Run To You

sun cast her shadow onto the edge of the lawn and stone sidewalk.
    Her father’s house. Her sister’s house. The house where she’d been conceived but never been welcome. Her fingers tingled and she shook her hands.
    Beau’s reassuring palm found the small of her back and his shadow joined hers. “Breathe, Boots.”
    “I can’t.”
    “Sure you can.” His thumb brushed her skin through her new paisley dress and sent a tingle up her spine. “You’ve faced more difficult situations.”
    “Like?”
    “Ricky. Fat Fabian and Lefty Lou.”
    That seemed like an eternity ago. She licked her dry lips and swallowed. “Do I look okay?” They’d been driving six hours and she’d done her best to look good, but her hands had shaken badly when she’d tried to freshen up her makeup on the road between Lovett and the JH.
    “You look beautiful, Stella.”
    She probably looked more like a scared chicken. She certainly felt like one. Although she didn’t know if chickens got scared. Maybe she was mixing them up with cats. She didn’t know. Her brain was numb. Her chest felt tight. She couldn’t breathe. “I’m nervous.”
    “I know, but I’m here. I’ve got your six.”
    She looked up into the reflection of herself in his sunglasses. She didn’t know if she looked like a chicken or a cat, but she did look scared shitless. “What’s that?”
    “Your back. If you want to leave now, we’ll leave. It’s not too late.” He pointed over his shoulder at the black Escalade. “If you want to leave in ten minutes, I’ll get you out of here.”
    In a few short days, he’d become her anchor. Her rock. The calm strength by her side. And in a few short days, he’d be gone. The thought of it made her feel even more panicky. “With flashbang?”
    “If that’s what you want. We’ll light it up. Just say the word.”
    One side of the big doors opened and a more pressing panic pushed the thought of Beau to the back of her mind. A tall blonde stood in the shadows of the doorway and Stella whispered, “Sadie.” Or maybe she’d just whispered it in her own head. A tall man appeared in the doorway behind Sadie and put his hands on her shoulders.
    “That’s Vince,” Beau told her, and pushed Stella ahead a few steps. “He’s a good guy.”
    Stella’s feet felt heavy as she put one foot in front of the other and tried to take it all in. The big house. Her sister watching her. Beau’s hand on her back. Her heart pounding in her throat. It was too much. Too much, and she stopped in the middle of the sidewalk. Everything slowed, then stood still. As still as Stella. One second. Two. Three. Everything seemed frozen, then she blinked and her sister was moving toward her. Fast.
    “Estella Immaculata Leon-Hollowell?”
    Sadie stopped in front of her. Close enough to touch. For the first time in twenty-eight years. “Yes.” She waited. Her breath tight in her lungs.
    Sadie’s eyes stared down into hers. Looking for something. Looking. “Lord, your name is a mouthful.”
    “Everyone calls me Stella.”
    Looking into her soul. Waiting. “You have Daddy’s eyes.”
    She swallowed. Sadie was stunning. Like her mother, the Texas beauty queen. She was at least six inches taller than Stella and thin like their father.
    “I didn’t know if you’d come.”
    “I did,” she stated the obvious and instantly felt stupid. Sadie went to college. She was smart. She—
    “I’m so glad.” Sadie put her hand on the peach-colored blouse covering her stomach and smiled. “I’ve been nervous as a long-tailed cat.”
    “I told you Beau would get her here.”
    Stella raised her gaze to the big man sliding his arm around Sadie’s waist. He had dark hair and green eyes and shoulders as big as Beau’s.
    “I’m Vince Haven.” He held out his hand toward Stella. “Sadie has been pacing for days. I’m glad you’re finally here and she can relax.”
    Stella shook his hand and her chest didn’t feel quite so tight. Sadie had been nervous, too. “It’s a pleasure, Vince.”
    Vince raised his gaze to the man by her side. “Beau. It’s good to see you.”
    The two men shook hands and Stella felt the loss of Beau’s touch against her back. “How the hell are you, Haven?”
    “Good.” He introduced his fiancée to Beau and Sadie’s eyes rounded.
    “There are two of you,” she said. “Lord have mercy.”
    “I’m the good twin.” Beau chuckled. “Is Blake around?”
    Vince shook his head. “He’s out raising