Chapter 253: Leigh Anne
*Baby sister… you’re smarter than me. Don’t follow in my footsteps. Be strong. Keep yourself safe. – Leigh Anne*
Movement outside the restaurant window caught Rye’s attention. She wasn’t paying attention to the teasing and joking going on around her. She was looking out the window, waiting for the figure to reappear. It had to her imagination.
There it is again. She knew that form. Would recognize it anywhere. So many nights had been spent curled up against it to stay warm. To stay safe.
Even skinny and dirty, with a distance of at least twenty feet, a pane of glass between them and hardly any light outside, Rye knew who it was.
Leigh Anne.
Rye had no doubts, that was her sister that she saw outside.
Grabbing her phone, she stood up and walked out. It wasn’t until the cold wind hit her that she thought about getting her jacket. Her keys and flashlight were still in her pocket.
A few years ago, Leigh Anne would have berated her for not having them on her. Even a few months ago, Rye would have given herself a stern talking to. But Rye was now comfortable around Chance and the Saints. Enough to forget to grab her two lifelines.
Ryanne walked out of the restaurant and turned towards where she had seen her sister. Leigh Anne looked the same as she had for the past several years.
Stringy black hair, sunken cheeks, hollow eyes, and way too skinny. Under the gray oversized unzipped hoodie, there were probably track marks. The tight shirt was faded, and the short skirt was dingy, and the shoes were worn-out.
“Leigh Anne?” Rye called out and her sister tried to focus on her.
“Baby sister?” Leigh asked confused. “Why are you here, baby sister?”
“You called me.” Rye reminded her as she walked closer.
“I did?” Leigh Anne asked still confused as Chance walked up behind Rye and put her jacket on her shoulders.
“When you had the baby.”
“Oh. Did it live?” she asked scratching at her arms.
“Yeah.” Rye held the phone out so the woman could see her son. “I named him after dad.”
“Michael is a good name.” She mumbled refusing to look at the child.
“Michael Lee.” Rye gave in to the tears and let them fall.
“You’ll do right by him.” Leigh Anne told her sister. “Raise him right. Promise me?”
“You could help me…”
“No. I can’t.”
“Leigh Anne.” Rye pleaded. “Let me help you.”
“I could use twenty bucks.” She told her little sister.
Rye shook her head. “I don’t have any money. I have a place to live. You could come live with me.”
Chance took out his wallet from his front pocket and pulled out a couple of bills. “Why don’t you come in, get something to eat?”
Greedily, Leigh Anne took the money from him. Licking her lips in anticipation, she shook her head and walked away.
“Leigh Anne!” Rye called out and started to go after her.
Chance stepped in front of her. He expected her to fight against him, to try to get around him. He did not expect her to wrap her arms around his waist and bury her face in his chest. Wrapping his arms around her, he held her close.
Rye was still thin, almost too thin, but she was starting to look healthier. And compared to her sister, she looked very healthy. With his arms holding her close, Chance realized just how small she was. Her body shook and he wasn’t sure if it was from the cold or the tears that she was shedding.
“I’ve got you.” He whispered and saw two of his brothers approaching them.
“She okay?” Bear asked his youngest brother.
“Yeah.” Chance answered, not wanting to give away a lot of details. He fished his keys out of his pocket and handed them over to Bear. “Can you get my bike to mom’s?”
“Yeah.” The older brother said accepting the keys. “Need anything else?”
“No, I’m going to take her to her son.” Chance said as Werewolf placed a warmer jacket around her shoulders.
“Your family…” Rye said quietly as they walked across the parking lot.
“They’re fine. I told my brothers where we’re going to end up.”
“But it’s your birthday.” She argued as he pulled her closer to his side to warm her up.
“The funny thing about birthdays,” he said as they walked past a row of motorcycles, “I’ll have another one in about twelve months.”
“You don’t have to leave because of me.”
Chance guided her to the passenger door and pulled her keys out of her jacket pocket. He put her in the passenger seat and then got behind the wheel and drove them in the opposite direction of the hospital.
“Duchess, let’s get something straight.” Chance said as he drove through a residential area. “I don’t do anything that I don’t want to do.”
“You didn’t even get any of your cake.” Rye argued.
“Mom will bring some home for me. If I’m lucky, she’ll sneak some egg rolls out in her purse.”
“She would do that for you?”
“She would do that.” Chance laughed. “Not going to guarantee it’s for me. But if I’m really lucky, I’ll get one.”
Reaching over, he wrapped his large hand around her small cold hand. He took it as a good sign that she did not pull her hand away from his. It took a moment before she relaxed and slowly turned her hand and linked their fingers.
Chance glanced over to look at her. She was leaning her head back against the head rest with her eyes closed. A few tears still slipped down her cheeks and she would occasionally reach up to brush them away.
They passed under a streetlight, and he could see her face better. She really was a beautiful woman. He could look at her for hours on end. But he didn’t want to crash her car.
And he certainly did not want to think about why he was so drawn to her.
