Right Where She Belongs

Chapter Eighteen

[Caleb's P.O.V]

I honestly didn't know what to expect when I rolled into this tiny town in the middle of nowhere. At first I was convinced that Jenna had just been yanking on my chain and leading me on a goose chase. That hadn't been the case however, when I went into the local cafe and began asking around. Surely in a place this small, everyone was bound to know one another, right?

"Who's asking?" The gruff looking man behind the counter demanded, crossing his arms over his chest. He frowned, the lines on his face standing out against his pale skin. He eyed The Cousin's over my shoulder warily.

"Brothers," Dallas said with that frightening smile that I assumed he thought was charming.

The man - Jeremy, read his name tag - shifted uneasily under the weight of all our stares.

"You sure don't look related," Jeremy's scowl had Dallas bristling.

"Adopted," Sam supplied, placing a restraining hand on Dallas's chest. "We're just looking for our sister."

Jeremy faltered a bit under the sincerity in Sam's eyes. When the guy wanted to be, he was good actor.

"Why don't you just call her, yourself?" Jeremy questioned, still not entirely believing Sam's story.

Sam ducked his head bashfully. "Adrian and my brothers here," he clasped both of us on the back, earning glowers from both Dallas and I. "Well we got into a little fight before our baby sister upped and left. We want to bring her back home, back to her family,"

Jeremy blinked in surprise, rubbing a hand across his jaw. "You're the ones she ran away from, huh?" He eyed the three of us with reproach, his eyes lingering a bit on me. "Brothers, you say?"

"Actually," Dallas said loudly, pounding me harshly on the back. "This is her boyfriend, Caleb. He's practically a brother to us,"

Surprised at his choice of wording, I choked on my own saliva.

Dallas chuckled, still hitting me hard on the back. "He's a little shy, don't mind him,"

I shot him my dirtiest look, which couldn't have been too fierce considering Dallas merely grinned.

"Oh," Jeremy looked genuinely surprised. "She didn't mention a boyfriend,"

Yeah, I thought sarcastically. Came as a surprise to me too, buddy.

"Can you tell us where she's staying?" Sam asked, still keeping up the worried brother facade.

"Well," Jeremy hesitated. "She's staying with a co-worker but I'm not permitted to hand out addresses. Security reasons,"

Sam nodded, looking dejected, "I understand, but please," he wrapped an arm around Dallas' shoulders. "We really need to find her. Our parents...they're really worried about her. We're really worried about her. So please, any piece of information would be a great help."

Three hours later I found myself sneaking into an unknown apartment, fervently hoping it was Adrian's.

And man, was I glad it was.

"Adrian," I held the tiny blonde to my chest, her body quivering against mine. I could feel my panic begin to increase when all she did was continue to sob, heavy, chest aching sobs that tore at me. I couldn't see her face since she buried her head in my neck, her tears leaking down my skin and absorbing into my shirt. I didn't care. Relief cascaded through me at the familiar warmth of her body in my arms.

Home, I thought, burying my face into her hair, breathing in her strawberry scent. She's home.

"C-C-Caleb?" Her voice shook, clogged by tears. "C-Caleb?"