“Where’s Peter and what’s taking him so long?” I asked for the third time, glaring at R.J. He was being entirely too secretive and he knew I hate that. After my shower, I noticed Peter was nowhere to be found. He slipped out before I had a chance to ask questions.

Of course.

“He’ll be here soon. Don’t worry sweetheart.”

“That’s not an answer to my question you know.”

My mom was in the living room with my little sister and I could hear her singing along to a Disney Princess video, the sweet little notes of her voice trickling up the wide wooden staircase.

“Relax. There’s nothing to worry about.”

“Seriously?” I asked, yanking him upstairs and down the hall into my room. “Don’t you dare pretend like nothing is happening. My mom is bad enough!”

My mother still hadn’t talked to me yet. I expected her to approach me after last night, but she acted like nothing had happened. She fed Leah and cleaned the house, ignoring me whenever I tried to engage her in conversation. I knew she was processing the bullshit of the last twenty-four hours but I needed her, and it felt like she checked out on me. In frustration I was no longer speaking to her at all. As a result, I was short on temper, and now Peter was gone and R.J. was hiding where he went and why.

My short fuse was shrinking.

“R.J., if you don’t tell me I’m going to grab mom’s keys and leave the house to find him. Alone.”

He smirked, “Try it, you won’t get past me, or Jake who is parked across the street in the slim chance you can actually get one by me. And Beckett’s on back up.”

Beckett, the sheriff’s son. One of the gang who was loyal even if he wasn’t always around.

In frustration I flopped back on my bed, shooting him another dirty look, “If you won’t tell me where he went then at least tell me who those guys were yesterday.”

R.J. shrugged and sat next to me, “Why do you think I know who they are?”

I shoved him back, leaning over and piercing him with my gaze, “You know about the Outlaws. Tell me.”

“Rae.”

“R.J.”

“Come on honey, don’t make this hard. Pete will be back soon. Ask him your questions, and I’m sure he’ll answer you.”

“Why won’t you answer me?” I asked, hurt that he always defaulted to Peter. Didn’t he ever have thoughts of his own?

“Rae, honey, I promised. He’s my brother. Besides, I would never keep something important from you or hurt you on purpose.”

“I know,” I admitted, lying next to him. “I just hate secrets.”

“Me too,” he whispered, reaching for my hand and squeezing tight. “Sometimes people have to keep secrets. It’s the only way to keep the ones you love safe.”

I frowned, “Is that why you won’t tell me?”

He sighed loudly, “Talk to Pete. Please.”

“Fine,” I huffed, agitated, “but –”

I was cut off when my mother yelled my name, her voice frantic, “Rae!”

Sprinting downstairs with R.J. hot on my heels, I skid to a halt in front of my mother and Leah. “Mom? What is it?” The urgency in her voice was frightening. “Are you alright?”

She trembled, one hand pushed a strand of dark blonde hair back from her pale face as her voice wavered, “there are motorcycles outside.”

At that moment I realized she was afraid and didn’t know how to handle what was happening. Perhaps I judged her too harshly earlier. Slipping an arm around her slender waist, I hugged her close.

R.J. pulled out his cell phone and I knew he was texting Peter.

“Mom, what are we going to do?” I glanced at Leah as she clapped at the TV and hugged her Belle doll to her chest. She was so little, so innocent.

“Rae, you’re going to take Leah and leave this house.”

I sank onto the couch next to her in disbelief, my arms dropping from around her, stunned, “For how long?”

“As long as it takes.”

I reached for her hand and held it, both scared and shocked she would ask us to leave her. Mom sank to the sofa next to me, squeezed my fingers as her eyes met mine, full of so many emotions I couldn’t pluck just one from her eyes, “I won’t let anything happen to Leah.”

“I know,” she whispered, cupping my cheek. “I love you, Rae. I know I haven’t been the best mother –”

I cut her off, “don’t say that.”

“It’s true. None of that matters now. Just know that sometimes we make decisions in life because we feel that’s our only choice. We have to protect the people we love the most. Since Ron died,” her voice broke as she continued, “I’ve done everything I could to give you the life we dreamed of. I’ll always love him, and I’ll always love you and your sister. Remember that Rae.” She yanked me into a hug, crushing me against her chest as I heard a sob let loose and wet tears fell from her eyes.

