Ally.

“How old was I?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know. You don’t remember?”

It was my turn to shake my head. “My memories are jumbled. I remember you coming over and sleeping on the couch. I remember getting excited when you were there and being worried if you didn’t come. I didn’t even care if you talked to me when you were there. You were there. You were safe. That’s what I remember. I hated when you left.”

He called me Ally. I couldn’t remember.

“You have information?” I asked. “We can get a hold of this Kevin person?” I didn’t push about her. I wasn’t sure anymore, what I wanted.

Carter nodded, watching me steadily. “Is that what you want?”

“I…” I was going to say it was, but now that I was given the option…I didn’t know.

“You can take your time, Emma.”

AJ called me Ally.

I asked, my throat constricted, “Did he call me Ally only that one time?”

“I don’t know. It was the only time I remember.” He paused, frowning. “He called you Alley Cat a few times. I think I did too, once.”

“You did?”

He nodded. “I thought it was a nickname, but it felt wrong. I stopped and only called you Emma after that.”

“Oh.”

Ally. Alley Cat. Now this woman, Andrea. What else had AJ kept from me? “He loved me,” I murmured, not wanting to think about why I’d been separated from these people. “He was a good brother.”

“He was.” Carter covered my hand with his. “He died for you, Emma.”

“He fed me. He got me clothes—maybe not the best, but we had clothes. We had a place. I went to school. He was a good brother. He let me watch television, no matter if he was watching something else. Well—” I flashed a rueful grin. “—most of the time, he let me. He never brought a girlfriend home.”

Carter laughed. “He had them, but yeah, he always said they couldn’t go to his place. They always went to their place. He loved you, Emma. Don’t question that.”

My eyes fell back to the picture. She had my smile, with a twinkle in her eye. “Does she love this man?”

“I don’t know. The private detective didn’t say. Do you want to know?”

Did I? Should I open this door? “I don’t think I can not know.”

“Okay.” He stood and bent down to press another kiss to my forehead. “I’ll send the word and have my own guy look into this. He’ll find out everything.”

I nodded.

I had a sister.

Andrea.

I was fully numb. This information had come out of nowhere, and I didn’t feel prepared to take it in and digest it. Carter started for the door, but I caught his hand as he went, feeling a desperation I didn’t want to admit to. “Where are you going?” I asked, my voice hoarse.

He looked down, his eyes warm with love, and turned on the lamp. Going back toward the door, he locked it and turned the overhead lights off instead of leaving as I had feared. The feel of the room changed drastically. It was instantly warm, intimate, and cozy. A safe haven. He returned to the bed, but instead of sliding under the covers, he knelt and slid one arm underneath my legs. His other arm went around my back and he picked me up, but only to lay me down again in the middle of the bed.

I had a sister.

Carter pulled me into his arms, and as I lay there, for some reason, AJ’s voice came back to me.

“Hey there, Alley Cat.”

I found it somewhat ironic that the first time I left Cole’s building was because Carter was unwilling to let Theresa inside. He was still protective of our space.

Amanda had been to our building back home once. Noah had come over a few times, but Theresa still hadn’t been inside. I knew it bothered her, but it wasn’t my call. Carter had his reasons, and they were pretty obvious. He didn’t trust her. The rest of us respected his decision, even Theresa, but when I got a phone call from her the next day in New York, we were faced with the same dilemma.

“You never texted me back!”

I cringed, holding the phone away as Theresa yelled from the other end. “I’m sorry.”

“Sorry? Sorry? If you were sorry, you would’ve texted me back. I have problems. I have issues that need talking about, and you’re part of the triad. I need the triad. I need the gun range or a really big night at The Octave where I’m going to get wasted. That’s what I need.”

“What about Amanda?”

“She’s only part of the triad. You’re the other part. I’ve decided. We’re coming to New York.”

When I’d relayed the impending arrival to Carter, Cole offered one of the floors in his building that was open and fully furnished. Carter responded with a firm no.

“Not here. I do not want them to mix with you.” He’d been talking to Cole as he said those words, but a deep, ominous feeling passed over me. For some reason, I felt like he was talking to me. I still couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling in my gut.

“Okay.”

The two looked to me and then Carter nodded once, with authority and finality. “She’ll want to see you, but I don’t want you traveling back and forth. Noah has a place here. You can stay with them, and I will call in more guards to secure his building.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll come for the nights.”

So I would still have him at night. Relief swept through me. I’d been scared for a moment that he would pull back, spend all his time with Cole, and I would be alone. “Okay. That’ll work. Theresa will want to spend the days together, anyway.”

“I’m sure Noah is hoping to get work done at the New York Richmond.”

“I’m sure.”

“You will not go in with him.” His eyes flashed in warning.

So I was officially hiding? It wasn’t just for this week. “Carter.” I moved closer, making my voice quiet. This question wasn’t for Cole to hear.

Cole stood, giving me a polite smile, before he gestured to the door. “I think that’s my cue. It was nice having you here, Emma. I’d like for us to have dinner before you go back home.” He glanced at Carter, at me, and gave another smile. “The three of us.”

I reached for Carter’s hand as Cole left. “Is the war already happening? Is that why I’m hiding?” Déjà vu washed over me. Like with Mallory, but this was worse. I saw the fear in Carter. It was shimmering just under the surface, and it had him on edge.