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less than three months and she’d alienated Shane and disappointed her brother. And worse, no one understood Shane’s defection. He no longer attended dinners or get-togethers and Logan had reached out to him several times to no avail. It was like he had dropped off the map and it was all because of her.
    The guilt was eating away at her and she struggled more every day to avoid the darkness that had consumed her these past few years. She had tried to call Shane a dozen times to tell him how sorry she was and to beg him to rejoin their group, but every time she dialed the phone she chickened out. She had used him for her own selfish reasons – she was no better than any of the other women in his life. That familiar itch began under her skin and she stood up to try and distract herself, but luckily her first student came barreling in the door, a haggard looking parent in tow and she was able to push everything else from her mind.
     
    ***
    Shane snapped his notebook shut and grabbed his stuff as the class dispersed. Most of the other students in his class took their notes on laptops, but he found that he absorbed more the old school way with pen and paper. He was also able to get out of the room faster since everyone else was still trying to shut down and unplug.
    It had been another rough class, but not because the material was difficult for him. No, he’d been struggling to keep his attention from drifting like it had been all week. Between his conflicted feelings for Savannah and Gabe’s stunning revelation about his mother, Shane could barely keep it together. He had known his friend’s mother was messed up – he’d seen it firsthand when they were kids – but he had no idea the extent of Gabe’s demons. It was a wonder the man was still upright. He knew Gabe didn’t want him to feel any guilt about his part in the whole thing with Riley, but he couldn’t help it. He knew in his heart that Riley was the best thing for Gabe, but knowing his actions had brought back so much trauma for his best friend had torn something open inside of him. When he’d gotten back to Paige’s that night, he had almost wished she had left him another “gift,” but she was off at yet another social gathering so he’d ended up numbing the dull ache in his chest with some really expensive scotch.
    He felt his phone vibrate as he walked out of the building, the cool breeze hitting him as darkness started to fall. It was a reminder that time was steamrolling ahead, whether he wanted it to or not. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the caller ID – a text from his father. Which business card did he like better? He didn’t bother to look at the images his father attached, the same way he had ignored having to pick out the furniture collection for the corner office waiting for him in some fancy building in the middle of downtown Chicago. He turned the silent switch off and shoved the phone back in his pocket, but the second he did, it started ringing.
    He expected it to be his father but didn’t recognize the number. “Hello?”
    “Is this Shane?” came a man’s voice.
    “Yeah, who’s this?”
    “Do you know a young woman named Savannah?”
    Shane ground to a halt and felt his heart drop out of his chest. “Yes. Is she okay?”
    “She is, but you need to come and get her.” The voice on the other end was cool and calm, but laced with concern.
    “Where?” Shane asked as he started running towards his car.
    “Barretti’s-”
    “Yes, I know the place. What happened? Is she hurt?”
    “She’s okay, but she needs you.”
    “I’m coming!” he shouted and stuffed the phone in his pocket as he raced to his car.
     
    ***
    Shane figured he broke about ten traffic laws in an effort to get to the small, but well-known Italian restaurant near the waterfront. It actually wasn’t far from Logan’s bar and he could only wonder why the stranger on the phone hadn’t reached out to Logan since he was so much closer.