by Vella, Wendy
“I don’t do that, and I am not weird.” He looked as movable as the building they stood in.
“You do so do it and probably don’t even realize you are.”
“So what, now you’re all metropolitan suave, suddenly you can point out all my faults?” He was teasing her. “The big city traveler.”
“Ha ha. Now get out of my way; you’re too big for this office.”
“Do I disturb you, Maggs?”
“And there is that ego again.” Maggie dug her toes into her shoes to stop retreating as he stepped closer. “You annoy me.”
“Do you know what I think?”
“I don’t read minds, Fin. I mean, I’m good, but that is beyond even me.”
“That mouth of yours, it’s always got something smart coming out of it. Maybe I need to shut you up.” He grabbed her, hauling her close.
“Fin, no.”
“Here’s the thing.” He brushed his mouth over hers. “I’ve got the taste and feel for you now, Maggie, and the hell of it is, I want more.”
He plundered.
Hot and searing, it drove the breath from her lungs and flooded her body with heat in seconds. She couldn’t do anything but hold on, her hands grabbing his arm to steady herself.
“I think that answers my question.” Maggs was pleased to hear his words were unsteady as he lifted his head.
“What question?”
“The ‘do you know what I think’ question. I think you want me as much as I want you, Maggie Winter, and that scares you.”
“I’m not scared.” She stepped back.
“Truck’s here, Maggs!”
“Right there, Joe!” Fin called.
His eyes held hers as she stepped away from him and made herself walk by him. The hand he wrapped round her wrist held her close, so close he could lean in and touch his nose to hers.
“I will have the answers to my questions, Maggie, and maybe we can also address whatever the hell this is between us.”
“What questions? There is nothing between us.” Liar.
“There always was, but for some reason, since you’ve returned it’s magnified. Plus, I want to know what happened to frighten you.”
“You’re deluded.” Her heart gave a vicious kick at his words.
She tried to wrench her hand free, but he just pulled her closer and kissed her again. It was hard and fast and made her knees go weak. Maggie hoped they didn’t give way as she made herself walk outside—not run, which her instincts were screaming at her to do.
Joe stood with Jack and Luke. The three were variations of the same guy, differing in build and the odd facial feature. Maggs loved them. She’d grown up with them, and like her brothers, they were good guys.
“Where did you get all this from, Maggs?” Luke asked.
“England. Some of it’s for the gallery and some for home. Just things I purchased over the months I was there.”
“You don’t usually buy old stuff.” Joe grunted as he took a painting the delivery guy lowered into his arms and handed it to Fin as he arrived.
“I know, but I did some of that in London for the gallery I worked in, and I thought why not? It’s just another avenue, and sometimes buyers want older pieces. I have that other room just off the main gallery; I thought I’d set them up in there. I can take pictures and organize a catalogue.”
“Too much for you, bro. Step aside and let a real man show you how it’s done,” Jack said to Joe as he juggled a painting, making her heart stop.
“You show me a real man and I will.”
She’d missed this, the smack talk and fun. These were her people, Maggs thought, laughing as Joe lunged at his brother when he came back from delivering the painting in the gallery. Jack leapt out of his way.
They had the truck unloaded in a short time, and Maggs kept her distance from Fin. He disturbed her; he was right about that. There was also the fact that he’d twice seen her fall apart. He was suspicious and had every right to be. They all did.
Heading back into the gallery to lock up, she found Fin in there studying one of her paintings.
“I want this, Maggie.”
She looked at his face, saw the total focus he had on the painting. Maggie came across pieces occasionally that made her feel that way.
“Okay. I’ll charge you double, though.”
“Such a hardass businesswoman.” He threw her a smile before looking back at the painting.
She locked up, and they were soon standing with the others outside again.
“So we’ll see you later at the lodge, Maggs?” Joe looped an arm around her neck.
“I’m a bit tired, Joe. I might pass.”
“No, you won’t, because you haven’t had much time for us since you returned. Bailey and I will pick you up.” Joe had that look she knew well. He wasn’t taking no for an answer.
“I have too had time for you,” Maggs defended herself, even though the words were true. She’d been avoiding people. “And I’ll drive myself.”
“Fine. If you don’t arrive, I’m coming to get you.” Joe smiled; she bared her teeth.
“Did you know Mr. Goldhirsh is training for a race that will take him two days to complete?” Jack said. “The man makes me feel inadequate.”
“You sure that’s the only thing?” Fin jabbed him in the shoulder.
“Now we all know there are no complaints in that department, ranger boy, unlike you.”
“Are you guys still comparing sizes?” Maggie said. “Seriously, that has to get old one day, surely?”
“Never gets old, Maggs. It’s a rite of passage that lasts till death, I believe,” Fin said. “It’s written somewhere in a man manual.”
“Right, and it has all these things in it you have to adhere to,” Jack added.
“Like never ask for directions as it unmans you?” Maggs asked sweetly.
“Ha, good one,” Luke said. “Also don’t drink out of those little teacups that make you want to cross your legs and start knitting… oh wait, Jack does that already.”