I haven’t seen my mother cry since my dad’s funeral.

Choked up I hugged her back, my own voice strong somehow, for her, even when I didn’t feel that way inside. “I will.”

R.J. stood off to the right as dusk settled outside, watching through a slight gap in the curtains of the front bay window as the light faded into a perfect meld of warm and vibrant colors, “Turn on the lights by the couch, but I’m keeping the foyer dark. Pete should be here soon.”

I paced anxiously, alternating between sitting next to my mom and nervously circling the room as I chewed my bottom lip. Where was Peter? Why wasn’t he here yet?

Was something wrong? Was he hurt?

“It’s alright Rae,” R.J. tried to soothe, but we both knew neither of us would feel better until Pete was here.

Half an hour later the Nova pulled slowly into the driveway and cut the lights. Peter entered the front door and closed it, latching every single lock before he ran to me.

“Rae baby, are you alright?”

I nodded as I sank into his arms, “Where have you been?”

“Taking care of business,” he murmured before placing a kiss on my forehead. Pete turned to my mother, his voice tight and strained. “I’ll keep them safe. I swear.” He seemed to know the plan already.

A sad smile graced her lips, “With my blessing Pete. You understand?”

He swallowed hard and nodded, “Everything is ready, we’ll wait until close to dawn.”

“Peter? Where will we go?” I searched his face, certain my life after this night would never be the same.

He lifted his palm and let it rest against the side of my face, “We’ll be safe. Together, forever Rae. I’m asking you, right now, for forever with me. Trust me baby, I’ll never let you down.”

“Oh Pete,” I gushed, throwing my arms around his neck, my throat stinging with unshed tears, “I love you.”

My mom stood and removed the charm bracelet she always wore from her wrist. Laced through the chains was a white ribbon slightly yellowed with the passage of time, which she yanked free, her voice soft as she approached, “this is the same ribbon Ron wrapped around our hands when we promised to love each other forever.” She reached for our intertwined hands and wrapped the ribbon around them, tight. “Love each other always. Stay faithful. Treat each other with respect, and you’ll have a long happy life together. I hope and pray you get the chance Ron and I never had.”

Peter leaned down and pressed his lips to mine, a gentle but passionate kiss that sealed the promise of his next words, “Forever Rae. I love you baby.”

“Forever,” I whispered back, “always Pete.”

My mother hugged us both, her voice catching. “Take care of my girls Pete.” She reached a hand toward R.J. “And you also R.J., you’re all Rae has.”

“I promise,” R.J. choked out, his eyes falling on the ribbon that wrapped around my hand and Pete’s. He turned his head, not meeting my curious gaze, “You can count on me.”

My mother stepped up to R.J. and hugged him close, lowering her voice, “Sometimes heartache leads to better things.”

He nodded as I stared, wondering what my mother was saying to R.J. since I couldn’t hear most of her whispered words.

Peter pulled me around the corner. “Rae,” he exhaled and fell to one knee, clenching our free hands, “I don’t have a ring yet, but I’ll get one soon. I love you. My heart has always been devoted to you alone, since that night at the drive-in and we celebrated my tenth birthday with our dads. I knew then, as I do now, that my heart was always meant to be yours. The future doesn’t matter as long as we are together. If we hold on tight, we won’t let go.” His voice croaked slightly and I smiled at the sound, “I pledge my love and my life to you always baby if you’ll have me.”

Tears filled my eyes, spilling over and running down my heated cheeks, but I didn’t care, “oh Peter.”

“Marry me, Rae . . . as soon as we can? Will you do me the honor, please?”

“Yes,” I managed to squeak out, the emotion of the last few minutes overwhelming and engulfing me, like a tidal wave from the ocean, washing over me as I was swept away.

Pete stood and kissed me with all the passion that filled his heart. A kiss that scorched the earth beneath my feet and singed my lips, searing them forever and branding me as his. From this moment on I was ruined for anyone else. Peter was the love of my life and instinctually I knew that no man, not ever, could possibly own me as completely as he did.

