14. Soren

14

SOREN

T he relief I felt at the sight of Finley almost brought me to my knees. It was silly, since she'd only been locked up for five or six hours, but I'd imagined the worst. Although her mascara had smeared and her eyes were puffy and red, she seemed perfectly fine.

She ran to me and threw herself into my arms. I held her tightly, stroking her hair.

"Thank you so much," Finley said to Atticus once I'd let her go. "I'm mortified you had to post bail for me, but I'm very thankful."

"It's no problem. My pleasure." Atticus wore a baseball cap over his thick dark hair. "Not pleasure. You know what I mean."

"I do," Finley said.

"We're going to get you home now," I said. "And hope to God the detective pulls her head out and arrests the right sister."

The three of us walked out of the station. Finley got into my truck while I chatted briefly with my brothers before joining her.

Soon, we were home. Finley went up to shower. While she was upstairs, I opened a bottle of wine and turned on the fire. It was already ten, but neither of us seemed inclined toward sleep. Not after the trauma of the day.

Finley came down with damp hair, dressed in a pair of thick sweats and a sweatshirt. She snuggled close to me on the couch. "I'm sorry about all this. Thank you for having my back. Your family too. It's probably more than I deserve."

"More than you deserve? How could you possibly say that?" Would she be forever plagued with insecurity? The very thought made me angry.

"I don't know." Finley's voice wavered. I'd upset her with my overly harsh tone.

"Hey now, I'm sorry. The last thing I want to do is upset you."

"I know. But it's how I feel sometimes. I came here and my problems followed me and now you're all involved."

"I understand but believe me, none of this is your fault," I said.

"Being locked up today—it made me think about my family. I'd liked to have forgotten everything that happened before I came here, but it seems it's impossible to start over. Your problems follow you, regardless. Can I ever truly be rid of her? How many attempts to ruin my life will she make?"

"I wish I knew the answers. All I know is that you're family to us. This time, if it should come to a trial or whatever, you have us. Atticus already told me he'd hire the finest attorney he can find to represent you."

We'd had a brotherly meeting earlier to discuss our strategy. Thad had been beside himself with worry. He and Sammie loved Finley and wanted desperately to protect her from harm. "She would never do anything like this," Thad had said. "We've worked together for over a year. I know her."

"And I know her heart," Sammie had said. "She can't help but love her sister."

"It's her twin," I'd said. "But I'm pretty sure Danielle killed whatever goodwill still remained. Finley's done this time."

Now Finley took a large sip of her wine. "This is my official vow that I've let her go. Whatever happens to her cannot be my problem. I'm finally done."

"What can I do for you?" I asked Finley, taking her feet into my lap and massaging her arch with my thumb.

"This is all I could ask for." She closed her eyes, clearly enjoying the foot rub. "But let's go upstairs."

She didn't have to ask me twice.

The next morning, I woke late. Finley was already in the shower. I had no time for coffee or breakfast. My guys would be waiting for instruction, and the animals needed to be fed. I left Finley a note that I'd had to go and to text me if she needed anything today.

I got through my tasks quickly and was headed toward the restaurant for one of the fancy coffees with steamed milk when I saw Thad headed my direction. In the midst of the hubbub yesterday, none of my brothers had asked if my interest in Finley had become romantic. I'd been so wrapped up in her that I'd not spent much time with my family in the last few weeks. I could tell by his stride alone that Thad was on a mission to find out exactly what Finley and I had been up to.

He greeted me with a punch to the shoulder. "Hey, you want breakfast? I was just heading into the restaurant. Caspian has a new breakfast cook and wants feedback."

"Sure. I could use some grub and a coffee."

We didn't speak as we headed down the flagstone path toward the restaurant. The ranch was not full this week, with only half of our cabins rented. Come the holidays, we would be busy once again. Not to mention the festival.

I glanced at my watch, noting the date. The company installing the temporary ice rink was coming tomorrow. With all the excitement, I'd completely forgotten.

Once we were settled at a table in the corner of the dining room and had steaming cups of our excellent coffee in front of us, Thad tugged at the collar of his button-down shirt. "So, do you want to tell me what's going on with you and Finley?"

I stalled by unfolding the cloth napkin and putting it on my lap. There wasn't any reason to keep it a secret, yet there was a part of me that liked having it private. Growing up with four brothers, it had been and still was impossible to keep anything private. Once I confessed, everything would be out in the open. Mama would be planning a wedding before I knew what had hit me. I didn't want Finley to feel any pressure. She might not think of me as a long-term boyfriend or, gasp, husband.

What about me? What was I thinking?

I was in love with her. I had no doubts about how good we could be together. If only we could get rid of her sister. With that hanging over her head, Finley would not be able to give the relationship attention. How would I know if she felt the same?

"Okay, well, I can see on your face what's going on," Thad said, his eyes sympathetic. "When did this all happen?"

"It's only been a few weeks. We started spending a lot of time together—you know, as roommates. And I don't know, all of a sudden, I realized I had feelings for her."

"I knew it." Thad's expression temporarily changed from sympathy to triumph.

"You did?"

"I predicted this a while back." Thad shrugged, looking quite pleased with himself. "You're opposites, but somehow you fit together."

"Yeah, I think so too. I'm not sure what she's feeling. With everything that's happened the last day or so, I don't think she's spending too much time thinking about me or the future."

"But you are?"

It was hot in here. Caspian should really lower the heat. I felt suffocated. "I am, yes. She's the one for me. But…"

"But?"

"But I can't imagine she would choose me for the long term. I mean, look at her. She's pretty and sweet. Supersmart and funny. Plus, she loves Dog."

"Give her time. We'll get her through this mess with her sister, and then you can see where it all leads."

I nodded, picking up my mug and taking a sip from the bitter brew. For the next few minutes, we talked through the details of what we knew about the robbery and Finley's arrest. "I have a feeling they're going to realize the truth today," I said. "There were too many people who saw Danielle drunk out of her mind at the bar."

"All they need is a few of the patrons to remember what she was wearing," Thad said. "That should match what they see on the surveillance tapes."

"Agreed. It's the psychological damage that's more concerning. If you or one of our brothers did something like this—I'd be shattered."

"It's true. But we're all here for her now. Once Mama finds out, all hell's going to break loose down at the police station. I can already hear the tongue-lashing."

"Really? That will work to our advantage, I'm sure."

As if we'd conjured them, Mama and Pop entered through the front door of the restaurant and headed our way. They'd been gone for a week visiting friends in California. I hadn't called or texted them about any of the drama here at home, figuring it could wait until they returned.

We both stood to greet our mother with a kiss on the cheek and shake Pop's hand.

"We just heard about Finley," Mama said, taking a seat at the table.

"We're here to offer help," Pop said.

Mama and Pop wore identical worried expressions.

"Tell us what happened," Mama said.

I conveyed the details of the last few days. Mama and Pop listened without asking questions or making any comments until I'd finished.

"Atticus said he'd hire an attorney should it come to that," Thad said.

"Good," Mama said. "He'll find the best, I have no doubt."

"It's hard to believe her sister's doing the exact same thing again," Pop said. "Surely the police can see that pattern?"

"I have no doubt they will," Thad said. "But in the meantime, Finley spent a good number of hours in jail yesterday."

We were interrupted when a woman at a table by the window screamed. "There's a woman with a gun outside."

My stomach dropped.

I ran to the window. Sure enough, it was just what I feared. Danielle stood outside the office waving a gun.

"Call the police," I shouted to my brother. "It's Danielle."