“Positive,” she confirmed, her voice wobbly and honestly sounding pretty freaking panicked, not that I blamed her. “Can you… can you come?”
“Yeah,” I agreed, quickly. “I’m not home, but I’ll leave in a little bit. Call the police and start making a list of what they took. But whatever it is, don’t get upset, okay? It’s just stuff. What matters is that you’re fine.”
“Okay, I’ll call now, but hurry, please.”
My stomach turned as I took in the fear in her voice. “I will. Maybe don’t touch anything. I don’t know. Ask the dispatcher who answers, okay? I’ll be there as soon as I can.” I swallowed. “I’m glad you’re okay though. But don’t stress. Everything can be replaced. Text me your address, Thea, okay? It’ll save me time from looking for it.”
Giving me a broken goodbye, my sister hung up, and I shoved my stool back and got to my feet.
Poor Thea. I couldn’t imagine how she felt, much less that she called me first before calling the freaking cops. I was honestly surprised she wanted me to come, but I would never tell her no if she needed me. Not to any of my sisters. Or anyone I cared about. But that didn’t change the fact that my relationship with the oldest of my three younger sisters had been strained since before she had moved out. Since the night I had tried to give her a hug and she’d pushed me away, telling me to leave her alone. I hated that string of words more than any others. I really did.
Why was I thinking about that? I had promised myself I wouldn’t again.
Taking in a calming breath, I unlocked my screen and quickly started going through the apps on it.
“Everything good?” Rip asked, honestly reminding me he was there. I wasn’t sure how I’d forgotten, but I had.
Opening the app I needed, I glanced up at him and rushed out, “My sister’s apartment got broken into.”
The little notch between his eyebrows popped up. “She all right?”
“She doesn’t sound like it,” I told him, glancing down at my phone as I put in the address I was going to need to get a ride to. “She asked me to go see her, so I need to get back home, and drive up there.”
“Drive where?”
I didn’t glance over to him as I hit the search icon to find a ride on the app. “Dallas. She lives in Dallas.” I grabbed my purse and watched the screen blink as it searched.
“What are you doing?” Rip asked instantly.
“Trying to get a car to take me back home,” I told him, still looking at my screen. “My friend dropped me off.”
I heard him shove the stool back instead of seeing it. “I’ll take you.”
That had me glancing up at him. “You don’t have to.”
“I’ll take you, and don’t say anything about the favor either.” He was already up and making his way around the table. “Let’s go.”
I blinked, but… I hit the icon to exit the app.
Maybe I should have argued with him a little more, but… maybe he’d count this as the favor once he really had a chance to think about it. Not that I held much hope since driving me to San Antonio hadn’t counted, so I doubted driving me a few minutes away would, but…
His choice.
I nodded and took off toward the door, waving absentmindedly at the coworkers who watched me leave, giving curious glances, probably because Rip was right at my heels behind me. It took seconds to get out of the bar. Rip pointed down the street, and half a block down I spotted his yellow truck. In no time at all, we were at it and he’d unlocked the passenger door to let me in. The second my seat belt was on, he pulled onto the street.
“You good?”
I took a breath, not realizing that I was staring out the windshield. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a little worried about my sister,” I explained, thinking he didn’t know her name. “I’m just surprised she called me, I guess. Not that surprised her place got broken into. Her apartment isn’t in the greatest neighborhood I’ve ever been in.”
“She lives by herself?”
“No, she’s got a roommate.” I took another breath in and out of my nose. “I’m sorry, Rip, do you need me to give you directions?”
“I know how to get there.”
Another breath in, another release of it. “Thank you so much for driving me,” I told him.
“Uh-huh.”
I eyed the clock and swallowed back a yawn. It was going to be after midnight by the time I made it to her house. I’d gotten up at 5:45 that morning. I could make some coffee, and I’d make it just fine. Well, as close to fine as possible. Worst case, I’d roll down the windows and let the air wake me up.
I must have been in my thoughts longer than I imagined because the next thing I knew, Rip was pulling his truck into a driveway.
My driveway.
I needed to get it together. Calm down. Focus and get going as quickly as possible.
“Thank you so much for the ride,” I managed to tell him.
Rip’s gaze was pretty intent on me as he put the car into park and leaned back in the seat, and I watched as his eyes flicked to my house over my shoulder before returning to me. He licked his lips before he said in that boss-man voice that told me not to argue, “Get your things. I’ll wait out here.”
Uh. Maybe he had had a little more to drink than usual. “You don’t have to wait. My neighborhood is pretty safe.”
I doubted anyone would ever give me a slower blink than the one he shared with me in that moment.
I watched as he paused and looked at the bracelet I’d put on that morning. My fun thing of the day was an old bracelet Lily had made me years ago that said LOVEYOU in white beads with black lettering. He sighed and flicked his eyes back toward my face. “Luna, I’m taking you to Dallas. Get your shit.”
Chapter 13
“You really don’t have to do this.”
Rip didn’t even huff or roll his eyes as I said the same words I’d already told him five different times since he’d pulled up to my house and dropped the bomb on me.
Luna, I’m taking you to Dallas. Get your shit.
Of course I’d reacted the way any sane person would. I had sat there and stared blankly for about a minute until he’d raised his eyebrows at me and said, Night’s not getting any younger, baby girl. Let’s go.
And that, that had snapped me out of it.
Which then started us into a five-minute back and forth discussion about why he didn’t have to take me and why he was going to. I mean he could barely get through a conversation with me without huffing and shaking his head. I hadn’t even known he’d had a dimple until tonight. Yet he wanted to drive me to Dallas?
I wasn’t the kind of person to tell someone not to help me, but it just didn’t make sense.
And yet, I still found myself in his truck twenty minutes later with a bag filled with a change of clothes, my toothbrush, contact case, and solution.
I sighed and leaned my shoulder against the window. “Rip….”
“Luna.”
I pressed my lips together, watching his profile in the dark cab. “Turn around and take me back. I shouldn’t have even gotten into the car in the first place. You don’t need to do this. I’m sure you have better things to do.”
“I don’t.”
I blew out a breath that had him swinging his eyes to me.
“I don’t,” he repeated himself, those long fingers flexing on the steering wheel.
I sighed again. “It was just one little lie, Ripley.”
“You lied to the fucking cops for me, Luna. That’s a felony if you didn’t know. There’s nothing little about that.”
I guess there was no arguing that. I put my hand over my face and took a breath, sliding my gaze over to him, trying to be sneaky about it so he couldn’t see me doing it. Who was this man? Not that I was complaining that he was actually talking to me and asking me things and trying to be nice, but….
“Why are you being such a pain in the ass about me going with you?” he asked all of a sudden, forcing my thoughts back.