Page 77 of Hold the Line

Hailey’s spine curled forward, her arms stretched like plants on the table in front of her. “I wish I could have lied for you. If I’d been stronger—”

Linda put her hand on Hailey’s shoulder. “You did the right thing, and there’s no shame in that. I’m sure Deke agrees.”

I nodded sharply. “You were a scared little girl. That lawyer never should have put that burden on you. I hate that you’ve been carrying guilt around all these years.Hateit. Where I ended up is all on me. I made the mistake of going along with Richie. If I hadn’t gotten thrown in prison when I did, I don’t know how much worse it would have gotten. Things happened the way they needed to.”

I glanced at Linda. She was rubbing Hailey’s back, nodding along with me. She didn’t have to allow any of this. By rights, I shouldn’t have had any visitation with my sister. Them being here said all I needed to know, and seeing Linda comfort Hailey only raised my esteem for her.

I continued. “All you have to do is look at the woman beside you, how she cares for you, and you’ll see that’s true. I wish I hadn’t lost all those years with you, but I’m in a lot better place to be your brother now, and I’m hoping, once we get past all this, we can start there.”

Sniffling, she finally raised her head, peering at me with glassy eyes. “You’re staying in Sugar Brush?”

“I am.” I slid my eyes to Phoebe, who was watching our exchange with intense focus. She offered me her hand, and I took it, folding it between mine. “My whole world is here, so this is where I’m gonna be.”

Hailey swiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “Good. I want you to stay.” She turned to Linda. “Is it okay if I sometimes maybe hang out with Deke? Maybe we could have him over to the house so I can show him my room?”

“Yes, that would be okay,” Linda agreed. “How about we start with dinner at our house next week and go from there?”

Hailey turned her bright gaze back to me. “Would you and Phoebe want to come to dinner at our house next week?”

When I went away, I thought I’d lost her for good. Thought she’d be angry at me or feel like I’d abandoned her and never want to see me again. I’d convinced myself it didn’t matter so long as she was living a good, safe life. But now, she was offering me more than I ever would have asked for, and I was going to grab it with both hands. Maybe I’d gotten better at accepting gifts. There was no damn doubt this was the biggest I’d ever been given.

“Yeah, buddy.” I swallowed down the thick lump in my throat. “I’d like that a hell of a lot.”

Hailey and Linda didn’t stay long after that. Linda had other kids to attend to, and Hailey had homework. Plus, we were all a little raw and needed some time. As I walked them to the door, Hailey stopped in her tracks and spun to face me.

She stared up at me for a long beat, her dark-amber eyes assessing. Then she took a deep breath and threw her arms around my middle so hard, they were like steel bars. Her head only came up to the center of my chest, but the last time I’d hugged her, it’d been much lower. I was tossed back and forth between past and present for a few thundering heartbeats before I steadied myself and wrapped my arms around my sister. I hadn’t had a lot of hugs in my life, but this one ranked right up there with the best.

“Love you, buddy,” I murmured.

She pulled back, grinning up at me. “Love you too, Deke. Like, a lot.”

With a choked laugh, I ruffled her hair. “See you soon.”

I stood at the door until they were safe in their car and driving away. In that time, Phoebe had joined me, curling her arms around me from behind and resting her cheek on my back.

When they were gone, I shut the door, letting my forehead drop against it. “Fuck.”

Phoebe held onto me even tighter. “That went so well.”

“I know.” I put my hand over hers, slotting our fingers together. “How did that happen?”

“You two need each other.” She rounded me without breaking her embrace. “It’s only going to get better as you get to know each other again. I’m really happy for you.”

I pulled her against me, burying my face into her hair.Sugar. “I got her back.”

“I know,” she breathed, running her hand up and down my back. “You both did.”

“I got her back,” I murmured again. “Don’t know how, but I got my buddy back.”

“You did, Deacon. You did.”

The more I said it, the deeper it sank. Tonight had happened. My sister, who’d been lost to me for five years, was back. I’d held her a few minutes ago, and despite everything, it’d been like no time had passed. She was still my girl, silly freckle face and all.

“I must’ve done something right. Don’t know what it was, but I had to have done something right for her to turn out like that.”

“You gave her the bedroom,” Phoebe stated. “You made her feel like she was important enough to sacrifice for. You gave her safety and love. You screwed up, but before that, you gave her a solid foundation to stand on. I think you did a lot right. All you have to do is look at her to see that.”

“I don’t know how they made a girl like her.”

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