“He better, Finn. Or you’ll answer to me.”
We both snickered at that empty threat. Finn towered over her by a foot and outweighed her by a good eighty pounds. I wrapped my arm around her waist, pulling her to my side and kissing her forehead. “Easy, Angel.”
But her faith in me made my chest ache with her sweetness. No one had shown me that kind of faith since my mom had died. And the way Finn referred to her as my girl—I liked that as well.
I stood. “Come on. I’m starving. I’ll buy us an early dinner, and we can celebrate, yeah?”
Amber appeared beside me. “Dinner is on the house, and it’ll be ready in ten minutes. Meanwhile, I think Maggie owes me a story. Finish your paperwork, Sebastian.” She linked arms with Maggie and dragged her away. I looked at them, shaking my head, then glanced back at Finn.
He grinned and shrugged. “Get used to it, man. Don’t fight it, because it does no good. Just enjoy the ride.”
I picked up the pen. Somehow, getting used to all this seemed…right. Easy—as if it was meant to be.
And so far, I was enjoying it.
CHAPTER NINE
SEBASTIAN
I stared at Maggie over my glass. She’d been telling me about her appointments and what had happened. “Your dad did what?”
“The house is paid for and is being transferred into my name. There was a small life insurance policy. It’s not huge, but it’s enough I can fix a few things up.” She sighed. “I guess he worked really hard to pay off the house.”
I wrapped my hand around hers. “He wanted to make sure you were taken care of if he wasn’t around.” I squeezed her fingers. “He sounds like a great man.”
Her eyes misted over. “He was. I wish I had seen him one last time. Been able to tell him to his face how much I loved him.”
“He knew, Maggie. I’m sure of it. You told me you talked to him a lot.”
She wiped under her eyes and nodded. “I did.” She straightened her shoulders. “And I told him every time we spoke.”
I smiled at her affectionately. “Good.”
“Mr. Jones told me the town is looking for someone to run the library.”
“What about going back to school?”
She sat back, sipping her soda. “I think-I think I want to put that off for a while.”
“Why?”
She was quiet for a moment.
I studied her. “I could help you fix up the house, you can sell it, and we can move closer to where you want to go to school, if that was what you wanted, Maggie. I don’t want you to give up your dream because I’ve become part of your life.”
She looked around and shook her head. “No, that’s not the reason. I want to stay here. When we arrived last night, it felt as if I was coming home finally. I missed this town and the people in it that I knew. It just felt…right.”
I drew in a deep breath. “Okay. But if you change your mind, I’d follow you anywhere you wanted.”
She smiled at me. “Sometimes your dreams can change, Sebastian. Evolve. I want to stay here with you and make a life. I can do courses online if I want.”
I winked at her. “So, I’ve become your dream, then?”
“I suppose.”
“I might be a bit more of a nightmare at times.”
She grinned. “I guess we’ll see.”
“I guess so.” I leaned forward, my voice low. “I understand, though. I have to tell you—walking around, being greeted by strangers, all the smiles and hellos—it was nice. I felt comfortable. It seemed oddly right. Like I belonged.”
“Yes!” She nodded eagerly. “You found a job. I’ll apply at the library. We have the house. It’s a great start. And we have each other.”
I nodded. “That’s the best part.”
She smiled sweetly. “It’s more than we had a couple of days ago.”
She was right.
“So we stay and build a life.”
“Together,” she hummed, looking happy.
“Together,” I repeated.
I liked the sound of that.
When we got back to the house, I wandered around, making a list of things that had to be done. I marked the items as I went in priority—the sagging porch and leaking ceiling were at the top of the list. They would have to wait until spring, though, since the ground was frozen, but I could at least go up on the roof and patch it for now. I was hoping that when we went for supper I could check out what tools Patrick and Eleanor had that I could borrow, so I wouldn’t have to buy so many. I’d give her a deal on the work she needed done, so I could do things around here for Maggie.
For us.
I glanced toward the kitchen, where Maggie was checking out the contents of the cupboards. A week ago, I thought I’d be in my father’s office, selling insurance and already hating life. I had no idea I’d be standing in a small living room, planning a new life with a pretty girl I found fascinating. I watched as she stood up on her toes, trying to reach something and not quite able to touch it. Twice, she tried to lift herself to the counter and failed. Her coordination was horrendous, and I was pretty sure it was a good thing she didn’t make it. Setting down my list, I hurried to the kitchen and stood behind her, easily reaching over her head, grabbing the box she’d been attempting to reach, and handing it to her. She smiled up at me in thanks, and I dropped a kiss to her forehead.