Take Me Home by Nancy Herkness

rid herself of the thought of her ex-husband. The warmth of Tim’s hands seemed to radiate up her arm and through her body.She could feel her nervous tension ease, even as a new set of sensations sprang to life.
    She left her hand in his as she said, “I feel really guilty about dragging you into this situation, especially on a first date. It’s not quite the evening you were expecting.”
    “Hey, none of that,” Tim said. He raised the back of her hand to his lips and brushed the lightest of kisses across it before releasing it.
    The tender gesture sent little curls of pleasure dancing over her skin.
    “Now,” he said, “we need to discuss how to keep everyone safe tonight.”
    “I’m going to barricade the doors and stay here.”
Whether Holly wanted her or not
.
    “I’m staying too.”
    “I can’t ask you to do that.”
    “I don’t recall your doing any asking.” Tim’s smile was easy, but his tone said he wasn’t budging.
    “It’s not me you have to convince, anyway. It’s my sister.”
    The sound of a door opening ended the debate. Claire stood up as Holly appeared. For the first time, Claire noticed her sister was wearing a dress and high heels. It infuriated her that Holly would still dress up for her creep of a husband.
    “The girls and I are going to bed soon,” Holly said. “They’re going to sleep with me in the master bedroom. I’m sorry you both had to see all this, but it’s over. You can go on to dinner now.” Holly’s eyes went wide. “Oh no, dinner!”
    When she started toward the kitchen, Tim held up his hand to stop her, saying, “I turned off the stove when I was making the ice packs.”
    “Thanks,” Holly said, her sudden burst of energy fading so she looked pale and drained. “I was making a nice family dinner for all of us before Frank and I...”
    “Before you what?” Claire prompted when Holly’s voice petered out.
    “Frank came over because I wanted to talk to him about how we would tell Brianna and Kayleigh we were getting a divorce.” Holly’s eyes filled with tears. “We were going to have dinner with the girls first and then discuss how to handle our announcement after they went to bed. But he showed up drunk.”
    “Holly, we have to talk,” Claire said firmly.
    “Not tonight,” Holly said, massaging her temples with her fingertips. “I’m exhausted.”
    “I’m sorry, but there are certain things that can’t wait.” Claire kept her tone gentle. “We have to tell the police about Frank being violent when he’s drunk. Paul can get a restraining order first thing tomorrow. And you have to change the locks on the doors.”
    “I...No, it will just make Frank angry again.” Holly sank into a chair. “He was mad tonight because I got a lawyer already. He said I was in a big hurry to get rid of him.”
    “He wants to control you, even in the divorce,” Claire said. “It’s classic abusive behavior.”
    Holly’s gaze skittered sideways. “I got mad too and mentioned his spending habits. That’s when he started yelling and calling me a slut.”
    She looked so sad and defeated that Claire debated whether it was right to push her any more. Then she thought of Brianna’s frantic phone call. “You don’t want Brianna and Kayleigh to see another scene like this one, or even worse, do you?”
    Holly gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head. Claire went over to kneel by her chair. “Tim and I will stay here tonight, but we have to leave in the morning. I’ll be crazy with worry, not knowing if you and the girls are safe.”
    “All right.” Holly’s voice was a mere thread of a whisper.
    Claire wanted to leap to her feet and pump her fist. Instead, she stretched up and touched her lips to Holly’s uninjured cheek. “Attagirl, sis. We’ll handle this together.”
    As Claire straightened, Holly reached out and gave her hand a quick squeeze, murmuring, “Thanks.”
    “I’ll talk to the police, if you’d like,” Tim said. “The chief