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“Sorry. Brooke, this is Hallie. Hallie, my sister, Brooke, and these are my parents, Sophia and Owen.”
“Hi,” Hallie says quietly, raising her hand in a small wave. My mom’s eyes find mine, and I know she’s figured out who Hallie is. It wouldn’t be hard. Her name and picture are all overCNN. A smile comes over her face, and she moves toward us, kissing me on the cheek.
“Hello, Hallie. Lovely to meet you.” Taking Hallie from my side, she wraps her up in a hug. I can see Hallie is a little surprised, but my mom hugs everyone. I would have warned her had I known we’d be seeing them.
“Are those my yoga pants?” Brooke asks, tilting her head to one side as she looks at what Hallie is wearing. As Hallie pulls out of my mom’s embrace, she looks down at her pants.
“I’m so sorry. Yes, they are,” Hallie says quickly, her face flushing pink. She turns to me, her eyes wide. Taking her hand, I squeeze it reassuringly.
“We didn’t realize we’d be coming to the cabin. We never got a chance to pick up any clothes. I told her you wouldn’t mind if she borrowed some of your stuff,” I tell Brooke.
“I don’t mind at all. Borrow anything you like.”
Hallie sags with relief next to me, and I squeeze her hand again.
“I’ll make sure everything is clean before we go,” Hallie says quietly. Brooke smiles at her and goes about emptying the grocery bag she brought in with her.
“Have you been here long? I didn’t see your car out front,” my dad asks as he comes in and shakes my hand.
“We got here this morning. I was going to let you know, but it’s been a little crazy. My bike’s around the back out of sight.”
“You brought that poor girl here on the back of your bike?” my mom cries. “It’s a wonder you didn’t fall off.”
“We nearly did,” Hallie interjects.
“We did not,” I say with a chuckle. “You were perfectly safe.”
“I’m going to unpack, then I’m going in the hot tub,” Brooke exclaims. “Do you want to come in, Hallie?”
Hallie glances at me, and I smile.
“I’d love to. Can you give me a minute?” she says shyly.
“Of course. Take your time. I’m going to get changed.” Brooke picks up her overnight bag and heads out of the kitchen toward the stairs.
“I’ll head up to my room and let you catch up with your parents.”
“Are you okay?” I step in front of Hallie, shielding her from my parents’ view. I need to see she’s okay and not pretending because they’re here. Lifting her chin, I raise my eyebrows in question when she looks at me.
“I’m good. I promise.”
I hold her stare for a few seconds before taking a step away from her. “I’ll be here if you need me.”
She smiles and makes her way out of the kitchen. Stopping in the doorway, she turns around. “Nice to meet you. Sorry to have shown up unannounced.”
“Nice to meet you too, honey, and this cabin is as much Sawyer’s as it is ours. He’s welcome to bring his friends here anytime he likes.” My mom smiles at Hallie, her eyes flicking to mine on the wordfriends. I know exactly what she’s thinking, and I am confident I’m in for a grilling once Hallie goes upstairs. I might be thirty-one, but that doesn’t stop my mom from asking a million questions.
When Hallie leaves the room, I turn around to see my parents staring at me. “What?” I ask as my mom raises her eyebrows.
“There’s something going on with that girl, isn’t there?” she asks.
“Yeah, Mom, there is. The bastard who abducted her ten years ago escaped. Now we think he’s after her again. I’m her CPO.”
“I recognize her from the news. That’s not what I meant, though.”
“And what is it you meant?” I know exactly what she means, but I’m not volunteering any information.
“I saw the way you looked at her. The way you were holding her hand. What’s going on?”
