anxiety growing as she drove through the darkened streets. She passed
 
 through neighborhoods she’d never been in— not surprising since she’d
 
 just moved to Austin. They slowly changed, growing more affluent. The
 
 houses weren’t crazy or anything, but they were new. Every other hous
 
 e had
 
 one or two new cars in the driveway.
 
 Taylor’s heart started hammering strangely, the closer she got. Her GPS
 
 informed her that she was just a few streets away. Her hands grew damp
 
 against the wheel. When she pulled up, she shut off her car and quickly
 
 glanced in the rear-view mirror. She hadn’t cleaned up after a long day of
 
 work on the fencing. Her face was smudged with dirt. Her hair was frizzy at
 
 the roots. She wanted to check her shirt for stale sweat smell, but she
 
 thought that actually sniffing it would be going too far. She was just there to
 
 pick up Chloe. What did it matter what she looked or smelled like?
 
 Christina answered the door before Taylor knocked. She looked great;
 
 casual and beautiful. Her hair was loose and still held some of the curl from
 
 the day. Beachy. That’s what it looked like. Christina’s mustard yellow
 
 cardigan matched her skin tone, and her rolled up skinny jeans ended in
 
 bare feet. She was undoubtedly the most beautiful being that Taylor had
 
 ever seen.
 
 “Chloe’s asleep,” Christina whispered. “Come in. You must be starving.
 
 I have some leftovers from dinner. I can heat them up.”
 
 “Actually, I treated Joseph to a hamburger. Adriana said it was fine to
 
 take him for something to eat while we waited for her.”
 
 “Do you want a drink then? You’ve had a long day. It’s late. At least
 
 stay for a couple minutes. Chloe is dead asleep. She conked out a few hour
 
 ago. Man, she sleeps like a stone. I had to move her from the couch into my
 
 bed and she didn’t even stir.”
 
 That was Chloe alright. The girl could literally sleep through just about
 
 anything. Taylor had been so careful about finding a decent apartment in a