainey arrives?” Sophie stood, finished her water, and set the empty glass by the sink. “We have plenty of food. I’ll come back with the rest of our supplies.”
“You can’t ignore me forever, Sophie,” Jack said.
She touched her ear. “Did anyone hear that?”
“What did you do to her?” Shane asked once his sister was gone. “I know why she’s angry with me, but you did nothing.”
Jack scowled at the chair Sophie occupied. “If I knew, don’t you think it’d be fixed by now?” He checked out my baking. “Save some for me. Enjoy your day.” He left.
“We feel the strongest anger towards those we most love.”
Shane approached, standing so close that our bodies touched. “Where did you hear that?”
“I just made it up.”
“We need to talk.” He put an arm around my waist, and my body trembled. “I missed you.”
14-Shane
“You missed me?” Lilah leaned against me. “Is that why you’re home so early?”
Her floral scent mixed with the fresh lemon from her baking. I breathed it in and smiled to myself. “You promised me a conversation.”
“That’s incorrect.” She twirled in my arms. “You demanded one three different times. I never promised.” She spooned the raw dough into a baking pan. “This needs to go in the oven.”
I released her. “It’s best we talk in private.”
“That sounds like a threat.”
“It’s not meant to be.”
“Do you always get your way?” she asked.
