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“It’s…tax forms? And the deed to a house?”
“Look at the address.”
I did, and then gasped. It was the deed to the house where I grew up, as well as a pro-rated receipt for the next ten years’ worth of property tax. The deed had been placed in my name.
"Look, I know that there are probably a few bad memories in that house--"
"A lot of good ones, too," I said. So many good memories.
Connor nodded. "I've been to see it. The woman who sold it to me said the gardens were her favorite part. She kept them the same, just as your mother left them."
"Connor...I don't know what to say."
"Don't say anything yet." His throat bobbed as he swallowed. "I have one more thing for you." He handed me the second packet, and the world dropped out from under my feet.
Divorce papers. Signed by Connor and witnessed by Tommy and Sloane.
Suddenly, I felt like I couldn’t breathe. Connor saw the look on my face, and his eyes went wide.
“No. Shit--you don’t understand.” He gripped my arms. “Please, Cass, calm down. Bloody hell, I’m fucking this all up.”
Now I was really confused. Connor took an unsteady breath, gathering himself. “I love you, Cass. You…you have my heart. You have all of me. For the first time in my life, I feel like I'm doing something right, like I’ve found something I’ve been looking for all along. I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with you, to share everything with you, and to make you happy.”
He stared at me desperately, but I could read the pain in his eyes.
“But…”
His face tightened. “But I don’t want you to be forced to stay. I can’t do that to you. I won’t. I’m setting you free, Cass. I will protect you until this thing with Moretti is over, but after that…”
Connor was trying valiantly to hold it all together, but it was a losing battle. “If you want to live apart, I understand. That's what the house is for. If you want to leave Boston, start a new life somewhere else, then sell it. And if...if you want to leave me after, you can. It's your choice, either way. I just want you to be happy."
He closed my hand over the papers, and the look on his face broke my heart.
“All you have to do is sign.”
I was speechless as I stared at the papers. Connor had just handed me my freedom—from him, from the mob, from all of it, and I could only imagine how much it hurt him to do that. He wanted it to be my choice, something I hadn’t been offered once since I walked down that aisle all those weeks ago.
Connor had given me back my childhood, my connection with my mother, and a way out if I chose too, but I didn’t need a minute to think it over. Right then, right there, I knew in my heart what my choice was.
Carefully placing the shelter’s paperwork on the coffee table, I took the divorce papers in hand and tore them in two.
“I choose you, Connor. Today, tomorrow, and always. I love you.”
Connor exhaled, his throat working. “Say it again.”
“I love you, Connor.”
His outline blurred a little as I gave him a watery smile. I tossed the torn papers onto the floor and climbed into his lap, kissing him long and deep as I put weight behind my words. “I love you."
Then his arms were around me, and the force of his passion was enough to leave me dizzy.
“I love—god, I love you so much, Cass.”
Connor kissed me like I was the air he needed to breathe, and I felt my toes curl and an old, familiar ache flare between my legs. My hands snaked beneath his shirt, grazing against soft skin and taut muscle, and his breath hitched.
“I need you. Now. I want you, Connor. Please.”
Our mouths met hard, lips crushing together. Connor growled and stood, gripping me by the thighs and carrying me into the bedroom without breaking the kiss.
