He looked…sad. “I’ve always known it was wrong to lie to Andy,” he said quietly. “The truth would come out. I knew that, especially once she was convinced she had a sister and went to find you. The day she told us she was taking a semester off of graduate school to find you—that was the day my lies were going to be over. It was only a matter of time. That was years ago. I thought I’d have all this time to prepare what I was going to say to you. But here you are.” He took a deep breath. “And I still have no idea what words I could utter to make anything right with you again. I am truly sorry, Ally.”
“Emma,” I murmured.
“What?”
“Emma.” I cleared my throat. “My name is Emma.”
“Ah. I see. Yes. Emma.” He tried to smile at me. “That’s a lovely name, too.”
Yeah. Lovely. That was not the word I’d use to describe anything in that moment, much less my name, but it was the name AJ gave me. It was the name I would keep, no matter what.
“Emma!”
Theresa waved at me from the elevators. She frowned, studying Andrea’s father beside me, and asked, “Did you find her?”
I forced myself to nod. Look normal. Act normal. Maybe then everything would be normal? That was a lie, though. Nothing was normal for me. I should’ve been used to that. Never hope for normalcy. Maybe then I might get it? But no. I skimmed a glance back toward Andrea’s dad.
He patted me on the arm before turning away. “I’ll be seeing you, All—Emma. You take care.” Then he took off in the direction his wife and daughter had gone.
“Hey.” Theresa stood in front of me now. She smiled, but there were questions in her eyes. “You okay? Who was that?”
Who was that? “No one.” Was I okay? “I will be okay.”
Her eyebrows bunched together. “Huh?”
“Nothing.” I linked my elbow through hers, heading for the elevator. “I just want to go home.”
As we got on the elevator, she hugged me against her side and pressed a kiss to my temple. “I’m glad you’re okay, Emma. I missed you.” She cupped my face with her palm and pressed my head down to her shoulder. “You deserve a year-long vacation after the hell you’ve been put through. Just think of all the gun ranges and wine nights we could have.”
I groaned, my mouth moving against her shirt. “I’ll need another year to recuperate from that.”
She laughed, jostling her shoulder underneath my head. “Oh, Ems. That’s what Carter’s for. He’ll help you with all the rejuvenation you need.” She tightened her hold on my arm pressed against her side. “Now, let’s get home. We have a few wine nights to catch up on.”
I almost started laughing. Yes. Yes, we did.
Carter was still with the police and after checking in with Peter and Drake at the hospital, I went back with them. Peter told me to wait with my friends until he came to get me. He and Drake were going to be questioned by police soon and he didn’t want me around them. So when we got to Noah’s place, Amanda threw her coat off and headed for the kitchen. I lingered in the hallway, wanting to call Carter’s phone just in case I got him, but Theresa yelled from the kitchen.
“Come on, Emma! You’re here. You’re back with us. We’re going to toast to you.”
“Toast?”
Noah came from behind me and went straight for the refrigerator. Amanda held a bottle of wine and wiggled her eyebrows at me. Theresa came from the cupboard with five wineglasses. I’d just finished counting them when Brian filtered in and went to the wall. He leaned against it, tugging at his collar as he shoved a hand inside his pocket. He seemed content to sit back and watch the entertainment. He pulled at his collar again and his gaze skirted mine before jumping to Amanda.
I thought he was content. Maybe not.
“No,” Noah said, distracting me as he shut the fridge door with a bottle of rum in one hand and two beers in his other. He slid a beer over the counter to Brian, who caught it and tipped it toward him in salute. Noah nodded back, then plopped the rum in front of Amanda and Theresa.
Theresa’s mouth hung open, and her eyebrows had shot up. “Uh—what?”
He nabbed the wine bottle from Amanda, flashing her an apologetic smile, and put it back in the refrigerator. With his beer, he turned to face me. He held his bottle in the air. “No wine for you ladies tonight. You’re drinking the hard stuff because tonight—” He smiled at me, “—we’re celebrating one of our own coming back home.”
“What?” I could feel the tears forming behind my eyes. “What do you mean?”
A slow smile spread on Theresa’s face, and she grabbed a carton of juice, filling three glasses. As soon as Theresa moved the juice to the next glass, Amanda poured rum into it.
Noah waited until all three of us had a glass in hand. He gestured to me. “Come on, raise it up. This is for you, you know.”
I felt my face getting warm. “What are you guys doing?”
“Our sister is home.”
I looked at Amanda. She’d said that so softly and eloquently. She spoke as if it were a fact, as if she were declaring what we all knew. I sucked in my breath. I hadn’t known. I hadn’t—I’d thought it and felt it, but the fear of being abandoned was always there. Because of Carter, because of who I loved, I thought they’d someday turn their backs on me.
“I second that.” Theresa looked like she was bursting at the seams. She bounced up and down, waiting for me to lift my glass. “Come on, Ems. You’re back with us. You’re safe. Your sister is safe, and hey—you have a sister! A true blue sister. That’s amazing. Don’t get me wrong, though. I do not want to know what all happened out there because, you know—” She winked in Brian’s direction. “But you’re home. You’re alive, and we missed the hell out of you.”
