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“I’m sorry.” He finally told her, when it seemed neither of them would speak. “Please, tell me you’ll be able to forgive me. I killed Jay, so I could be free to spend my life with you. I’d still do it again to save you, but it would be so much better, if you’d agree to love me again.”
A sound somewhere between a wet bark and a cough, escaped her throat. “Again? I’ve loved you my whole life, Finn James. I’ve tried so desperately to stop.”
“Love like this doesn’t die, Gretch. You’re my soul.” He’d told her that once before, the night after her attack, the night he’d finally confessed his love for her.
“And you’re mine.” She finally allowed herself to touch him, to step into his embrace and press her face into his neck. As she breathed him in, the scent of sawdust and sweat filled her senses.
He circled her in his arms and held her close, so close her ribs ached. She didn’t complain. She would take this pain again and again. This pain meant Finn was back, that his arms would never leave her.
~ ~ ~
Finn buried his nose in Gretchen’s hair, inhaling and pulling the smell of warm sunshine into him. His eyes drifted closed and for the first time in almost a year, he took an easy breath. They still had a long road ahead of them. He had maybe another year before he’d truly be free. If the feds had their way, he’d be on their payroll when that year ended. That would depend on Gretchen and what she wanted from him.
“What are you doing here?” he asked her. “Does Carpenter know?”
Blond curls tangled with his beard as she shook her head. “No one knows.” She pulled away and scrubbed at her face with trembling hands.
Finn ground his teeth together until his jaw ached. Grant had told him Gretchen was having a hard time with his “death”. The other man hadn’t been completely honest. Studying her as she stalked across the room, he could see that she’d lost weight she couldn’t afford to lose. When she turned back to him, her once emerald eyes now more closely resembled faded sea glass. He’d still never seen anything more beautiful, but she’d changed.
He hadn’t fared much better. At least he’d known she was alive though. He’d been able to hope they’d be together again when the trials ended. She hadn’t had any such reassurances. And he’d known she’d loved him, maybe he should’ve done a better job to make sure she knew that before he “died.”
“What happens now?” She stood on the other side of the room, hugging herself.
His arms itched to be around her, to pull her close and feel her skin on his. He owed her answers though.
“I’m helping the feds with their cases against Raymond and Ronnie. I have to stay hidden until we know they’re away for good and we’re sure everyone believes Jay’s dead.”
She nodded.
“I owe them at least another year.”
Her eyes narrowed, and he lifted a shoulder.
“I may have broken a few laws over the years.”
A laugh burst from her mouth. Her eyes went wide and she clapped a hand over her mouth as if trying to contain it. As for him, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d heard such a sweet sound.
“I’m sorry.” She continued to laugh, wiping at her eyes. “It’s not funny, it’s just. A few?”
She’d no doubt read all the court documents by now. She’d know that while he hadn’t known about Raymond Carlisle’s more vile dealing, he’d participated enough in the minor ones.
He shrugged. “So, you see why I haven’t exactly been free to do as I please.”
The laughter died in her throat, and she took a shuddering breath before she nodded. “Will you ever be free?”
“Are any of us?”
She thought she was free, but she’d been manipulated as much as he had. Carpenter and the feds had maneuvered her right into Finn’s path to force his hand.
“Eventually,” he answered her as she stared at him.
“And then what will you do?”
Now he took a deep breath. “Well, for starters I need to build at least two new bedrooms on to this place.”
Her dull green eyes sparkled with unshed tears.
“I missed working with my hands. So, I thought I might stay at home and take care of the kids and build furniture. Probably wouldn’t be the worst life.”
