Chapter One
Sienna stood in front of her friend Riley’s front door, afraid to take the final step and knock. She knew she was going in the right direction to make a better life for herself, but all she was familiar with was living in dank, dirty places for most of her life. Places where you slept with one eye open because there were threats all around. Especially for pretty young women.
Now here she stood frozen, looking up at the only place she had to run to until she got her life on track. Every summer after Sienna’s mother passed, Riley had told her to come. She’d given Sienna all her information and made her promise she’d come.
She sighed and tapped her toe as the worry started to build.
Sienna hadn’t called to tell Riley about her mom because she’d felt an urgency to leave as soon as she could. She’d left everything behind except a few clothes, books, and pictures of her and her mom.
She’d been careful, using some of her cash to take a taxi to the other side of Kansas City, where she grew up. She’d planned on making it as hard as possible for Hector to find her. From there, she’d walked several blocks before jumping on a bus for Arkansas. Some people might have thought she was paranoid, but they didn’t know her uncle. She knew he’d come after her, and she had to do everything she could to disappear.
Sienna drew in a lungful of air and knocked. She didn’t have to wait long until the door opened, and an older man stood staring at her. He was tall with white-gray hair, but very few wrinkles as though he didn’t spend time outside. His suit looked pretty ritzy to wear during the day.
But what did she know about rich people?
“Hello. May I help you, miss?”
The way he talked was different as well, but she couldn’t figure out why.
“Oh, um… Hi. I’m Sienna. Riley knows me.”
“Is she expecting you?”
Sweat gathered between her breasts. Her hands started to shake, so she gripped her backpack tighter to keep him from noticing. “I… No, but I think she’d want to see me if you asked.”
“Very well. Come in.”
Sienna walked in, and her mouth dropped open. The place looked large on the outside, but inside, it seemed even bigger and more luxurious. Doubt started to grow. She didn’t belong here. There was no way Riley would want someone like her in her home, even for a minute.
She turned to the man when he walked back from an intercom on the wall. “I think I made a mistake, sir. Could you just tell her … Sienna said hi?”
“Sienna!”
She looked up to the top of the stairs to see Riley with a massive smile on her face before she started to race down the steps. Sienna looked back and forth between the man and Riley when she stopped suddenly when the man cleared his throat.
Riley came to stand in front of the man and smile up at him sweetly. “Finley, you’re not going to tell on me, are you?”
The man’s lips twitched. “No, miss. But if I see it again, I will tell.”
“Yes, Sir.” Riley giggled, grabbed the man’s hand, and pulled him over to Sienna. “Finley, I want you to meet one of my best friends, Sienna.” She took Sienna’s hand. “Sienna, meet Finley. He takes care of me when Daddy’s not home.”
If Sienna didn’t know what Noah was to Riley, she would’ve been confused, but Riley had told her all about it the last time they were at camp together.
Sienna smiled at the blush covering the man’s face.
“It’s nice to meet you.”
Finley bowed his head. “You, too, miss. Might you be staying a while with us?”
“No—”
“Yes,” Riley interrupted her.
“But…”
Riley squeezed her hand. “We’ll talk about it with Daddy when he gets home.”
“Would you like refreshments, miss?” Finley asked Riley.
Riley looked at her. “Have you eaten?”