The Billionaire's Forgotten Fiancée

Vanessa opened her mouth a couple of times, then closed it. Justin said, “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“I’m not. Dating Robert was a mistake. I realize that now.”

“Before or after Dane contacted you about going to Thailand?” Vanessa asked, apparently having recovered.

Ginger forced a smile. If Vanessa kept treating her like a hostile witness, she wouldn’t be responsible for her actions. “I don’t exactly recall, counselor. Dane had been trying to get in touch with me for a while before he finally succeeded, and I wasn’t keeping track.”

Vanessa rested her jaw in her palm. “I can’t decide what to think of you anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

“You guys were so in love. You were sane and normal, and I was convinced Shane was the perfect guy. Like Dane, Iain and Mark were just practice.”

“Geez, thanks, Vanessa,” Mark said dryly. “You wanna do the ‘Gangnam Style’ song and dance?”

She waved him away. “The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but—”

Mark snorted. “Lawyers.”

“Whatever. If it wasn’t for Hilary, you’d still have the romantic attention span of a teenager.”

Ceinlys sipped her wine and said nothing. Ginger blinked. That was so…odd. The Ceinlys she used to know would’ve given Vanessa a tongue lashing in that horribly stiff upper class diction for dissing her precious sons.

Vanessa turned back to Ginger. “It just feels like…” She frowned. “I just don’t want to see him hurt. Out of all of us, he’s the most sensitive one.”

“I know, Vanessa. I’ve been with him since high school.” And they’d shared so much, most of it stuff that not even their families were aware of. “I don’t want to hurt him either.”

Iain reappeared. “Uh… Shane doesn’t seem to be around.”

“Where could he have gone?” Ceinlys said, pulling out her phone.

“I got it.” Mark already had his ringing. He waited a few beats and said, “He’s not answering.”

“Did he get lost or something?”

Their waiter came in, carrying a gorgeous liquor case with care. “The Macallan Sixty Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whiskey in Lalique for Mr. Shane Pryce, compliments of Mr. Dane Pryce,” he announced.

Mark raised an eyebrow. “Dane is here?”

“I don’t believe so, sir. This came via special courier.”

“Where could Shane have gone then?” Ceinlys mused out loud.

“Maybe he’s in the bathroom or something. Let’s wait a bit.” Mark signaled the waiter, gave some low instructions, and more drinks were served.

Half an hour later, it was obvious Shane wasn’t coming back. Their waiter whispered something to Mark, who winced. “You sure you looked everywhere?”

“Positive,” the waiter replied, his voice low.

Ginger forced her rubbery cheeks to move so she could fake a smile as everyone’s eyes zeroed in on her. They weren’t blatant, but pity and discomfiture showed in the way they frowned and quickly averted their gazes.

“We can give you a ride,” Justin volunteered at the same time Iain said, “We’ll give you a ride home.”

“Just tell us where you live, and whoever’s closest can drop you off,” Hilary added.

“Thank you. But I can call a cab. It’s no big deal.” Ginger picked up her wine and took a long, deep swallow. The pricey alcohol did very little to blunt her humiliation. If only she could wave a wand and make herself disappear!

Thankfully the dinner ended soon after, and she climbed into a taxi before anybody could stop her.