I clung to him and the firm resolve in his voice, both terrified and thrilled, certain we were headed on a collision course for disaster. Fate had already intervened, and now there was nothing to do but play our part. I hoped we were still left standing, together, when the last act ended and the curtain closed. 

The motorcycles outside revved their engines as bright lights penetrated our foyer. It was a show of force, of power and authority. A warning, the Outlaws would come. Soon.

Pete held me in his arms, tightening his embrace, “don’t be afraid my Rae. I’ll never let anything harm you.”

“I know,” I whispered, and I knew he would do whatever it took to keep me safe . . .

Which was precisely what I was afraid of.

***

IN THE WEE HOURS OF early morning I dressed and grabbed all of the bags, setting them by the garage door. R.J. was going to drive Peter’s Nova west with Jake and meet us at the rendezvous point once they were certain not to be followed. Peter, Leah, and I would take my father’s car south.

My dad’s jeep was in pristine condition, one of the promises my mother kept to my father. He wanted me to have it one day. My dad had been a motorcycle enthusiast, particularly Harley Davidson. The jeep was bought so my mother had another car, but he didn’t drive it often.

We would take the jeep and drop it at a checkpoint and pick up another car before we reached our final destination. Pete had a generic prepaid visa and plenty of cash, so the chances we would be traced were minimal. He thought it best we used fake names in public as well. I wanted to roll my eyes but he had a point. Who knew how long it would take the Outlaws to figure out Leah and I were gone?

I tried not to think what that would mean for my mother.

Protection would be given to her, in the form of Beckett, Shane, and a few selected others who Peter trusted. Sheriff Daly knew what his son confided and promised to keep a watch from a distance, so she wasn’t at risk.

I prayed, as I hadn’t done since I was a little girl, that God would allow us all to survive the coming weeks. Maybe such a request would be granted for the truly innocent. My mother and Leah had done nothing wrong to deserve the danger Charles forced upon them.

Peter and R.J. watched for the motorcycles to leave, hovering around the front windows most of the night as I tried to rest on the sofa. Around three a.m. they finally sped away, one single rider still parked across the street. He finally left around five, long enough for us to make our hasty escape. Neither of the guys believed they would be gone more than an hour or two before more of the Outlaws showed up.

This was our chance.

I hugged my mother and tried not to reveal how afraid I was for her safety, “I love you, Mom.”

“Hey now, Pete’s with you and so are R.J. and Jake You’ll be safe with them. Keep our little Leah out of trouble. Alright?”

I nodded, my throat too tight to answer.

My little sister remained sleeping as she was buckled into the back seat by Peter. He tucked her in with her Belle doll as her head rested against the side of the car seat. It was early for her. We had a couple of hours before she would want to eat and play.

R.J. pulled me into a hug before he left, his voice clipped but heavy with emotion. “I’ll see you at the safe house. Take care darlin’,” he whispered in my ear and placed a kiss on my cheek.

I had the distinct impression that he was hurting, and for the first time I felt guilty of my promise to Pete. No, I didn’t regret my choice to marry him, but I didn’t want to be insensitive to R.J.’s feelings either, “Please, be safe. I couldn’t handle something happening to you.”

“I’m a big guy, nothing to worry about,” the smile on his lips didn’t quite reach his eyes, and I sighed as I watched him leave with Jake.

Minutes later we pulled out of the garage. I didn’t relax until we were on the freeway and headed out of town.

Rae. You good babe? Hayley.

I smiled. Miss me already?

Ha! Bitch, please.

I laughed, my fingers typing a fast note telling her to be safe and watch her back.

Luv I always watch my six.

You better!

I’m good. Jake took care of me. Did she just say that?

I bet he did. I couldn’t help sending that response.

LMAO. He sure did. Often.

Gross. Lol.

We texted a few more minutes until Hay ended the conversation and we said goodbye. I lay my head back against the seat and closed my eyes, the fatigue overtaking me from the long stressful night. I caught Pete’s smile as he raised my hand to his lips and kissed my fingers, the love and strength in his eyes blanketing my body in warmth.