Free What Lies Between by Charlena Miller Page A

slope of my nose, and pale skin that didn’t understand a thing about tanning. I had grown to appreciate having girl-next-door looks and a lean physique that served me well in sports, but this woman’s ballsy assessment stopped me short. To make matters worse, I had to look up to meet her eyes, and I was on the tall side.
    “My name is Shayne, nice to meet you. Crazy a cheerleader from Texas would be this far from home, but here I am. You said your name was what?”
    Her face relaxed with the confidence of a woman who has sized you up and decided you’re not worthy competition, and I wasn’t sure if I was relieved or offended. Forcing a smile onto my face, I withdrew my hand. “I didn’t say. I’m Ellie. We’d better load up.”
    Shayne reminded me of two people I never wanted to see again: my ex-boyfriend’s baby mama, Courtney, and Malika, the resident kleptomaniac in my second foster home.
    Allowed to bring a few personal items when I was first taken into foster care, I chose to bring Buddy, the sock monkey my parents had given me the Christmas before they died. Two days after I got there, Buddy disappeared. I was sure Malika had taken him. My foster parents believed her denials and punished me for lying. Her angelic face made people believe the words that came out of her mouth.
    Child Services came to move Malika to a new home, and we were all rounded up to say goodbye. Malika held up Buddy in the rearview window, a wicked grin on her beautiful face. I couldn’t look away, caught in her triumphant glare until the car turned the corner and disappeared from sight.
    Courtney was nearly Shayne’s doppelganger with the airbrushed, perfect beauty and entitled arrogance. Courtney hadn’t been satisfied with just having Matt; she’d ground the loss into me, sending a letter full of intimate details about their affair and making sure it arrived on my birthday. Letters seldom brought good news into my life. I spent my birthday driving to the lake and sat in the car until the sun came up the next day. Then I drove home and kicked Matt out of the house.
    “You work with our guide, right?” Shayne shrilled. “Would you get my luggage? Be real careful, now, with my leopard-skin bag. I’m sure it cost more than you can afford to pay if you damage it.”
    I sucked in a long breath and let out an equally long groan.
    Shayne.
    I had a feeling this would be my one-word response to anyone asking how my tour had gone.

 
     
     
     
     
     
    5
     
    Even though my brain understood my overreaction to Shayne, I couldn’t help but be annoyed by her snobbish demeanor. And where had Ben’s gallantry gone? He hadn’t offered to pick up her luggage, leaving me to lug it into the van. He was probably basking in her attention. Clearly time to practice my relaxation breaths—I had come on this tour to see the Highlands and didn’t need to get worked up over other people’s behavior.
    Then right on cue, Shayne slid her national television-worthy rear end into the front seat, staking her territory next to Ben. The moment threw me back in school in an instant, the strange, quiet girl sitting on the outside looking in at all the cool kids. It wasn’t easy shaking the lousy past out of my system; I never could get it to leave completely. But I refused to let my history get the best of me.
    “Hope it’s all right to sit up here with you, Ben,” Shayne purred. “I’m afraid I’ll get carsick if I sit back there.”
    “No bother. Suits me fine,” Ben replied.
    I bet it did. Shayne’s short skirt and floppy sandals would make for interesting hiking, or maybe not. It looked like Ben wouldn’t mind pitching her over his shoulder firefighter-style and carrying her up and down the hills.
    Wanting as far away from the front as I could get, I climbed into the van’s third row; the woman who had introduced herself as Li climbed in beside me. Li said she was a teacher from China who lived in London with her husband and kids and needed