By lunchtime, Shane’scrappy mood had lifted a little, but his chest still felt like it was going through a shredder. He and Mikey had jog-walked back to the aquatics center, and although they didn’t talk about anything in particular apart from training, the slice of normal was comforting.
As he let himself into his apartment, his stomach growling for food, his phone rang in his back pocket. It was Claire.
“Worm! How’s it going?”
“Good. Just back from training, and I’m so hungry right now, I might eat this phone.” He pushed his front door shut with his foot, dropped his keys on the counter and his gym bag on the floor, then checked the time on the clock on the wall. It was six a.m. in Sydney. “You had a lie-in today?”
“Ha, so funny. Kiri woke me up an hour ago. He’s teething. Then Tyler and Sully woke up too. Mark’s on early shift, and I’m home alone with only one spoonful of coffee left in the jar.”
“Happy days.”
Claire yawned. “So how were the Rocky Mountains?”
“Amazing.”But somewhat overshadowed now by messy feelings and past pain...Shane searched his freezer for the lasagna he’d batch-cooked the other week. “Apart from not letting you sleep, how’re those brats of yours?”
“We can hear you, Uncle Shane!”
Shane rolled his eyes at the high-pitched squeaking in the background. “It serves you right for eavesdropping.” But despite his low mood, his nieces’ giggling tugged a smile on his lips. “Has that mother of yours got me on speaker?”
“Yeah,” Claire said. “Got you on hands free while I make breakfast, so no effs and jeffs, okay?”
“As if I would.” But as he placed his lasagna in the microwave, he made a mental note to watch his language anyway.
“The kids can’t wait to see you at Christmas. You are still coming home then, aren’t you?”
“Of course I am.” He walked to the living room window, his gaze drifting to the mountains across English Bay that he could just about see peeping over the apartment building next to his. Vancouver was a great city to live in—and he loved the landscape here—but Australia would always be his home.
Which was another reason why his feelings for Krista had unsettled him so much.Canada was her home.
“So, you had a good holiday.”
“Yep.”
“And?”
“And what?”
“That bet you had with yourfriend...” Claire accentuated the word. “Who won?”
Agh. The bet. Shane had forgotten he’d told her about it the last time he’d messaged that morning at Lake Louise campground. Krista’s cute, fluffy cat pajamas sprang to mind, a sore reminder of how easy and comfortable their new friendship had been last week, just before it had exploded into that hot-as-hell fireball he hadn’t known what to do with.
“Me,” he said. “I won the bet.”
Another joyless, pointless victory.
“You made the other guy jealous? Go you, Mr. Cupid. So they’re together now?”
“Yeah,” he sighed. Claire went quiet for a few seconds, but when she drew breath to speak again, Shane asked, “How’re Mum and Dad?”
“They’re okay. So, this—”
“I’ll call them later. And Mark’s work is going okay?”
“Yeah, yeah, he’s good. So, this Krista you hiked with...and this guy you helped her get...”
Ah, Christ, he should’ve known Claire wouldn’t let it drop.
“It was an idea straight out of a high school rom-com,” he said. “A load of nonsense. I’ve deleted those posts now, so forget it.”
