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‘Cards on the table then?’
‘Please.’
‘Finn… I like you. I more than like you. I have feelings for you that span decades. I have always wanted you. But I need to know that you want to be with me too.’
‘How many of those have you had?’ he asked, teasing her.
‘Cut it out!’ She tapped his hand. ‘Tell me the truth.’
‘Ellie, I adore you. I have always adored you and I want to be with you, but… I have to admit that I’m scared.’
‘Well can we be scared together then? I don’t want to waste any more time.’
He smiled as he took her drink from her hand and set it on the hay bale then he cupped her pretty face in his hands and held her gaze.
‘Ellie… I want to be with you.’
She slid her arms around his neck and he lowered his head and kissed her. The kiss was gentle at first but soon his desire rose and Ellie moaned against his mouth. He pulled back for a moment to meet her gaze. ‘I think we’re smudging our makeup.’
‘I don’t care, do you?’
‘Not at all.’
‘Shall we sneak off home? Before anyone sees us like this.’ Ellie giggled.
‘I think that’s a good plan.’
They quickly finished their drinks and Finn set the glasses on a nearby picnic table then he took her hand in his and they hurried to her cottage.
And for the first time in years, Finn had no doubts or fears at all about what he was about to do.
EPILOGUE – ELLIE
Two weeks had passed since the Halloween party and they had been the best two weeks of Ellie’s life. Finn had stayed with her every night since Halloween and they’d become incredibly close. The way he made her feel made her realise that her relationship with her ex had been a mere shadow of what she could have had. But that was fine because their marriage had produced two beautiful children and many happy memories, just not in later years, so she had no regrets.
As for what she’d found out about Iris, she was still coming to terms with it but talking to Finn and to Darcie helped. She’d never know who her biological father was but she’d had a dad who loved her and a mum too, and Iris had been everything she could be to Ellie and she knew that. Yes, she had some regrets about the situation and wished she could speak to them all about it, but life was like that; some questions would never be answered and it was about finding peace with that and accepting what you did know and did have. She had wondered if Iris had left the letters there, knowing that Ellie would probably find them one day, but again, she’d never know if that was true or if time had just got away with Iris and she’d never had the chance to throw them away. It could even have been a way of letting the universe take care of the situation because Iris had always wanted to tell Ellie but never felt she could do. All Ellie could do now was learn to accept that it was how it was and move on with her life.
She added some oregano to the pasta sauce she was simmering on the stove then checked the clock on the kitchen wall. Finn would be here soon and she was looking forward to an evening of snuggling on the sofa with him in front of a movie and the warm glow of the fire.
She heard his key in the door — she’d given him one because it made sense as she planned on asking him to move in permanently — and she went out into the hallway.
‘Hello!’ he said with a smile. ‘Can I ask you to go and sit on the sofa? I have a surprise for you.’
‘Oh… OK. Can I have a kiss first?’
‘Of course!’ He put down the box he was holding and dashed to her, planted a kiss on her lips then ushered her towards the lounge. ‘Have to be quick because your surprise won’t wait.’
‘Righty oh.’
In the lounge, Ellie sat on the sofa. Excitement fizzed in her belly. Whatever had Finn got her now?
He entered the lounge carrying the box, very carefully, she noted, and he set it on the coffee table.
‘OK,’ he said. ‘This is something you’ve wanted for a long time. I know this because you’ve told me often enough.’ He winked. ‘You kept on about a new toaster and…’ He laughed. ‘Joking!It’s far more special than that. Can you shuffle right back on the sofa and close your eyes?’
Ellie did as he asked and she waited quietly, heart thudding now because she wondered what he was going to put in her lap.
‘Here you go.’
