by Amy Reece
“That’s bullshit! You saved Mel’s and Finn’s lives,” Hugh hissed, trying not to wake Mel. “And you’re welcome.”
Chris flashed a tired smile at him. “It’s okay, Hugh. They have to do it. I’ll be back to work soon enough. A few days off will be good for me.”
“How’s Lena?” Finn asked.
“Still in surgery.”
They fell silent, exhausted emotionally and physically by the events of the night. Finally, Hugh heaved himself out of his chair. “You got anything stronger than tea? I could sure use a drink.”
“There’s a bottle of scotch in the pantry.”
Hugh disappeared, returning moments later with the half-empty bottle and three glasses. He poured two fingers for each of them and handed the glasses around. “Sláinte.” He offered the toast as he raised his glass.
Finn simply grunted and drank deeply. God, what a night. Mel stirred and woke, yawning widely. He offered her his glass, kissing her hair while she took a small sip.
She sipped cautiously and coughed as she swallowed the strong liquor. “How’s your ankle?” Her voice was rough with sleep and the whiskey.
“Sore. I’ll have to have it checked tomorrow. If that crazy bitch puts me back on crutches, I’m gonna be pissed.” The others chuckled softly and it lightened the heavy mood, as he’d intended. They’d already worn themselves out discussing what had happened in Lena’s house.
“How did you and Hugh know where we were?” Mel asked Chris.
“Your neighbor, Mr. Taylor. He was waiting for us. He watched you go into Lena’s house and didn’t like the looks of it. He didn’t see the gun, but he thought it looked ‘damned strange’—his words, not mine.”
“Thank God for him. That’s twice he’s saved our lives,” Finn said.
“I should bake him some cookies or something.” Mel frowned. “Cookies seem like a pretty poor exchange for saving our lives. Maybe I’ll make brownies.”
They all laughed. “What time is it, anyway?” Finn asked.
Hugh checked his watch. “Nearly five. You gonna call Mom and Dad?”
Finn sighed. “Yeah, but I’ll wait a half hour and let them sleep a little longer. I don’t want them to see it on the morning news before they hear it from me, though. Shit. Mom’s going to fuss.”
“Oh, yeah,” Hugh agreed and sipped his whiskey.
***
‘Fuss’ was a mild word for how Moira DeLuca reacted to the news of her second son’s nighttime adventures. She arrived 4.6 minutes after Finn pressed ‘end’ on his cell phone. The trip from their house to Finn’s normally took at least seven minutes. She examined his ankle and head carefully, then refilled the ice pack and wrapped it around his foot with a towel. Then she tried to nag him into going to the emergency room until he told her the paramedics had checked him out and declared he did not need stitches. Still muttering to herself about the incompetence of said paramedics and the intractability of her children, Finn in particular, she swept into the kitchen and prepared a breakfast feast for all, including the officers still investigating across the street. The rest of the family turned up within the hour.
Big Tony pulled his son into a giant bear hug and Finn had to swallow against the sudden swelling in his throat. “It’s okay, Dad. I’m fine.”
“This was a hell of a thing to wake up to, son. I need a minute.” He kept hold of Finn for another full minute, then turned to Mel and held his arms open. “We’re a hugging family, so just get used to it.”
Cara and Izzy were horrified Mel had had to go through everything alone, and griped at her for a full ten minutes about not letting them know what was really going on.
“All you asked was if I knew where Finn was,” Cara moaned. “I thought you were fighting! If I’d had an inkling he was in danger I would have come over.”
“Mel.” Izzy took a somewhat gentler tack. “We’re your friends. Let us help once in a while, okay? That’s what we’re here for.”
“What did you think we were fighting about?” Finn asked his sisters.
“Oh, you know, because she stayed out late with us instead of running home to be with you. We told her it was ridiculous, but then you weren’t home…” Cara tried to explain between bites of bacon.
“Mel, you thought I was mad at you for staying out late?” He raised his eyebrows at her, not able to believe she’d thought him capable of something so shitty.
“Well, I didn’t know. I didn’t think you would be mad at me for something like that, but I couldn’t get hold of you. You didn’t answer my texts or calls.” She didn’t seem able to meet his gaze.
“For God’s sake,” he muttered, then turned his body to be able to look her straight in the eye. “Mel, you can stay out as late as you want. You are an adult, and it’s not up to me to get mad at you for something like that. You let me know where you were so I wouldn’t worry, and that’s enough. I wasn’t mad. I couldn’t reach my cell phone.”
“I know that now. At the time I was freaking out, however, and was not quite as rational as I usually am.” She sniffed and sat up, seeming embarrassed. “I know you weren’t mad,” she finished softly.
He flashed her a crooked smile and tilted her chin up. Then he kissed her, long and hard, in front of his entire family. He was simply too tired to care. “I love you,” he murmured against her lips as his youngest brother whooped in appreciation.
