She was sprawled on the couch, one of her legs halfway off. Shannon frowned. “Let’s move her into my room.”
“Are you sure?” He hated to kick Shannon out of her own bed.
“Positive. It’s going to be okay, Dylan.”
Realizing that his worry wasn’t helping anyone, he scooped up his sister.
She opened one eye. “Dylan? What’s going on?”
“Moving you to a bed. Go back to sleep, everything’s okay.” When Jennifer’s eyes drifted closed again, he looked at Shannon. “She’s good. Lead the way.” Shannon led him down the narrow hallway and opened the door.
Seconds later, Jennifer was on her side with a thick, soft blanket tucked around her body. Her shoes were off and she was still sound asleep. It was obvious that she wasn’t going to wake up anytime soon. The night had really done a number on her.
Motioning to Shannon, he walked back out of the room.
She closed the door behind her.
“Where will you sleep?” he asked as they started down the stairs.
“With one of my sisters.”
“They won’t mind?”
“No.” She smiled softly at him when they reached the main floor entryway. “Dylan, you’re giving new meaning to the phrase ‘protective older brother’.”
“You might be right.” He sighed. “All right, then. I guess I’ll go.” He pulled on his jacket and knit hat, double-checking that he had his keys and his phone with him.
“Be careful driving home.”
He smiled at her. “I might be a worried older brother but you’re kind of turning into a worried dance teacher.”
Her eyes sparkled. “Maybe we all worry about people we care about.”
Her answer hit close to home. The truth was that he did care about Shannon . . . and he was glad she cared about him, too.
Somewhere in between football bets and this moment, something had changed. There was something real between them now. Something that he couldn’t wait to explore further.
Reaching out, he took hold of the tips of her fingers. “Thanks again. I’ll see you soon.”
“Good night, Dylan,” she replied softly. Then turned and closed the door behind her.
He waited almost a full minute before he got back into his car. For some reason, even though it was cold and snowy, he felt warmer than he had in a long time.
Maybe even years.
CHAPTER 19
“It’s not about the shoes.
It’s what you do in them.”
—Michael Jordan
The sound of her phone ringing woke Jennifer up. It actually wasn’t a ring, it was a tinny version of Pharrell Williams’s “Happy.” A few months ago she decided to try to make everything in her life a little bit more optimistic.
As she listened to the familiar, peppy beat, she blinked and reached for her phone but drew up short when there wasn’t a phone on her bedside table.
Or even a bedside table.
Jarred awake, she sat up abruptly and tried to get her bearings. When she saw a series of framed prints of dancers in various poses with inspirational phrases above them, she exhaled.
She was at the dance studio. Luckily, she remembered the girls sharing how their bedrooms were on the top floor and that they lived a bit like they were in a college dorm.
By the looks of things, she was in Shannon’s room.
Then, like a sledgehammer, the previous night’s events hit her hard. The snow, the unlocked car. The envelope. The note inside. The way she’d fallen asleep on the couch and had been vaguely aware of Dylan carrying her to Shannon’s room. The realization that the nightmare she’d thought was over was instead alive and well. Finally, the tears and the feeling that she was as helpless as ever. Always a victim.
That feeling was so harsh and acidic, her stomach clenched. She surged to her feet, afraid she was going to lose the contents of her stomach on Shannon’s bed.
Realizing how close she was to dissolving into tears yet again, Jennifer clenched her hands.
She had to get it together. Had to.
She’d just gotten stronger. There was no way she was going back to that dark place. It was ugly and filled with dangerous thoughts.
She’d lost so much because of the attack. So had her parents. So had Dylan. They’d all lost the shine on the world and the thought that darkness would never touch them. Now she realized that not only was she not ready to go back to that place, she wasn’t ready to take her family there, either.
She made a decision. Slipping her shoes back on, she decided that now she was going to have to face whatever happened next head-on. This was going to be the last time she hid from the world and dissolved into despair.
After splashing cold water on her face and swishing a bit of toothpaste around her teeth with a finger, Jennifer picked up her purse, which someone must have brought into Shannon’s room, then made her way downstairs at last.
Her steps slowed when she saw that Shannon was sitting at her pretty desk near the entrance. She was wearing buff-colored leggings, an ivory fisherman’s sweater, and dark-brown designer boots, the kind that Jennifer had only ever seen in a magazine before. Her hair was perfectly styled, and she had on light makeup. In short, she looked polished and pretty, while Jennifer had swollen eyes, kinky hair, and was wearing yesterday’s clothes.
But, no matter, it was time to move forward. “Hi, Shannon.”
She looked up and smiled. “Hey. You’re up.”
Jennifer nodded. “Yes. I’m so sorry. I not only took over your room, you weren’t even able to get in there to get your clothes.”
Shannon shook her head. “I’m so much shorter than Traci and Kimber, I’d drown in their clothes. I actually tip-toed into my bedroom about an hour ago and grabbed something of my own.”
That was a surprise. Usually, the slightest noise woke her up. “Boy, I must have been really sleeping hard.”
“I think you were, which is a good thing, right?” She smiled kindly as she got to her feet. “How about a cup of coffee? And don’t say no. I promise, it’s great,” she continued in that light, chatty manner. “Kimber, Traci, and I might not be able to cook worth a darn, but all three of us are practically baristas.”
Shannon looked so sincere, Jennifer couldn’t help but take her up on the offer. “Thanks.”
Looking pleased, Shannon clicked a couple of buttons on the thin computer on her desk. “Come on back upstairs. I don’t know if you saw it, but our little kitchenette is at the far end of the hall.”