Reese ran her fingers through Annie''s soft hair, her chest tightening. How could someone so little already be so considerate? It made her heart ache.


    Sebastian didn''t miss a thing. Reese walked right past him, not even ncing his way as she left. He watched Matthew pick up Annie and follow Reese down the hall, his own heart twisting with jealousy and something bitter he didn''t want to


    name.


    "How is she?" Sebastian asked as he came into the ER, a pharmacy bag dangling from his hand. Reese''s face was pale and drawn and he caught the quick sh of hurt in her eyes.


    "Where''d you go?" Reese asked quietly.


    "Picked up some medicine," he replied, holding up the bag. His gaze drifted to the bandage on her wrist, noticing the angry red edges and the faint yellow fluid.


    "Come on. Let him rest in here. I''ll clean you up outside," Sebastian said.


    That''s when Reese realized she''d been ignoring her own injury. She nced down and saw the mess at her wrist. It looked bad.


    She nodded. "Okay."


    As they stepped out, Annie looked up at Matthew. She''d caught him staring after Reese, longing written all over his face.


    "Daddy, do you have a thing for Aunt Reese?" she whispered.


    Matthew jerked in surprise, his cheeks burning. "What are you talking about, kiddo? Don''t say stuff like that."


    She pouted at him. "But now we''re at the Ratcliff house, she is your sister-inw, right?"


    He tried to sound firm. "You''re too young to worry about grown-up business."


    Annie poked at his chin, unconvinced. She knew she wasn''t just a little kid, no matter what he thought.


    The thing was, she''d seen it with her own eyes. Back at the old house, when Aunt Reese almost got hit by that swing, Daddy ran faster than she''d ever seen, even faster than when he was training with his soldier friends. When Aunt Reese got hurt, Daddy''s worry was written all over his face. It was like he felt her pain even more than his own.


    Honestly, Annie didn''t want Aunt Reese to be her aunt at all. She wanted her to be her mom.


    Outside the ER, Sebastian sat beside Reese, pulling out gauze and antiseptic. He caught her staring back through the ER doors, clearly distracted.


    "Don''t you think you care about them a little too much?" he asked, voice low.


    "Sure, today was Robbie''s fault. But you used to lose your mind if Robbie cried even once. Now you''re so harsh with him, just for Annie?"


    Reese let out a dry, humorlessugh. "Annie remembers my favorite coffee. She rubs my shoulders when I''m tired. She actually cares when I''m hurting."


    She looked away, her voice sharper now. "And what about Robbie? He treats me like a maid, only tries to impress your new girlfriends, and what else? Oh, right-he''s kicked me, tried to hit me with a swing and every time he looks at me, it''s


    nothing but hate."


    Sebastian swallowed hard.


    Everything she said was true. "But that''s just because you two haven''t spent enough time together. If you moved back in, got close him things would change. Or he could live with you if you don''t want toe home."


    "No way." Reese''s answer was instant, cold. "Sebastian, you need to wake up.


    We''re never going back to the way things were."


    She wasn''t going to waste another second on him or Robbie.


    Sebastian''s eyes flickered with desperation. "Then what do you want from me you won''t heves


    another kid, you won''t take care of Robbie, so what are you even after?"


    Reese stared at him, her voice ice. "Sebastian, when you..."


    When you put another woman''s baby inside me, what''s in your mind?


    She never finished. His phone started ringing. She nced down and saw Leslie''s name light up the screen. Her lips twisted in a bitter smile.


    Of course. Leslie.


    Sebastian answered, and Reese could hear the faint sound of a woman crying on


    the other end. His face changed in an instant.


    "I''ll be right there," he said, and hung up.


    He hesitated, looking at Reese''s arm, then back at her. "I—”


    Reese justughed, cold and hollow.


    Her heart felt like it was being pricked by a thousand tiny needles, but she didn''t


    say another word. She just turned and walked away.


    She''d stopped hoping Sebastian would ever put her first a long time ago. All she wondered now was what kind of trouble Leslie had cooked up this time to get him running.