Just in case she returned to the hotel tonight, she’d changed the sheets on the bed and made sure the room was ready for other guests. The thought of sleeping in Michael’s bed tonight crossed her mind, but she quickly rejected it. The way he left without saying good-bye and without trying to contact her all day after what she thought was a mind-blowing night together made her feel like a piece of meat, or in this case, a piece of ass. Is that what she was, a one-night hookup? She thought about calling Damon and asking him what the proper term would be.
Why would she want to be with a man like that, anyway? A man who had the sensitivity of a hedgehog. Isabel realized she was getting worked up without knowing the facts. There might have been a good reason he didn’t wake her up to say good-bye or call her all the damn day long.
Guess she would find out soon enough. It was time to say hello to Michael and hopefully get an explanation she could believe.
When she returned to the first floor, the party was in full swing. Judge Buchanan and his wife were in the living room greeting old friends, so Isabel went to them and once again thanked them for their hospitality. She was in the middle of answering a question the judge had asked when they were interrupted. A woman took hold of the judge’s arm, kissed him on the cheek, and told him how happy she was to see him again. After a quick and dismissive glance in Isabel’s direction, she turned her attention back to the judge.
The woman was tall, thin, and very attractive. She had looked right through Isabel. She was definitely a force to be reckoned with. Isabel was embarrassed, though she wasn’t sure why.
Being a gentleman, the judge listened to her chat about the evening’s festivities for a minute and then, gently removing her hand from his arm, he brought Isabel forward and said, “Isabel, I’d like you to meet Amanda Foley. She’s a friend of Michael’s.”
“Oh, more than a friend,” Amanda replied with a sugary-sweet smile.
“Amanda,” the judge continued, “this is Isabel MacKenna. She’s Kate’s sister.”
Amanda finally gave Isabel her full attention. “Isabel MacKenna. Aren’t you the singer? I heard some people outside talking about you.” With that, she gave Isabel a cool once-over.
So this was the infamous Amanda. Isabel couldn’t blame Michael for being attracted to her. She was beautiful.
Isabel’s response was polite but brief. “I guess I am.” She wasn’t going to lie and say that it was a pleasure to meet Amanda, so she gave a curt nod and turned to go outside.
Kate intercepted her just as she was about to open the door. She took Isabel’s hand and pulled her into the sunroom to meet more Buchanan relatives. They were eager to talk to her, for they had heard that she had performed with XO—Kate had told them—and they had all sorts of questions besides the usual What was he like? Isabel patiently answered them, and finally, after discussing Xavier for a good twenty minutes, was able to excuse herself and go look for Michael. She knew the only way she
could get rid of her anxiety was to talk to him, and God help him if he didn’t have a good reason for his rudeness.
Walking from the sunroom to the front porch turned out to be quite a challenge. She kept getting stopped by friends and Buchanan relatives who had heard about XO. By the time she stepped outside, she wanted to put a gag in Kate’s mouth to keep her from boasting to anyone else about the concert.
Isabel knew Kate was proud of her, but she wished her sister would be a little less exuberant about it tonight.
There was quite a lively crowd out on the lawn. The band was playing an upbeat popular song, and the dance floor was already filled with couples gyrating to the electrifying beat. Noah and Jordan drew her attention. They were glued to each other, slowly swaying to their own love song, and ignoring the pulse of the music and the men and women dancing wildly around them.
The lawn looked beautiful. There were round tables with white linen tablecloths that touched the ground, and candles, each glowing softly as night rapidly approached. Servers with silver trays of tempting canapés threaded their way through the guests. A buffet was being set up at the north end of the lawn, far enough away from the dance floor that people could carry on a conversation.
Isabel stayed on the porch while she scanned the crowd for Michael. Alec, Dylan, and Nick were standing near the pool. They all looked as though they were having a good time. Finally, there was Michael. He was crossing the path to join his brothers. Amanda was with him. She wasn’t holding on to Michael, but she was walking so close to him her arm repeatedly rubbed against his. She kept looking up at him and smiling, but Isabel didn’t think the smile was all that sincere.