by Janie Crouch
“This happened at her school job?”
“No, not at her tutoring job. Charlie’s other job.”
“Other job?” Mrs. Devereux’s lips pushed together into a thin line. “I knew it. I knew she’d been working somewhere else besides just teaching. Where?”
Shit. He wasn’t trying to blow the whistle on Charlie. But damn it, if she was working this hard to help provide for her parents they probably deserved to know that.
“Mrs. Devereux, I think we should wait until Charlie wakes up and talk about it then.”
“Ha!” she scoffed. “Have you met my daughter? Do you honestly think she’s going to give up information to me without some sort of knockdown, drag-out fight?”
No, he didn’t. He just didn’t want to be in the middle when it happened.
But then all the energy seemed to drain out of the woman. She watched him with the same blue eyes he saw every time he looked at Charlie. “It’s not fair for me to be upset about her having another job. I haven’t asked. I knew she was working hard, but I deliberately haven’t asked. Every month the medical bills get paid for Milton and that has been what’s most important.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “But I look at her now, beyond the bruises, and I see how wrong I’ve been to just live with my head in the sand. I see how tired she is. How thin.”
Three weeks ago, she’d been worse, but Finn wasn’t about to mention that. Charlie had been wrong not to let her mom know how desperate things had gotten.
“She has a second job as a bartender.” He didn’t mention The Silver Palace specifically in case Mrs. Devereux was familiar with the place. Because although he wanted some of the burden off Charlie’s shoulders, he wasn’t stupid.
“The care for Milton is expensive. It was necessary for him to be at that facility when he was part of the experimental drug trial eight years ago. But now he doesn’t need to be anymore. There’s nothing they’re doing for him there that we can’t do ourselves with just a little bit of help. He and I talked during his lucid times about moving back to Oak Creek, to be closer to Charlie. And because this has always been where we considered home.” She sighed tiredly. “Milton was always the one to make decisions in the family and I was happy to let him. But I think because of my unwillingness to make decisions, Charlie has paid the price. Literally.”
“She loves you,” he responded, because it was nothing less than the truth. “She wanted to provide for your needs the way you always did for hers. You raised her to be that way and it’s commendable.”
But commendable or not, he had no intention of letting Charlie continue to shoulder all this.
Mrs. Devereux sighed. “I’d like to move into her condo, but I know it’s not big enough for the three of us.”
Oh shit. Again. “Um, actually, there was a fire a couple of weeks ago and it burned down.”
She looked at him in shock. “What?”
“Charlie moved out a few months ago, so it didn’t really involve her.” Except for the whole somebody trying to kill her part, which was probably better left out of the story. “She’s living with a roommate now on the east side of town.”
He’d rather cut off his tongue than mention her being homeless for nearly eighteen months.
They sat in silence for long minutes while Mrs. Devereux processed it all, both staring at Charlie.
“It’s difficult to see her so still, isn’t it?” she asked.
“Almost impossible.”
Mrs. Devereux was holding Charlie’s hand, so Finn reached over to rest his fingers on her ankle over the blanket. Just touching her made him feel better. The movement did not go unnoticed by Charlie’s mother.
“How about you two? Considering she didn’t tell me she was working two jobs, or that her condo burned down, I assume she wouldn’t tell me if you two were dating.”
“I’m not sure that what we’re doing could be called dating, but I can promise you my intent toward your daughter is serious and long-term.” The longest of terms.
He prepared himself for an argument, but it didn’t come. “Good. It was obvious to everyone you two were meant for each other, ever since you were teenagers.”
Finn couldn’t keep the shock out of his tone. “I thought you hated me.”
“Why would you think that?”
“Honestly, I thought it started when I gave her the nickname. Then it just grew when you guys decided I couldn’t provide for her the way Kempsley could.”
Mrs. Devereux shook her head slowly. “Well, first off, I think we both know she’s always been closer to a Charlie than she ever was a Charlotte. I definitely never hated you for the name.” She stroked her daughter’s hand. “You were always the eye of her storm, Finn, not Brandon. Never Brandon. Do you know why she married him?”
He shrugged. “Honestly, it doesn’t matter. I plan to marry her now. As soon as I can talk her into it.”
That had been the big talk he’d had with Ethan. They were a team now. Finn couldn’t make these sorts of decisions without input from his son. He explained that he loved Charlie and if Ethan didn’t mind, Finn wanted to marry her. For them to be a family.
Ethan had agreed.
Then his son had proceeded to explain to Finn that he loved Jess and planned to marry her. That he would take care of Jess because she didn’t have a dad and babies needed a dad to protect them, like Finn had come and protected Ethan. Since Jess didn’t have a man around to protect her, Ethan was willing to fill in.
So evidently both he and his son were basically engaged to females who didn’t know it.
Could be worse. And it also explained Ethan’s desire to hang around the younger child so much. Because he wanted to protect her.
Could be a lot damn worse.
