Chapter 41

Abigail's tone was much firmer this time. She met Shane's gaze and explained, "You've seen the way things are between us and Nina. If she leaves the country, who knows... "There's no guarantee that she'd ever come back. But if she stays and goes through with the arrange marriage, she'll still be tied to the family. At least that way, we'd have some control over the situation." Nina felt nothing when she heard what Abigail said. Maybe Shane had broken her too thoroughly. Maybe she had simply gone numb. Either way, no flicker of emotion was left on her face. Abigail spoke as if she had Nina's best interests in mind, but Nina knew the truth. She knew that Abigail just didn't want to let go. She had spent over 20 years raising her. There was no way she would let that effort go to waste. "Mom, Wendy doesn't like Nina." Shane knew exactly what argument would work best on Abigail. He struck where it mattered. "An arranged marriage isn't a quick process. Keeping Nina around is just