Mel and Finn both had to go through their stories again—both for the family and the police—then Moira insisted everyone leave them alone so they could get a few hours of sleep. He stood and held out his hand for Mel. He noticed Chris slinking out as he and Mel were ushered from the living room to their bedroom.
As they walked down the hallway, she stopped in front of the guest bedroom. “I can sleep in here.”
“Why?” He was dumbfounded.
“You know, with your parents here—”
He tugged on her hand. “Don’t be ridiculous. They all know we’re sleeping together and no one is shocked or horrified. Come on.” He pulled her into their bedroom and closed the door softly. He stripped down to his boxers and crawled into bed.
Mel stripped down to her bra and panties and crawled in beside him. “Finn?” Mel whispered from her pillow. “Is it over?”
“Yeah, sweetheart. It is.” He pulled her close and spooned against her back. “Go to sleep. We’ll talk about it when we wake up.”
***
The house was silent when Finn next opened his eyes. Please let them be gone. He loved his family, but needed some quiet time with Mel to begin to process what had happened. She had been characteristically quiet since it had ended, but he knew she would need to talk about it soon. He slid from the bed as stealthily as possible, hoping to let her sleep a little longer. He limped to the kitchen, glad his ankle didn’t seem to feel any worse than usual. Maybe he could avoid a trip to the doctor, after all. He was about to pour his first cup of coffee when he felt warm arms snake around his waist from behind. He turned to embrace her fully.
“Mel.” He breathed in her essence, grateful beyond belief he could stand here in his kitchen and hold her. He had things he needed to say, but first he simply needed to hold her. He bent his head and laid his lips on hers, kissing her deeply, but without the urgency of passion. This kiss was about so much more than desire. This kiss was about love and commitment. And apology. “Mel, I’m sorry.”
“For what?” She reached a small hand up and cupped his cheek, brushing her thumb across his scratchy whiskers.
“It was all my fault. Lena was stalking me, trying to kill me. She never would have known about you if you hadn’t become involved with me.”
“Finn, it doesn’t matter.”
“It does matter, Mel! It matters a whole hell of a lot! You were nearly killed because of me. I can’t forget that!”
“So what are you saying?” She dropped her hand and backed away.
“I’m saying I’m not a safe person. I’m a cop and I deal with some rea
lly bad people. I’ll always be connected with people like that. You got involved in all this because of me.” He had to make her understand why she should find someone safer.
“Finn, don’t be ridiculous. When you thought I was the one being stalked, you didn’t hesitate to put yourself in harm’s way. That’s what you do when you love someone.”
“Mel, I do that for living. It was my choice. You would be better—”
“Do you love me, Finn?” She grabbed his face between her palms.
“Yes, of course, but—”
She smiled and reached up to kiss him. “There’s no ‘but’ about it. It was my choice as well. I don’t regret anything about what I chose to do last night, except forgetting to chamber a round in your gun.”
He sighed and rested his forehead against hers. “Don’t say that, Mel. Shooting a person isn’t something I ever want you to have to do.”
“Me neither, but I would choose to do it again in a heartbeat if it meant I could save you. Finn, we got through this together. It’s over and now we can make our own choices—together.”
It wasn’t over, not by a long shot if Lena lived, but Mel didn’t need to know that right now. The important thing was they were standing here together and she wasn’t running away. He hadn’t really thought she would, but he had to give her the chance. “Mel, I’m so proud of you. I haven’t had a chance to tell you yet. You were amazing last night. I was terrified when you walked into that bedroom—I lost about ten years off my life.” He would never forget the sight of her leveling his gun at Lena as long as he lived.
“Well, I really didn’t think about what I was doing. I was going on pure instinct.”
He felt her shiver as she remembered. “Hey, let’s talk about something else, like our living arrangements. I know you’ve been feeling like we were forced into living together.”
“I have. I love living with you, Finn, but it happened so fast and for the wrong reasons. I’d feel a lot better if I knew we had both chosen it without any outside pressures.”
He tucked her head under his chin. “I get that, but I know what I want. I need to know if you want it too.”
“Are you asking me to move in with you?” She leaned back to look into his face, her smile sweet and hopeful.
“No.” He couldn’t resist teasing her a bit. “I’m asking you to marry me, Mel.”
Epilogue
Finn
“Finn? Where are you?” She slammed the door and stomped to the kitchen, where he stood at the stove, stirring marinara in a large pot.
“Hey.” He greeted her hesitantly, hearing the anger in her voice. “What’s up?”
“It’s your family! I love them, but I’m going to kill them.” She retrieved a soda from the fridge and threw herself into one of the kitchen chairs, looking tired and cranky.
“I’m guessing the wedding planning didn’t go well.” She’d been out with his mother and sisters all day looking at wedding venues. They’d been able to talk of nothing else since he and Mel had announced their engagement the week before. He put the lid on his pasta sauce, turned the heat down to simmer, and sat across from her. “Tell me.”