“Fuck you, junior. The inability to see the mess on the floor and step over it. Rory says I excel in that area,” Jack added.
Maggs rolled her eyes.
“I know how to be a man, that’s the difference, little brother. You’ve still got your stabilizers on,” Jack said.
Luke gave a war cry and lunged at him, they then wrestled right there in the street. Deciding now was a good time to leave before Chief Blake arrived to break up the public disturbance, she climbed in her car and drove away. Her last view in the rearview mirror was of Fin standing, hands on hips, watching her.
Chapter Seventeen
“Nice work on playing hardball there, bud.”
Joe dragged his eyes from Maggs’s retreating car and looked at Fin, concern etched all over his face.
“Bailey and Pip are worried about her. They’ve been trying to talk to her, get her alone, but she’s avoiding them.”
“I know, we talked about it in A.S., remember?”
“Yeah.” Joe ran a hand over his head. “I’m worried too. She looks good, but you’re right about the sparkle, and it hasn’t returned like I thought it would. I just don’t know why.”
Fin battled with what he knew. Battled with the promise he’d made not to tell anyone about how she’d reacted in the bank and on the road.
Rarely did he keep secrets from Joe, and that burned inside him. Especially one as big as this.
“Let’s head to the stables and get a beer,” Jack said. He and Luke left, and Joe jumped in with Fin in his cruiser.
“How’s everything with your family?” Joe asked.
“Shit, and I don’t want to talk about it.”
“I don’t want to interfere, and this is your business to deal with, Fin, but I met them when I dropped some stuff at the lodge.”
“What stuff?”
“Stuff. I met them at reception.”
“I’ve already told Maggie to keep out of this, Joe. I’m te
lling you too.”
“And I respect that, really I do, but you’re my friend and I worry about you.”
“No need to worry about this or me.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No, and we’re never discussing this. Now, do you want to know about Maggs or not?”
“What? Since when do you keep stuff from me?”
“I had an ingrown hair this morning, right— “
“Okay, right, some things we don’t share.” Joe raised a hand. “And this family thing, you need to talk I’m your man.”
“I won’t.”
Fin drove slowly down the road and told Joe what he knew about Maggs. Starting with the bank robbery and her reaction.
“And you think it was way more than just a scared reaction?”
“I do. It struck me that what was happening was triggering a memory inside her.”
“Like PTSD?” Joe asked.
“Yeah. Same thing on the road when we heard that bomb from the military base.”
Joe whistled.
“There’s more.” He told Joe about the scar on her arm too.
“Christ, what the hell happened to her over there?” Joe looked grim now.
“I don’t know, but I think it’s likely it’s connected to what happened in that shooting.”
“The one she told Bailey she wasn’t hurt in, and all was good?”
“Yup.”
“Well, hell.”
“So watch her, okay? We both need to watch over her now,” Fin added.
“That’s a given, and I have to tell Bailey.”
“I knew you would.”
“It’s how we work, Fin.”
“Understand that, and Bailey can maybe get Maggs to talk.”
“If anyone can, it’s my wife. She just sits there staring at you silently until you break. It’s a skill, bud. She can get me to tell her anything.”
“That’s pathetic. Man the fuck up. Seriously, you should have that shit under control by now.”
Joe’s smile was slow but it filled his face.
“I don’t think I’ll ever have that under control. I wake every day wondering what I did right to have her come back into my life.”
“It’s a beautiful thing, what you two have,” Fin said. “You both deserve it after such a shit start in life.”
“Thanks, and yes, it is beautiful.”
“Do we hug or something now?”
“No, we’re good. So your folks—”
“Still not going there, Joe.”
“Come on, man, you’ve been through all kinds of hell with me. I just want to help you. You know that don’t you? This is not about them, it’s about you.”
“My dad’s an asshole.”
“This much I’ve heard before, and that your mom passed away when you were a teenager.”
“Why the sudden interest now?” Fin hunched his shoulders liked he always did when his family was mentioned. It was an itch between his shoulder blades he couldn’t quite reach.
“Not sudden at all, but now that my life is filled with love and harmony, I find I want the same for you.”
“That’s nauseating, and besides, I thought you said Ella did her business all over you and Bailey in the early hours of morning?”
“Well sure, but that’s just part of the deal.”
“Deal?”
“The parenting gig. You take the sweet with the sour.”
“Or shit, as the case may be.”
“The point here is, Fin—”
“So pleased there is a point,” Fin muttered.
“That you’re holding on to a crapload of angst from your past which is stopping you from moving forward. If you don’t want your family in your life that’s your deal, but if it’s messing with you maybe you need to talk to someone about it.”
Joe had hit the nail on the head, it was and always had, messed with him, but he wasn’t admitting anything. “Bailey came up with that.”
“I’m intuitive!”
Fin snorted.
“Oh look, we’re here,” Fin said parking the truck. “Sorry, bud, no time to continue on with this conversation.” Fin leaped out as soon as he parked the truck.