Tears filled Mrs. Devereux’s eyes. “It should’ve been you. It should’ve always been you. And while I truly appreciate that you’ve gotten past it no matter what, I want you to know that she married Brandon because he offered to get Milton into the experimental drug trial for his prion disease. Milton would’ve been dead years ago if it hadn’t been for that. Just another time when I let Charlotte carry the load rather than telling her to do what was best for her.”
Finn waited for the relief to come at Mrs. Devereux’s words. Relief that there had been a legitimate reason for Charlie to marry Kempsley rather than him.
It didn’t come.
And that’s when he knew he had truly forgiven her. Because it honestly didn’t matter to him why she’d done it. All that did was that they were going to be together going forward. Charlie. Finn. Ethan. And all the other babies he could talk her into having.
“Thank you for telling me. She probably never would’ve.”
Mrs. Devereux grabbed his hand with the one not holding Charlie’s. “She needs someone strong like you. A boulder who won’t get blown around by her winds.”
He would be what Charlie needed. And the first thing on her mind when she woke up would be the job and revenue she had lost.
Mrs. Devereux sighed and looked back at her daughter. “Charlie tries to shoulder too much. I can’t continue to let her be a little dictator.”
He had the perfect solution. “In that case, as soon as we can get someone here to sit with Charlie, I was wondering if I could invite you to my house to plan our own coup d’état.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
In movies, the hero gets the shit beat out of him, then a few hours later, he pops up and is back at it—jumping through buildings, saving all the kittens, sprinting across rooftops with a smile and a wink.
Charlie could attest, that was not realistic at all.
She wouldn’t be doing any of that—not even the winking part—for a long time.
Waking up was slow. Slow and painful. And no matter how much she wanted to, she couldn’t seem to keep her eyes open very long.
But every time she did, Finn was there.
There was a rotation of people with him—Mama, Aiden, Jordan, Zac, and Annie, others—but always F
inn.
She wanted to talk to him, to ask a million questions, but her voice didn’t seem to work, and she couldn’t quite remember them anyway. So, when he reached over, kissed her forehead and whispered, “Trust me,” she did.
She was content to just lie in bed and look at him. His big body sitting in the chair beside her while he held her hand. His smile as he talked to people coming in and out of the room.
His green eyes as he took care of her every need, from a sip of water to shifting her weight on the bed.
For two days that was enough. To just lie and be and heal.
By the end of the third day awake, she was feeling much better . . .and much worse. Her body, despite how crappy every single part of her felt at this moment, was going to recover. But she had responsibilities. Bills. Lying around in the hospital for any longer than absolutely necessary was not an option.
“I have to get out of here,” she said to Finn.
She expected an argument, but he just grinned, then leaned over and kissed her. “There you are.”
She kissed him back—as much as her damaged lips would allow—but didn’t relent. “Finn, I can’t stay here. You know the situation with my dad. I need to get back to work. Really, I’m feeling better.”
He sat back down and grasped her hand in both of his. “I’m glad you’re healing, and you’re right, you won’t need to be here for very much longer. But you can’t go back to work, at least not to the jobs you had. The Silver Palace burned down, remember? And until some of that bruising on your face heals, tutoring probably isn’t an option either.”
She closed her eyes, panic bubbling up inside her. He was right. But what was she going to do? Every day she didn’t work was a day less of income that she needed to survive. Plus, she was now going to have hospital bills to worry about.
“Princess, look at me.”
She didn’t want to. She wanted to be childish, keep her eyes closed and the world far away.
But when his fingers stroked her cheek, she couldn’t help but turn into his hand and do what he asked. She opened her eyes and found his face right next to hers, just like he’d been at the warehouse when he’d rescued her.
“You are the most amazing woman—hell, human being I’ve ever known. Standing up to Henry like you did, holding out under that sort of physical duress, takes an awe-inspiring power of will. Most people would’ve buckled long before you did. You’re a hero in every sense of the word.”
She gave him the tiniest of shrugs. She hadn’t felt like any sort of hero. She’d just felt agony.
“But you know what?” he continued. “I wasn’t the least bit surprised you were able to go toe to toe with Henry. Because every second since you walked back into my life has served to prove how strong you are. How faithful. How selfless.”
“Finn . . .”
“You, Charlotte Devereux, fight for the people you love.”
Even though she didn’t know where Finn was going with all this, what he said was true. She would always fight for the people she loved, no matter what it cost her. “Yes.”
He stroked her hair away from her face. “Will you fight for me, Charlie? For us?”
“Yes. Always, yes.” Whatever she had to do.
“One thing I learned in the Army was that sometimes to win a battle I had to lay down my weapons, even when it went against all my instincts to do so. I had to trust my team—the people fighting with me for the same goal—to have my back.”
Now she knew where he was going with this. “Finn, I love you, but I can’t allow you to pay my bills.”
He didn’t get mad, didn’t make an argument. Just reached over and kissed her gently again. “I’m not planning on doing that. You trusted me in that warehouse, Charlie, and I’m so glad you did. Will you again? Will you fight for us, this one time, by laying down your weapons and allowing your team to have your back?”
