Free From Friend to Fake Fiancé by Jules Bennett

one to chat on the phone for fun, so the fact that she was calling had him on alert. Shoving his chair back, he offered a smile in reply to Jenna’s worried look.
    â€œLaney.” He answered the phone as he walked from the table and out onto a fairly empty dock.
    â€œWould you tell the family Neanderthal to stop checking on me?” his sister demanded.
    Mac flinched at the anger lacing her voice. Laney wasn’t an angry person, but there was one man who brought out such emotions in her and Mac didn’t have to ask which Neanderthal she was referring to.
    â€œWhat’s going on now?” Mac asked, trying to keep his frustration from coming through.
    â€œI started talking to Carter again—”
    â€œOh, Laney,” Mac groaned. “Are you kidding me?”
    â€œAnyway,” she continued, ignoring his protest. “Suddenly Carter calls and tells me he can’t see me anymore. You guys may not like him, but my personal life is not your concern. We had a rough patch and I was going to give him another chance.”
    Actually, it was very much their concern, but he wasn’t getting into that now. Having Laney as a baby sister was exhausting at times, but they usually handled her by going behind her back to keep her safe. Mac wouldn’t let any harm come to her as long as he was alive, and he knew full well Braden felt the same way, as did Ryker, even though he was only a friend of the family.
    â€œAnd how does Ryker come into play?”
    Laney laughed. “Seriously? He obviously called Carter and said something to him. We were supposed to go out tonight for the first time since we broke up and Carter was adamant he couldn’t see me again.”
    Mac shrugged, even though she couldn’t see him. If Carter was scared off that easily then he didn’t deserve Laney. End of story and good riddance.
    â€œListen, Carter isn’t a good fit for you,” Mac started as he glanced back into the restaurant and met Jenna’s eyes. “You deserve someone who will put you above everything else and be completely loyal.”
    â€œMaybe Carter was that person,” she retorted.
    Something flashed in Jenna’s eyes before she turned her attention back to whatever her sister was saying. A punch of reality hit him in the gut. From here on out he had to do right by Jenna. She trusted him, only him, to come to her rescue. If someone ever set out to “help” his sister by means of seduction, Mac would rip him limb from limb.
    How could he seduce her when she’d placed her heart, her protection in his hands? The answer was as simple as it was complex...he couldn’t.
    â€œWe went to great lengths to get Carter out of your life when you needed us to step in,” Mac went on as he took a few more steps down the dock and away from a couple who had just come outside. “Even if Ryker did call Carter to scare him off, then you need to realize he has your best interests at heart.”
    â€œHe doesn’t have a heart.”
    That was debatable, but still. Mac wasn’t going to keep arguing. “You need to settle this with Ryker.”
    â€œHe won’t take my calls.”
    â€œHe’s working on a lead.” He didn’t need to say what for. They’d all been diligently searching for the scrolls since their father had made them promise to uncover them. “Don’t take it personally.”
    â€œIf you called him he’d answer,” she muttered. “If that jackass thinks he can avoid me...”
    Mac smiled. “I’m sure he’ll return your call soon enough. I need to get back to dinner.”
    â€œSorry. I know you’re with Jenna. Tell her I said hi.”
    â€œWill do. Love you, Laney.”
    â€œLove you, brother.”
    Mac shoved the phone back in his pocket and made a mental note to contact Ryker tomorrow. Laney was an adult, yes, but she was beautiful, and as the only female O’Shea,