mean your family?” She smiled sadly. It would’ve been nice if her mother had said that Christmas wouldn’t be the same without her, or even that she’d be missed. “Look, I’m not going to spend the holidays with Dad, either.”
“Please don’t tell me you’re back together with that Brian idiot.”
“No.” She glanced toward her open door. It was after six. Brian would have left already, along with the new love of his life, Serena from accounting. “You know better.”
Or did she? Unlike Shea, her mother couldn’t abide living alone. She’d been a nineteen-year-old cocktail waitress when she’d met Shea’s father at the hotel where he’d been attending a conference. Within eleven months they’d married and had Shea. It took them ten years to divorce, which was a miracle. No two people were less suited for each other. Her father was a prominent theoretical physicist, and her mother… well, while she wasn’t necessarily bright, she was clever and a stunner with an eye for fashion. Had a knack for snagging rich men, too, considering her roots were crusty blue collar. The longest she’d been between husbands was about a year.
Shea had hated the between times. Moving from town to town, school to school and finally to boarding school. And getting used to new “fathers.” She hated change of any kind, even if it meant staying in a relationship that had run its course. Give her a steady routine any day—she liked having things she could count on. It had been Brian who’d left her. Nearly three years they’d been together, had shared an apartment for almost two of them. She supposed she should feel something—sadness, regret, maybe even anger over the callous way he’d broken up with her a year ago. She felt nothing.
No, that wasn’t entirely true, she thought, with a satisfied smile aimed at the prized view of the skyline outside her window. She was pretty pleased to have the corner office Brian coveted. Hardly a charitable thought, but too bad. She hadn’t asked for the prime spot. In fact, it was a waste. Her gaze was usually glued to her computer monitor. Not that she minded. She liked the total focus necessary in her job as a computer software engineer for a high-tech corporation. Her boss had only given the office to her to emphasize her importance to the company. They were always giving her perks and bonuses.
That was part of the reason Brian had called it quits. She’d outpaced him and grown too successful. And her terrible social skills were also a factor. Being rushed through school had its price. She’d had only one friend and two dates by the time she graduated high school at fifteen. College had been more of the same.
But she was getting better. Every day. Though only when she paid attention and put herself out there, going to a movie or having a drink with a coworker instead of locking herself away with her computer and iPad. That’s why it was important to put her foot down and not let her mother steamroll her into coming for Christmas.
“Are you still there?”
“What?” Hearing her mother’s impatient sigh, Shea realized she’d zoned out. “I have to get back to work, but I wanted to let you know about Christmas.”
“Wait a minute. Don’t you dare hang up. Nothing is settled.”
“Yes, it is. I’ve already booked a flight.”
“For where?”
“Montana.”
“What the hell’s in Montana?”
Shea smiled. Her mother wore Prada these days but her vernacular hadn’t changed. “I’m going to be doing volunteer work.”
“For God’s sake, Shea, we’ve got homeless people here in Phoenix. Can’t you sling hash at a shelter here?”
Jeez. “I’m not going to be serving at a soup kitchen. It’s an animal shelter.”
“Well, I’m sure they have places like that around here. There certainly are enough mangy-looking dogs prowling the neighborhood and knocking over garbage cans. You can still change your airline ticket.”
“I could,” Shea agreed calmly, although her annoyance was climbing. “But I’m not going to. I want to do this.”
“It’s Christmas. You’re supposed to be with family.”
“Don’t take this personally, Mom. This has nothing to do with you.” Shea didn’t know why she bothered. Of course her mother took it personally. Everything was about her. “The place where I’ll be volunteering specializes in large animals. Like horses… you know how much I’ve wanted—”
“Damn right I’m taking it personally,” she said, cutting Shea off. “You spent Thanksgiving with your father and that squawking brood of his, but you won’t come to see me?”
She would not give in. Nope. Not this time. She stared at her hand, surprised that she’d started drumming her fingers on the desk. What usually came next was counting in multiples of three with each tap of her finger.
Briefly closing her eyes, she breathed in deeply and ordered herself to stop. The mild OCD had started a few years ago. She wasn’t crazy. The ritual simply helped to relieve her stress. But she’d been trying to use breathing exercises to replace it.
“Look, I’ll come for a weekend in January, okay?” Shea said, anticipating her mother’s inevitable objection. “It’ll be quieter then and we can spend more time together.”
“That won’t work for me.”
“Sorry, Mom, it’ll have to. We’ll talk more later, all right? I have to go.”
“But, Shea—”
She clenched her teeth together and forced herself to disconnect the call, acutely aware of how much she’d just royally ticked off her mother. And how desperately she needed a large number of deep breaths. But there was no other way. Shea would hate herself if she gave in now and backed out of volunteering. Not only that, but Rachel McAllister had also gone above and beyond to provide a room even though the ranch was closed for December.
As much as Shea hated having to impose, she was glad she didn’t have to mingle with other guests. Her interaction with the family would be minimal. She planned on being gone each morning before they sat down to breakfast and not returning until bedtime. The schedule suited her fine—she wanted to spend as much time at the shelter as she could. For her, animals were always easier to deal with than people.
“Hey, you.”
At the sound of Nancy’s voice, she brought her head up. The sharply dressed marketing director stood in the doorway, a black leather briefcase in one hand, a red designer purse nearly as big in the other.
“I thought everyone had left already,” Shea said, wondering if any coworkers had overheard her phone conversation. They’d be surprised at her taking such a strong stand. But hey, she was the new Shea.
“The gang from Contracts went to O’Malley’s pub. We’re meeting them over there. Pack up and let’s go.”
“Oh.” Shea shifted her gaze to her watch, the familiar squeeze of dread bringing her shoulders down. “Maybe next time. I still have some work to catch up on.”
“Nobody works late this close to Christmas. Besides, tonight is trivia, and we need you on the team.” Nancy’s