“This is not done.”
“So is,” he muttered, walking into the stables.
Chapter Eighteen
She’d thought about just not going. Avoiding the entire thing and staying home. But then someone would just come looking for her. So Maggs showered, dried her hair, and straightened it. Then rifled through her wardrobe for something that made her feel good. She’d just finished her makeup when a knock sounded on her door.
“Hurry it up, Tigger, it’s colder than a—”
“What the hell are you doing on my doorstep?” Maggie looked at Nash.
“Driving you to the lodge. I dropped into Phil’s after seeing Ted today, and Dylan and Piper were there and told me about tonight. Piper invited me, seeing as you didn’t.”
“Why would I invite you? You always say no and usually have to work or use that as an excuse. In fact, you’ve never socialized here in Ryker, and my friends hardly know you.”
“Maybe I’m making an effort, seeing as I’m moving into town.” He stepped inside. “You look nice.”
Maggs reached up and touched his forehead. It was cool. “You okay?”
“Of course, why wouldn’t I be?” He scowled at her.
“You just said I look nice. That’s not something you would normally say, so I wondered if you were coming down with something.”
“As amusing as this exchange of insults is, we need to go. So hurry up and grab your coat, hat, scarf, and gloves.”
“I’m not wearing a hat; it will mess my hair.”
“It’s cold out, Tigger.”
“You don’t have one on.”
“I’m tougher than you.”
“Since when?” Maggs took her overcoat out of the closet and shrugged into it, then wrapped a scarf around her neck.
“Since you came back with that scar on your arm and those shadows in your eyes and won’t tell me why.”
He looked big, imposing, but he didn’t scare her. Maggs had cut her teeth on battling with her brothers.
“I told you I’m okay. Stop fussing.”
“You’re just lucky the others aren’t as astute as me.”
“Or they know to leave me alone, as I’m all big and grown up now.”
He snorted but nudged her through the door and to his pickup. It was warm, as he’d left it running and the heater on.
“This place is impressive,” Nash said as he found a space in the Falls Lodge parking lot.
“Really nice. Ted had people come in and tell him what to do. He wanted it to look natural, and it does. Plus it brings in tourists, which is good for business.”
Nash grunted as they got out of the car.
There were lights set in the gardens, tall trees, and the stone-and-wood facade of the lodge. It all added up to look pretty special at night. A huge tree had been decorated with colored lights for Christmas
“What are you going to do with that land, Nash?”
“Live on it.”
“Presumably after you build a house?”
“There’s an idea.”
“But what else? It’s a chunk of land.”
“Not sure. I have a few ideas.”
“Be nice having my bro close,” Maggs mused. “I think.”
A large arm came out and snaked around her neck, and she was dragged into his side. He then dug his fingers into her ribs, and she giggled.
“You think?” He continued to torment her.
“Enough!” Maggs fought to get free, but he didn’t let her go until he was ready.
“You know it will be nice having me close.”
“Maybe, but I’m not cleaning or cooking for you. You have to learn self-sufficiency.”
“Have a heart.”
“I mean it, Nash. Mom won’t be there to pick up after you and have
a meal on the table every night.”
They walked past reception toward the bar.
“Yes, she will. I’ll eat there before I leave for the day.”
“You’re pathetic.”
“But handsome with it.” He followed her through the door. Music and the hum of voices greeted them.
“They’re over there by the windows,” Maggie said, finding her friends. And what a set of windows, she thought. The bar was an extension of the entire inside of the lodge with stone hearths and paneled walls. She saw the artwork Ted had sourced through her dotted around the place too. In here, part of the roof was glass so in the winter months guests could sit in the warmth and watch snow fall. And there were views outside on the decks that took your breath away.
They joined the others. The Trainers, Pip, Rory, Bailey, Dylan, they were all here. Plus Ted and Mandy, and of course Fin.
Dressed in tan chinos and a blue shirt, he looked good—more than, actually. She tried to move around the table to slot in beside someone else, but they nudged her back until she and Nash were between Fin and Ted.
“What will you have?” Ted asked. “I’ll get the first drinks.”
They all gave their orders to him.
“How will he remember all of them?” Piper asked when Ted didn’t write anything down.
“He never forgets anything.” Mandy sighed. “It’s really annoying.”
She looked good, Maggs thought. Happy, and it suited her. Confident too, which Mandy had never been. Life was a strange thing—it was like she and Mandy had switched places.
“I just noticed that sign.” Joe pointed to above the bar. “What the hell is that about, Teddy Bear?”
As one, they all turned, and there it was, a banner that said, A Dance From The Past.
Maggs looked back at Ted. He was uncomfortable, not a natural state for the powerhouse businessman.
“We’re trying a few themed nights. The guests and staff we’ve spoken to are excited,” Mandy said. “Ted’s not.”
“This is her idea,” Ted said.
“And you listened?” Jack whistled. “This place was the beacon of class and normality in this crazy town. You’ve just ruined it, bud.”