Tess’s jaw tensed, nostrils flaring like she was fighting the urge to cry. “I couldn’t get away.” The words were nothing more than a shaky whisper.
“And what’s so important that you couldn’t leave to say goodbye to our dying mother? To introduce her to her grandson? To be a member of this family for the last eight years?”
“Cut it out, Savannah, she just walked through the door,” Emmett snapped. “Give her a break.”
She let out a sound of disgust and got up. “All she’s ever gotten is a break,” she said as she walked past Tess. She stomped up the stairs and slammed her bedroom door shut, Tess, Luke, and Emmett all flinching at the harsh sound.
Emmett brushed it off quickly and squatted on the ground in front of Luke. “Hi there, I’m Emmett,” he said, giving him one of his rare smiles. “What’s your name?”
“Wuke,” he murmured, the L sounding more like a W. He leaned into Tess’s side, hiding half his face. His voice was easily the most adorable thing I had ever heard. So innocent and pure, it had me coming to Emmett’s side to talk to Luke, too.
“I’m Claire,” I said, giving him a soft smile. “I’m your mom’s big sister.”
“And I’m her big brother,” Emmett added. There was a glimmer in his eyes that he only got when looking at Tess, and I knew then this boy had his Uncle Emmett wrapped around his little finger already.
“I don’t have brothers or sisters,” he said with a little lisp. “It’s just me and Mommy now.”
I looked up at Tess, and her eyes darted from mine quickly. Too quickly. She was hiding something, and I was going to find out what.
Gran came back into the living room with two grilled cheeses. “Come eat, you two,” she said, setting the plates down on the table before going back to get two glasses of milk.
“Thanks, Gran,” Tess said, and guided Luke over to the dining table, helping him up into the chair.
“Thanks, Gran,” Luke mimicked her, and my heart shattered into bits. How fucking cute was that? And, apparently, I wasn’t the only one; Gran started crying over it.
“You’re welcome, honey,” she said tearfully, patting his head.
We sat at the table with them, and it was honestly a little awkward. Here was my sister, the girl I used to treat as my literal baby doll when she came home from the hospital, and I had no idea who she was. She was as much a stranger to me as Luke was.
Luke scarfed his sandwich down like he didn’t know when his next meal would be, and Tess picked at hers. Something about it was so…strange. I glanced over at Emmett, and I could tell by the way he was watching them that he had noticed it, too.
“So,” Emmett started, “I think it’s safe to say we’re all dying to know where you’ve been.”
“Corpus Christi,” Tess replied, nibbling on her food. “I went down there after Daddy’s accident. I hadn’t planned to be gone so long, but…” She stared down at her plate, set her sandwich down slowly, and her body just kind of deflated. “It doesn’t matter now. We’re here to stay,” she said, looking over at me with questioning eyes. “That’s if you’ll have us.”
“Of course we will, honey,” Gran said, answering for me. “I was just tellin’ Claire that you’d come home to us one day. Just didn’t know you’d be bringing this handsome little fella with you.”
“Yeah, your room is just as you left it,” I said. “Stay as long as you want. And ignore Savannah, you know how she gets.”
My phone buzzed on the table, and I knew who it was before I looked at the screen. If Beau wasn’t here, he was calling.
“Beau?” Emmett asked, and I nodded, smiling like a fool. He was the only thing that could pull a real smile from me these days. The only thing that could break through the suffocating, crushing weight of my grief.
Tess’s brows flew up. “Beau? Like Beau McLeod?”
“You’ve missed a lot, Tessie,” Emmett said. “A whole lot.”
I answered the phone, “Hey, babe.”
“Everything alright?” his voice was low, thick with drowsiness. I hadn’t realized how late it was.
“You’ll never believe who’s here,” I told him, glancing at my baby sister. “Tess and her son Luke showed up about thirty minutes ago.” She looked down at her lap, her cheeks a light pink.
There was rustling on his end, his voice clearer. “Sorry, did you just say Tess?”
I got up and went to Tess’s room, grabbing clean sheets out of the linen closet. “Yep.”
“And she has a kid?”
