Seemingly just the opposite of her stylish sister, Bri kept her bleached white-blond hair so short it spiked in places. She wore minimal makeup and had on her usual attire—jeans, a white T-shirt, and running shoes.
Both were beautiful, with almost identical features, and yet they were so incredibly different.
Tears pooled in Sammie’s eyes as she grabbed Savannah’s hand. “My God, Savvy. Are you okay? When Zach called me, I almost freaked out.”
Before she could answer, Bri sat on the bed and put her head on Savannah’s shoulder. Typical Bri move. When something touched her deeply, she had trouble articulating. After their parents’ deaths, she wouldn’t talk for over a week.
Savannah smoothed her sister’s spiky hair with one hand and squeezed Sammie’s hand with her other. “I’m fine. Just still kind of tired.”
“Your voice … will it be okay?” Sammie asked.
Savannah nodded. “It’ll be fine. I just need—”
“To rest. She’s not supposed to talk.”
Three sets of eyes zoomed to the door where Zach stood. Dressed in faded jeans and a black T-shirt that showed off his broad chest and incredible biceps, he made it hard for Savannah to not salivate. She glanced from one sister to the other and had to swallow a giggle at Bri’s and Sammie’s slightly glazed looks. This was the first time they’d seen Zach in over ten years and were most likely having a similar reaction to the one she’d had. He had changed from the handsome boy they’d known to a sexy, gorgeous man.
“Sorry, I tried to catch you before you ran into the house.” His mouth lifted in a grin. “You two are fast.”
“Hello, Zach.”
The cool greeting came from Sammie. Bri said nothing. The glazed looks had been replaced with a hostile wariness. This reaction didn’t surprise her. They still had no clue why Zach had abandoned her. Though she had told them it was justifiable, until she gave them a better explanation, the hostility would remain.
Zach showed no surprise at this change but his eyes flickered with regret. When he looked at her, his expression softened considerably. “I’ll be in my study if you need me.” His eyes went cool again as he took in Sammie’s and Bri’s accusing glares. “Don’t let her talk too much.”
With those words, he disappeared. Savannah wanted to call him back. As happy as she was to see her sisters, she wanted to soothe Zach. Tell him that her sisters didn’t understand.
“Damn, that man looks good.” The awe in Bri’s words broke the tension. All three women relaxed.
“Have you seen Aunt Gibby?” Savannah asked.
Sammie said, “Not yet. Bri and I arranged to fly into Mobile around the same time. We rented a car there and drove straight here.”
“Is Gibby back home yet?” Bri asked.
Savannah shook her head. “I—”
“Wait.” Sammie held up her hand. “You need to rest your voice, which means to find out what’s going on, we need to get Zach back in here. First things first, and you don’t have to go into detail. Zach’s reasons for what he did … they were absolutely valid?”
Emotion clutched her heart. That’s all her sisters needed—one word from her and there would be no more questions, no more hostility toward Zach. Total faith and trust in each other had been theirs from birth. Nothing could ever change that.
She nodded. Then, because she needed them to know that not only did Zach have her forgiveness, but her feelings for him were stronger than ever, she said, “We’re together again.”
“Forever?” Bri asked.
Her chest squeezed tight. She didn’t know the answer to that but everything within her said she hoped for forever and beyond. “I hope so.”
That was good enough for her sisters.
“I’ll go get Zach,” Sammie said.
As soon as her sister walked out the door, Savannah turned to Bri. “What’s wrong with her?”
Bri grimaced and shook her head. “I don’t know. I tried to get it out of her on the way here and she wouldn’t tell me a damn thing. Just said work had been heavy lately.”
Though Sammie was still as beautiful as any cover model, her appearance revealed definite signs of stress. Concern for her sister overrode the pain in Savannah’s throat from talking. “She looks like she’s lost fifteen pounds and hasn’t slept in days.”
“I know. As soon as we find the shithead who killed our parents and tried to kill you and Gibby, we’ll get to the bottom of it.”
Despite the seriousness, she couldn’t help but smile at her sister’s summation. Quick, concise, and to the point.