She blew out a huge breath. “We drove all over town looking at venues. I’m exhausted.”
“Did you like any of the places my mom dragged you to see?”
She shrugged and toyed with her soda can. “Casa Rondeña was nice, but…” She referred to a lovely winery in Albuquerque’s north valley.
“But?”
She pushed her can away and stood. “It’s beautiful. So was the Balloon Museum. But it’s all super expensive and fussy and you have to reserve months in advance. It’s not what I want, Finn.” Her voice was bordering on whiny. He knew the stress was starting to pile up for her—the wedding, the news that Lena would live and thus require a lengthy trial, the construction on her house. It was enough to drive anyone crazy. He stood and went to the cabinet for a couple wine glasses, then poured them each a glass of merlot. “Here. That soda’s not going to cut it today. Now let’s sit down and you can tell me what you do want for our wedding.”
“Really?”
“Mel.” He covered her hand with his own as she returned to her seat. “It’s our wedding, not theirs. I love them too, but they don’t get to make the decisions. Now tell me about your dream wedding, sweetheart. If it’s within my power, I’ll make it happen.”
She smiled radiantly. “I don’t know, actually. I’ve never really thought about it much. But I’m beginning to get an idea of what I don’t want.”
“I thought all little girls had their future weddings planned from the time they were, like eight.”
“Not all of them, apparently.” She took a sip of the wine. “All those venues were for big weddings. And I don’t want to wait months. I was hoping we could get married early in the fall.”
“So you want a small wedding in about two months? Hmmm, sounds like we better elope to Vegas.”
She laughed and stood. “That sounds amazing.” She sat on his lap and looped her arms around his neck. “But we can’t do that to your family.”
“I thought you wanted to kill them? What happened to that? I liked the sound of it.” He brushed her hair behind her ear.
She leaned against him and smiled. “Maybe I’ll hold off for a while. Is there any way we can have a small wedding here in Albuquerque, Finn?”
“Of course there is.” He pulled his cell phone from his back pocket and opened the calendar app. “How does…Saturday, October third sound? My parents’ backyard?”
“Really? Can we do that?”
He chuckled and punched another button on his phone. “Mom? Yeah, listen. Mel and I are getting married on October third. I know, but we want to have the ceremony in your backyard. That’s right. No, we don’t want a big wedding. Yes, it’s what Mel wants. She’s right here if you don’t believe me. Can you call Father Ortega and set it up? No more than twenty-five people in addition to our family, okay? Thanks, Mom. I love you too.” He returned his phone to his back pocket. “Done. Anything else?”
She threw her arms around his neck and peppered his face with kisses. “You’re amazing, Finn! It’s perfect!”
“Amazing, huh? I would have settled for wonderful.” He kissed her and pulled away, an innocent expression on his face. “Hey, I just thought of something. You’re going to have lots of free time now that you don’t have to plan a big wedding. I can think of a couple things to keep you busy.” He slid his hand under her shirt as he spoke, making his intention abundantly clear.
“Mmm.” She arched into his hand. “What about your sauce?”
“It’ll wait.”
The End
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Acknowledgments
Writing novels is the ultimate dream for a true introvert like me, but low and behold: it doesn’t happen without talking to people! Turns out I don’t know everything. Huh.
Extra special thanks to Agent Wayne Harvey of the New Mexico State Police, who allowed me to interview him and pepper him with annoying emails about endless procedural questions. Any errors are, of course, my own.
Thanks also to Joshua Kragness, whose description of how it feels to have a badly broken ankle was enormously helpful!
Thanks to my brother-in-law, Linn Reece, for sharing the story of the visiting cat, which was the spark for this entire series. Thanks to Andrea for not dusting your windowsill so I could see the kitty-cat paw prints and add them to my story. LOL and I hope you’re not mad I added this!
I couldn’t do this without the time and at
tention from my incredible editor, Toni Rakestraw, and the entire Limitless Publishing team. You guys ROCK!
As always, thanks to my husband who believes in me. Thanks also to my girls, my mom, and my bestie, Carol, for listening to my near-constant prattle about my writing. You are incredibly patient.
About the Author
Amy Reece lives in New Mexico with her incredible husband and two ridiculous mutts, Greta and Sodapop. When she’s not writing, she’s teaching high school English and social studies or maybe wandering through a thrift store in search of the next lucky teapot for her vast collection. She is an unrepentant bookaholic and has overflowing bookshelves in nearly every room of her house. Her favorite authors include J.R.R. Tolkien, J.K. Rowling, and C.S. Lewis–must have something to do with initials! She loves to travel and is hoping to need many research trips for future writing projects.
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Stay tuned for Hugh and Chrissy’s story, Safe Guard, coming September 2017 from Limitless Publishing.
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