Free Between Two Sisters (contemporary western romance novella) by Shayna Ryan Page B

hurt Cass, but he wouldn’t have undone the passionate night he spent with Melanie for anything. He would do his best to let Cass down gently. He felt sorry for the pain the news of their union would cause Cass and Marty, but there was no denying the love that he and Melanie had for each other. They would probably have to move, and go work on another ranch to avoid the tensions their union would cause at the Haffner ranch, but it would be worth it if they could be together.
    Groaning, he rolled out of bed and cradled his head in his hands. He slowly made his way to the bathroom, cringing with every step. It’d be a long time before he touched a drop of whiskey again, that was for sure.
    In the medicine cabinet, he found a bottle of aspirin and forced himself to dry swallow three pills, followed by a mouth full of water from the bathroom sink. His stomach clenched in protest, but he managed to keep it all down. Getting to the kitchen was a difficult process, but he made it to the sink to get a glass of water. As he leaned against the counter for support while he drank the water, he spied a note on the kitchen table.
    He hurried to grab it as he was anxious to read it, but the pounding pain in his head couldn’t be ignored. After he swiped it off the table, he shuffled carefully back over to his bed and gingerly sat down.
    Billy, It was all a big mistake. It was an incredible, passionate, wild mistake. I’m sorry. I just can’t do this. He cursed and slammed his fist down on the mattress as he read the note over and over, hoping the words would change. They didn’t, of course, and he was crazed with anger and grief. How could she possibly call what they shared last night a ‘mistake?’ They had expressed the bond between them, the bond that developed in their younger years, yet she was dismissing it as a ‘mistake.’
    He dragged himself out of bed once more and took his anger and frustration out on the mostly empty bottle of whiskey on the table. Sheer willpower got him through the motions of grabbing the bottle off the table and bringing it to the sink. Cursing under his breath, he dumped the remaining contents of the bottle down the drain. He had no more use for that devil’s brew; all it did was cause trouble. It was beer in moderation from here on out.
    It was impossible to decide who he was angrier with- Melanie, for putting him through hell while she tried to choose between him and Marty, or himself, for sleeping with her. If he hadn’t been drinking so heavily, he doubted the whole incident would have happened to be gin with. What a fool he’d been.
    His cell phone rang, and he answered it quickly so the horrible, loud ringing would stop. It wasn’t helping his splitting headache.
    “Hello?” If someone was calling for his help with something around the ranch, they were in for a sorry surprise. He was in no shape to do much of anything at the moment, especially physical labor.
    “Hey, stranger!” It was Cass. “I grabbed your cell phone number off my dad’s phone. I hope you don’t mind.”
    “No, no, that’s fine; I don’t mind at all.”
    “Are you okay? You sound sick or something.”
    “I’ve got a super hangover,” he confessed.
    “Poor baby. Too much booze last night, huh? Melanie’s got the same problem this morning. I guess she drank too much at that cookout. Did you go to it?”
    “Ah, yeah, I did.” He fervently hoped she wouldn’t ask too many questions about the night before. “I was kind of hoping you’d be there,” he added.
    “No, I went out with the girls. One of my friends is getting married soon, so we did kind of a bachelorette party last night, just the bridesmaids. I’m a bridesmaid, so…”
    As Cass prattled on about her friend’s upcoming wedding, Billy’s stomach twisted in knots with anxiety. He was disgusted with himself. He let a teenage fantasy of being with Melanie almost ruin his chances with Cass, and for nothing. At least Cass was straightforward