He continued searching the cabin, repeatedly calling her name. Every second that passed with no answer made his muscles bunch and his insides churn.
He pulled his flashlight from his belt as he rushed out to the shed. He searched every corner of the structure before stepping back out into the clearing.
“Jessie!” It was full dark now, with only a sliver of a moon. If Jessie didn’t answer his calls, he might not find her tonight. It rarely froze this late in the summer, but temperatures could still drop quite low at night near the lake.
His stomach bottomed out as he looked at the lake.What if I’m too late?
No, Pendleton had been walking toward the lake, not away from it, when Robert arrived.
A muffled sniff sounded above him, and Robert raised his eyes and flashlight to the dark sky. The old fort amid the branches of the oak tree created a looming shadow.
He heaved a sigh.Smart woman.
Short of running into the forest where she could have easily become lost in the dark, Jessie hid in the one place Pendleton would have been hard-pressed to find her. Even in broad daylight, the tree house was hard to spot in the old oak tree.
“Thank you,” he whispered heavenward before he darted to the path that led to the only access to the upper branches.
Robert shivered as he climbed the tree to the clubhouse. The chill of the night air and the adrenaline surging through him made it difficult to grasp the branches.
“Jess.” Robert poked his head through the floor of the clubhouse and shone his flashlight around. The beam landed on Jessie huddled in a fetal position, eyes squeezed shut, hands pressed to her ears.
Another shiver surged through him at the sight.
She flinched away from the glare of the flashlight and curled tighter in on herself.
He turned off the light and slipped it into his belt. The night outside was dark, but it was even darker in the tiny structure with only one small window. The tree house that he, Jake, and Ben had labeled a “fort” and their younger sisters had called their “castle” was much smaller than he remembered.
He lifted himself inside and scooted toward Jessie. Reaching out, he felt for her shoulder.
She flinched again and swatted at his hand. “No, don’t hurt me again, please.”
The plea in her words tore at his heart, and again he silently cursed himself for leaving her here alone, unprotected. “Jess, it’s me. I won’t hurt you.”
He sensed that she lifted her head, though he couldn’t see her clearly.
“Robert?” It was little more than a whisper.
Grappling for her in the dark, he gathered her into his arms and pulled her onto his lap.
She trembled as shivers wracked her body. How much of her shaking was caused by the chill of the night air, and how much was caused by fear?
He rubbed his hand up and down the arm that wasn’t pressed against his chest. “I’m so sorry, sweetheart. You’re safe now.”
He didn’t chide himself for using the endearment again. In fact, he barely noticed it had slipped from his lips. It felt so right. So natural. Just like it felt so right to hold her in his arms.
Robert hated to think what might have happened if he’d ignored the prompting to come check on Jessie. Or if he’d been even fifteen minutes later. Would Pendleton have discovered Jessie up here?
He tightened his arms around Jessie’s trembling body and pressed his lips to her hair.
“I’m s-sorry,” she mumbled into his shoulder, shaking her head. “I shouldn’t have c-come home. I shouldn’t have put you and my m-mom in danger.”
“I’m the one who should be apologizing. I promised to keep you safe, and I nearly failed.” He swallowed hard to clear the tightness from his throat. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here for you when you needed me.”
She shook her head and pushed away from him. She scooted off his lap, leaving his arms with nothing to hold but the chilly night air. “No, it’s not your f-fault. It’s mine. It’s all m-mine. Patrick’s right. Why did I think I could c-come back and pretend I still had a p-place here?”
“You do have a place here. This is your home. You still—” He stopped himself before he could say she still had a place in his heart. As badly as his heart hurt for her, and as much as he wanted to take her away from here, he didn’t dare let her in again.
“No, I should never have come home.”
