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"From your phone while you were sleeping."
Her lips thin into a firm line at my confession. "What did you and Keith talk about?"
"I asked him to come to Polson."
Scarlett's eyes widen. "Ember, please tell me you didn't."
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have gone behind your back. It's just…"
"Just what, Ember?"
"I asked him to come here and take you back to North Carolina."
Scarlett shoots up out of her chair. "What?!"
"I thought it would be best if you left." I hesitate briefly, then add, "Because of what happened." My gaze automatically lingers on her bruised cheek.
My sister doesn't miss a beat. She brings her hand up to touch her bruised face and quickly drops it again. She doesn't immediately say anything; I know it's because she's studying me…putting the pieces together. "You're blaming yourself, aren't you?"
"I was," I admit. "Until someone made me realize I was wrong."
"I never blamed you, Ember."
I swallow past the lump in my throat. "I know. I…I was letting Dad get inside my head. I'm scared to death of something else happening to you. Knowing that you had to go through what you did, and that seeing what those men did to me might cause you to look at me differently; I couldn't bear it."
Scarlett's expression softens, and she wraps her arms around me. Our father's words cut me deeper than I let on, and now she knows. "I only want what is best for you."
"You are what's best for me." She leans back. "I just got you; I'm not letting you go that easily." We both start to cry.
"What about Keith?"
"What about him?"
"Come on, Scar. Don't lie. You're missing him like crazy."
She sighs. "I do. I miss him like you wouldn't believe. But how can I choose between my sister and the man I love? I want to be with both of you. If I stay, I'll miss him. If I go, I'll wish I was here with you."
"You don't have to choose." Scarlett and I both jump.
Standing just inside the clubhouse door is a stranger. He looks at least six feet tall, and his hair hangs to just above his shoulders, with just enough wave to give it a sexy, disheveled look. Standing beside him is Jake.
"Keith," Scarlett breathes and sprints across the room, straight into his arms. Keith buries his face in the crook of her neck. I suddenly stop regretting my decision to call him. Watching them, I see how he loves my baby sister and will do anything for her.
"I hopped on a plane as soon as I got your sister's call." He sets her back on her feet. Then he notices the bruise on her cheek, and even from across the room, I can see his body lock up.
"It's not as bad as it looks." Scarlett tries to ease Keith's worried reaction.
Keith's attention snaps to me, then to Jake.
Jake holds eye contact with my sister's boyfriend. "It's being dealt with," he assures him, his tone laced with venom. Keith, seeing something in Jake's expression, nods, satisfied with the silent promise Jake conveyed.
With his focus back on Scarlett, her mechanic cups her face and gently kisses her injured cheek. Sensing they need a few minutes of privacy, Jake and I make our way to the bar. Jake passes me a cold beer and grabs one for himself before sitting on the stool beside me. "When did Keith get here?" I ask.
"Showed up when we were out back," he tells me. "Austin was at the gate and let him in." He turns on the stool and leans his back against the bar. "I wanted to get a read on him."
"And?"
"Seems like a solid guy."
