Return to Silver Creek

JESSE

An hour later, Jesse pulled into his parents’ long, narrow driveway.

Trees towered on either side, making it difficult to find in the near dark, but since Jesse grew up in the rambling single-story house at the end, the turnoff was instinctual.

When he parked in front of the gray house with white trim, he noticed how barren the window boxes—which were such an explosion of color in the spring and summer—looked now that winter was almost here.

Though no snow hadn’t fallen yet, he could smell it in the air.

A police cruiser was already parked in the large gravel parking lot, as was Tucker’s truck.

After Chance pulled up and parked beside Jesse, they both walked over to where their brother stood talking with Detective Daniel Colter.

“This is insane.” Tucker sighed and ran his hand over his face.

Daniel chuckled as he shrugged his broad shoulders. “Legally, there’s no real threat. You know Mom.”

“Hey, Danny.” Jesse smiled at his oldest friend. “Long time no see. Please tell me this is a social call and she didn’t steal another pet.”

Daniel laughed, his silver-blue eyes shining despite the lack of light, and ran his fingers through his short dark-blond hair, making it spike in the front.

Even his skin was a shade lighter than any of theirs. The only real similarity to them was his build, but it didn’t matter—he’d become a brother to them all, even calling their parents mom and dad.

Having no parents to speak of and only an aunt who hadn’t liked having him around, he had basically lived at their house all through school. He even had his own bed in Jesse’s old room.

Daniel had continued to live with the Davises after Jesse left for medical school, attending a local college to get his law degree. Jesse had felt better knowing his friend was around to help his parents if they needed him.

“No. Mom called me in to look at some paperwork. For legal advice.” His expression turned serious. “Emily is in some real deep shit.”

“Emily? As in Emily Decker?” Jesse asked, taken aback. “I haven’t seen her in over ten years.”

“She was sent by Devon.” Daniel winced. “I guess he didn’t want to deal with the mess.”

Emily’s older brother had always been a piece of work, the kind of person who only cared about what you had to offer him.

The worst of it was, he had a habit of taking what he wanted, whether you were willing to give it or not. Jesse had knocked him out once for forcing himself onto a girl when Devon was a senior and Jesse was a sophomore.

Jesse hadn’t cared about the age difference for two reasons. First, he’d been raised on a ranch with basically four brothers, whereas Devon came from money and had never been made to work a day in his life.

Second, he’d been too pissed to think much about it.

Well, Jesse no longer had to wonder why his mom had gotten involved. And he suspected he’d find Emily sitting at his mother’s bar, hanging out with his sister. Just like old times.

And like old times, her short, curly blonde hair would probably be up in a perky ponytail, her blue eyes framed with natural makeup, her fair skin clear and glowing as she laughed.

She’d been the only one in her family who was sweet and approachable, so it was no wonder Bethany had loved Emily like an older sister.

“What mess?” Jesse asked, shaking the vision of Emily out of his mind.

Daniel shared a look with Tucker, then sighed. Clearly he’d been hoping Jesse wouldn’t ask. But Daniel should have known him better than that.

“Nasty ex-boyfriend,” Daniel admitted, watching him cautiously. “I guess her family set her up with a guy they approved of.”

Jesse growled under his breath at the very thought of another man touching Emily. Squeezing his eyes shut, he reminded himself that she was no longer his. Still, fury burned in his chest at the thought of anyone hurting her.

Whether she was his or not, she was meant to be.

“Luckily, she was smart,” Tucker assured him. “She managed to get herself and the kids away from him, and he has no legal right to even see any of them. Mom and Dad are letting them stay till she gets back on her feet.”

Anger boiled in Jesse’s stomach as he wondered what the man could have done to lose the right to see his kids. He didn’t want to think about it. Lucky for him, he was distracted by another thought.

Emily had kids.

He probably shouldn’t have been surprised, but for some reason he could only imagine her as that young woman forcing a smile as she hugged Bethany goodbye.

He could still see the anxious look on her face when her parents picked her up to finish packing for the move to Los Angeles.

“Will Mom be in danger taking her in?” he asked Daniel, knowing that even if she was, there would be no stopping her.

“Well…”

“Yes,” Tucker snapped.

Daniel smacked the back of Tucker’s head. “Stop being a drama queen.” He turned back to Jesse. “If the guy has any brains at all, he’ll stay away from them.

“However, he knew he was going to be arrested and ran before the final court date. The department is aware of the threat and wanted posters have been hung. Still, Em seems pretty sure he’ll be looking for them.

“Nobody can say whether it’s reality or just panic, but she seems calm enough.” Daniel finished with a shrug. “I mean she’s scared but lucid.”

Jesse felt his jaw clench in anger. Emily’s fearful expression the last time he’d seen her crossed his mind again. It had broken his heart. He hadn’t wanted her to go.

He shook his head, reminding himself that she wasn’t the same girl he once knew, and that it wasn’t his responsibility to protect her or her children. Apparently he’d gotten the urge to be the hero from his mother.

That was why he’d gone into medicine, after all, to better help his community. And even though Emily had been gone for a long time, he still couldn’t help counting her as part of that community.

“Did you bring Clare?” Chance asked as he began to steer everyone toward the house.

Daniel beamed at the mention of his fiancé, who was eight months pregnant. “Of course. Mom would have killed me if I hadn’t.”

Clare, a sweet woman with light-brown hair and toffee-colored eyes, had been accepted into the family with open arms. She was perfect for Daniel.