It wasn’t really trust if she didn’t have a choice, but she did have one. She could leave here, probably tomorrow, and find another job, part-time at first until she could handle more. She could make a deal with her father’s treatment center to pay a little late for the next few months. She could do it herself. Carry the burden herself.
But Finn was asking her to trust him. To fight for their love in a way that was unnatural for her. Difficult. But she loved him.
So, she would.
Six Weeks Later
“You’re a sneaky bastard, Finn Bollinger,” Charlie said, sitting out on his porch, sipping coffee. “Just in case I forget to tell you that every day, I want you to know.”
And by sneaky bastard she meant the most fabulous man in the entire world. They both knew it. He just grinned and winked.
His engagement ring was on her finger.
Her parents were living very happily in the back section of his huge house. They had their own bedroom, bathroom, living room, and kitchen—plenty of space, private, and free.
All she had to pay for now were any medicines her father needed that government insurance didn’t cover, and for the nurse that came in a few times a week to assist her mom. All in all, about one-tenth of what she’d needed to earn before. It made only having one job much more bearable.
She was still living at Jordan’s house and would be back and forth until her wedding to Finn six months from now. The service would be held in the same chapel where Finn had once argued she shouldn’t be marrying anyone but him.
He’d been right.
Maybe best of all was dinner last night with the whole crew: her, Finn, Ethan, Finn’s mom, Baby, Wavy, and Charlie’s parents. They’d all sat around the table, eating burgers the men, including her dad, had cooked out on the grill, when Ethan had very casually asked Charlie if he could call her Mom once she and Finn got married.
She had been too choked up to do anything but nod. Vehemently. The conversation had then launched into what Ethan should call her Mama and Dad. Finn’s mom was Grandma, so it was decided that Charlie’s parents would be Nana and Papa.
She had just sat at the table and stared.
This.
Everyone speaking all over each other, laughing and joking about Oak Creek gossip and upcoming events. Talking about school, work, and home. With every person she loved safe and here with her, this was what Charlie had always dreamed of having.
This was what she would fight for every single day for the rest of her life if she had to.
Last night after everyone had gone home and her parents and Ethan had gone to bed, she had spilled the last of her secrets to Finn. Mama had already told him how she’d married Brandon to get Dad into treatment, but she finally explained how the Kempsleys were blocking her from getting a full-time job in education.
They’d agreed they would fight it, figure out what had to be done, and stand shoulder to shoulder. Together.
Until then, she was more than happy to continue with her tutoring job. And as a private tutor for Ethan, of course. Her goal was to have him reading beyond grade level by the end of the school year.
She looked at Finn now, still smirking sexily at her as he sipped his coffee. Ethan was already at school and her parents had gone into town for breakfast.
Maybe it was time to get a head start on making some future kids she could tutor.
If she could stop Finn from treating her like she was precious and breakable. The precious part wasn’t so bad, but . . .
The shape she’d been in after Henry’s attack had scared the hell out of Finn. He’d admitted it. Even now she still had some residual problems: headaches and dizziness from her concussion, occasional numbness in one hand due to nerve damage from being tied to the chair.
She and Finn had made love a few times since she’d recovered. And, admittedly, that feat hadn’t been as easy as before, since there were so many people around all the time—parents, kids, friends.
But Finn had yet to really let himself lose control with her. It was just about time for that to happen. Finn needed to realize she wasn’t bre
akable.
No time like the present. They were alone, unsupervised. It was time to get into trouble. They’d always excelled at that.
She put her coffee cup on the table, then stood and walked until she was between his legs, leaning over him, resting her hands on the arms of his chair.
“I love you.” She reached up with one hand to trail her fingers down his cheek. “You know that, right?”
He raised an eyebrow as his hands gripped her gently on her hips. “I thought you just said I was a sneaky bastard.”
“Oh, that’s very definitely true. How else can you explain that I ended up engaged, with my parents living in your house, and currently planning all the future kids we’re going to have?”
That eyebrow rose even farther. She couldn’t help it; she leaned closer and kissed it. “You’re currently planning our future kids? As in, right at this moment?”
“I haven’t been on birth control since my stay in the hospital. So, I was hoping maybe we could start trying for a brother or sister for Ethan as soon as possible. As often as possible. As hard, fast, and dirty as possible.”
His fingers tightened on her hips. Yes. That’s what she wanted.
“Starting right now. Right here in this chair while no one’s home but the two of us.”
“You’re not going to get any argument from me.”
She smiled then reached down and grabbed the elastic waist of his sweatpants, yanking the material past his hips, just enough for his erection to spring free. She trailed her fingers up and down the length of him, smiling at his hiss. “Repeat after me, soldier: hard, fast, dirty.”
“Charlie . . .”
She kissed him. “I’m not breakable, Finn. I needed you all sweet and gentle for a while. But now I need you to remember my fire. My strength, not my weakness.”
She hiked up her skirt to her thighs, then stepped over his chair until she was straddling him. “Hard, fast, dirty. Got it?”
She began easing herself down on him. Now they were both hissing.