The tears weren’t going to stay hidden. One slipped down my cheek, and I felt more coming. I tried to swallow the emotion, but I knew my smile was watery. “You guys… Thank you.” I couldn’t. The words weren’t coming. This. I really felt accepted by them, no matter what happened or what would happen. I flicked some of the tears away. “You have no idea how much this means to me.”
Theresa frowned. “Because we’re drinking rum instead of wine?”
“Emma,” I murmured.
“What?”
“Emma.” I cleared my throat. “My name is Emma.”
“Ah. I see. Yes. Emma.” He tried to smile at me. “That’s a lovely name, too.”
Yeah. Lovely. That was not the word I’d use to describe anything in that moment, much less my name, but it was the name AJ gave me. It was the name I would keep, no matter what.
“Emma!”
Theresa waved at me from the elevators. She frowned, studying Andrea’s father beside me, and asked, “Did you find her?”
I forced myself to nod. Look normal. Act normal. Maybe then everything would be normal? That was a lie, though. Nothing was normal for me. I should’ve been used to that. Never hope for normalcy. Maybe then I might get it? But no. I skimmed a glance back toward Andrea’s dad.
He patted me on the arm before turning away. “I’ll be seeing you, All—Emma. You take care.” Then he took off in the direction his wife and daughter had gone.
“Hey.” Theresa stood in front of me now. She smiled, but there were questions in her eyes. “You okay? Who was that?”
Who was that? “No one.” Was I okay? “I will be okay.”
Her eyebrows bunched together. “Huh?”
“Nothing.” I linked my elbow through hers, heading for the elevator. “I just want to go home.”
As we got on the elevator, she hugged me against her side and pressed a kiss to my temple. “I’m glad you’re okay, Emma. I missed you.” She cupped my face with her palm and pressed my head down to her shoulder. “You deserve a year-long vacation after the hell you’ve been put through. Just think of all the gun ranges and wine nights we could have.”
I groaned, my mouth moving against her shirt. “I’ll need another year to recuperate from that.”
She laughed, jostling her shoulder underneath my head. “Oh, Ems. That’s what Carter’s for. He’ll help you with all the rejuvenation you need.” She tightened her hold on my arm pressed against her side. “Now, let’s get home. We have a few wine nights to catch up on.”
I almost started laughing. Yes. Yes, we did.
Carter was still with the police and after checking in with Peter and Drake at the hospital, I went back with them. Peter told me to wait with my friends until he came to get me. He and Drake were going to be questioned by police soon and he didn’t want me around them. So when we got to Noah’s place, Amanda threw her coat off and headed for the kitchen. I lingered in the hallway, wanting to call Carter’s phone just in case I got him, but Theresa yelled from the kitchen.
“Come on, Emma! You’re here. You’re back with us. We’re going to toast to you.”
“Toast?”
Noah came from behind me and went straight for the refrigerator. Amanda held a bottle of wine and wiggled her eyebrows at me. Theresa came from the cupboard with five wineglasses. I’d just finished counting them when Brian filtered in and went to the wall. He leaned against it, tugging at his collar as he shoved a hand inside his pocket. He seemed content to sit back and watch the entertainment. He pulled at his collar again and his gaze skirted mine before jumping to Amanda.
I thought he was content. Maybe not.
“No,” Noah said, distracting me as he shut the fridge door with a bottle of rum in one hand and two beers in his other. He slid a beer over the counter to Brian, who caught it and tipped it toward him in salute. Noah nodded back, then plopped the rum in front of Amanda and Theresa.
Theresa’s mouth hung open, and her eyebrows had shot up. “Uh—what?”
He nabbed the wine bottle from Amanda, flashing her an apologetic smile, and put it back in the refrigerator. With his beer, he turned to face me. He held his bottle in the air. “No wine for you ladies tonight. You’re drinking the hard stuff because tonight—” He smiled at me, “—we’re celebrating one of our own coming back home.”
“What?” I could feel the tears forming behind my eyes. “What do you mean?”
A slow smile spread on Theresa’s face, and she grabbed a carton of juice, filling three glasses. As soon as Theresa moved the juice to the next glass, Amanda poured rum into it.
Noah waited until all three of us had a glass in hand. He gestured to me. “Come on, raise it up. This is for you, you know.”
I felt my face getting warm. “What are you guys doing?”
“Our sister is home.”
I looked at Amanda. She’d said that so softly and eloquently. She spoke as if it were a fact, as if she were declaring what we all knew. I sucked in my breath. I hadn’t known. I hadn’t—I’d thought it and felt it, but the fear of being abandoned was always there. Because of Carter, because of who I loved, I thought they’d someday turn their backs on me.
“I second that.” Theresa looked like she was bursting at the seams. She bounced up and down, waiting for me to lift my glass. “Come on, Ems. You’re back with us. You’re safe. Your sister is safe, and hey—you have a sister! A true blue sister. That’s amazing. Don’t get me wrong, though. I do not want to know what all happened out there because, you know—” She winked in Brian’s direction. “But you’re home. You’re alive, and we missed the hell out of you.”
The tears weren’t going to stay hidden. One slipped down my cheek, and I felt more coming. I tried to swallow the emotion, but I knew my smile was watery. “You guys… Thank you.” I couldn’t. The words weren’t coming. This. I really felt accepted by them, no matter what happened or what would happen. I flicked some of the tears away. “You have no idea how much this means to me.”
Theresa frowned. “Because we’re drinking rum instead of wine?”
