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“Three dates and done?” Thor guessed.
Esther nodded against his shoulder.
“I’m not gonna lie, it ticks me off that you’d do that to my boy.”
Esther half-laughed at that. “Then be ticked off. I do it to everybody.”
“But why, sis?” Thor pulled back slightly and looked into her eyes. “I guess it’s an okay policy if you’re dating losers, or even to see if the guy is cool before pursuing more with him, but Reed is the biggest stud we know. How could you date and dump him?”
“I never should’ve dated him,” she admitted.
“That’s a stupid excuse. You two are perfect together.”
“I’m not perfect.”
“Esther.” Thor’s voice was full of warning. “You’re the most incredible sister in the world and the only woman more perfect than you is Shelly, and maybe Mama.”
That made her laugh again, but ‘perfect’ was almost as big of a trigger for her as ‘crazy.’ “I’ve got to sleep,” she said. “Too much emotion, and the deal with Garret, and … I’ll process better in the morning.”
Thor studied her and lifted a warning finger. “In the morning, after I do chores, I expect your Swedish pancakes, well-done bacon, and a fruit parfait ready, then you’re going to spill your guts to me.”
Esther laughed. Her brothers loved to demand she cook for them. “I’ll cook for you because I love you and I’m staying at your house, but I’m not burning the bacon. And I’ll decide about the spilling of guts.” No way. If she couldn’t be brave enough to tell Reed about her messed-up emotional health, no way was she spilling it to her brother.
“Okay. Just not limp bacon, please.”
“You got it.”
He gave her one more hug and then walked to the door. “I love you, sis. Get some rest. Everything will look better in the morning.”
Esther forced a smile. “For sure. Thanks, Thor. I love you.”
He lifted a hand and closed the door behind him.
Esther’s gaze darted to the window. Reed’s truck was gone. The tears started afresh.
She quickly washed her face, brushed her teeth, slid into a tank top and shorts, prayed, and climbed into bed. Stretching out on the soft sheets felt incredible, but she couldn’t sleep. She’d thought she was exhausted, but now a restless energy and the stress of everything rotating through her brain kept her up.
She paced some laps around the room, but it felt stuffy and confining. She opened the window, but even that much fresh air wasn’t enough. Creeping out of the room and down the stairs, she went through the great room and out the back patio door. The night was crisp as only a summer night in the high mountains could be. It felt incredible and refreshing and cleared her mind a little.
She wandered around Thor’s yard, the grass cool and damp against her bare feet. No ideas or heavenly inspiration came to her, but she felt more calm as she looked up through the pine trees at the deep blue sky studded with stars. The world was so big and the universe even more so, but she knew her Heavenly Father still watched over and cared about her. It blew her mind, but she knew it was true.
Please help me not hurt Reed, she prayed.
After pacing for a while, she finally got tired. She lay down on one of the squishy patio couches and stretched out, closing her eyes. Drifting in and out, she was comfortable and exhausted and …
Were those footsteps? And heavy breathing?
She tried to open her eyes, but her lids felt like they weighed a thousand pounds. She had to be imagining the sounds anyway and wasn’t certain if she was awake or asleep and dreaming.
Hot breath brushed across her neck and then hands wrapped around her neck. A vise grip cut off her air supply.
Esther’s eyes flew open. She gasped for oxygen that wasn’t available and tried to pry the strong hands away from her throat as she looked into the steely blue gaze of Garret Thomson.
He smiled coldly at her as she dug her fingernails into his hands and flailed to get free. “If I can’t have you, the county sheriff can’t,” he sneered. “I’ll kill him after I kill you.”
Anger filled her. This guy truly was psychotic. She refused to die at his hands and she certainly wouldn’t allow him to hurt Reed.
She forced her mind to calm even as it screamed for oxygen and escape from his bruising fingers. She was strong and although Garret had a stronger grip than she would’ve imagined, he would not control her. She drew on years of training and visualized what Papa would have her do.
