Breaking Up with Barrett: The English Brothers #1 (The Blueberry Lane Series - The English Brothers) by Katy Regnery Read Free Book Online Page A

real to her, that she would play out in her mind long after tonight. And the thought that it probably meant nothing to Barrett made her heart ache.
    It was the words, “ When I have you all to myself, the last thing I’ll be thinking about is business,” that had made her heart soar to unsafe heights. As she’d gazed into his eyes, for the first time she could ever remember, his eyes weren’t dark with anger or cool with indifference—they were hungry, but soft. Almost…tender. And while she couldn’t ever remember seeing that expression in Barrett’s eyes, she recognized it which meant she had seen it before. Deep, deep inside of her heart, on a visceral, primitive level, she knew he had looked at her with unmasked tenderness on one previous occasion of her life. Once before, he gazed at her like they were in a bubble together, like she was the sun and the moon and all of the stars—if not, how else would she have recognized it? Emily couldn’t remember where or when, but she knew it was true and it made her stupid heart leap with hope.
    Stupid because Barrett English was playing a little game with her for the sake of Hélène and J.J. Harrison’s amusement. A game. Nothing more. After that performance, no doubt the business deal would be sealed upon her return to the table. Then he would call Smith to pick her up, slip the money inconspicuously into her palm as they shook hands goodnight, and she wouldn’t see him again until she was needed.
    She stared at herself in the mirror, more determined than ever to let go of this charade. Whatever she felt in her head for Barrett before tonight’s dinner had become significantly more substantial in her heart over the last half hour, and she needed to place distance between them. Now. Immediately. No matter what, she needed to break up with him so she could begin the painful process of getting over him.
    She was distracted by the faint ringing of her phone in her bag and replaced the top of her lip gloss, throwing it back in her purse and fishing her phone out.
    Her parent’s number. At nine o’clock on a Friday night. She creased her brows. It wasn’t the typical time she’d expect a call from them.
    “Mom?”
    “Emmy,” her father’s tone was serious, but sounded relieved to hear her voice.
    “Is everything okay, Dad?”
    “Now, I don’t want you to worry, honey.”
    Emily’s blood rushed cold as her fingers tightened on the phone. She was the only child of her aging parents. Their “little miracle,” Emily had blessed their lives when her parents had long given up hope of having a child of their own.
    “What’s happened?”
    “It’s your mother. She, um, she took a spill.”
    Emily stood up, pulling the drawstring on her purse and heading toward the ladies’ room door. She needed to find a taxi and head out to Haverford. Now.
    “What do you mean?”
    “She fainted at the top of the grand staircase, Emmy. She took a bad fall.”
    The grand staircase was the massive marble staircase in the front foyer of the English house that split at a landing, branching off to the two wings of the second floor gallery where there were guest rooms, a library, and several other common rooms. The family’s bedrooms were on the third floor, offering the best views of the estate.
    “From the landing or the top?”
    “She was found on the landing.”
    “Is she conscious, Dad?”
    “In and out. She has a concussion.”
    “Where are you?”
    “Over at Kindred Hospital.”
    “I’m leaving right now. I’m downtown, but I’ll be there in forty-five minutes.”
    “Don’t rush, Emmy. She’s sleeping. I just…well, I got a little scared, because Susannah, well…” He choked up, and it twisted Emily’s heart.
    “It’s okay, Dad. She’s going to be okay. I’m on my way.”
    Emily burst out of the ladies’ room, heading for the coat check, only belatedly remembering that she should quickly say goodnight to Barrett and the Harrisons. She approached the