Page 34 of Making Home with You (The Rockport Beach #3)

Finn

I feel like my head is about to explode, like actually blow right open here on the sidewalk as a surge of anger consumes me.

“Fucking hell,” I mutter as I pull Sarah into my arms. “I’m so sorry,” I say, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

“Are you okay?” I ask, even though it’s a stupid question because I can literally feel her shaking in my arms. It’s taking every ounce of self-control I have not to march over to Carla’s house right now and sort this shit out once and for all.

“Come on, let’s get you inside,” I say, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and turning us toward the front door.

Inside, I don’t let go of Sarah, steering her to the bathroom where I immediately start a hot bath. As the tub fills, Sarah takes a deep breath, shaking her hands as she starts to calm down.

“Do you need a drink?” I ask.

She nods. “Yeah, thanks.”

I press a quick kiss to her forehead before walking back to the kitchen, grabbing a bottle of whiskey and two glasses and returning to the bathroom. Sarah’s sitting on the edge of the tub now, no longer shaking as she slips off her shoes.

“Thank you,” she says, offering a small smile as she takes the glass I hand her.

I pour us both a generous amount of liquid and we sip our drinks in silence while the water continues to run. When the tub is finally full, Sarah turns off the faucet, undresses and hops in.

“Join me?” she says, staring up at me.

It’s not exactly big enough for the both of us, but in this minute, I don’t care. Nodding once, I pull off my clothes, stepping out of the bathroom only to lock up my gun and cuffs, even though in this moment a part of me wonders if maybe it isn’t smarter to keep the gun with me.

Then I join Sarah in the tub, sitting opposite her before I pull her over and between my legs, her back resting against my chest.

“This is getting serious,” she eventually says, letting out a long breath as she sinks against me.

I push a hand through my hair, take a sip of whiskey. “Yeah,” I agree. “And I’m definitely going to report this latest incident.”

“Do you think you should?” she asks, leaning back so she can meet my stare.

I nod. “Abso-fucking-lutely,” I say. “This is harassment, Sarah, plain and simple. It’s one thing to come after me with her bullshit, but not you. Never you. I will not tolerate it and I sure as shit will not let her get away with it either.”

Sarah smiles at me as she reaches up and brushes my cheek with her hand.

“What?” I ask, confused.

“You’re so sweet to me,” she whispers. “Thank you.”

I lean down and kiss her. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you, Sarah, okay? I need you to believe that.”

“I do, Finn,” she says immediately. “I trust you.”

I nod, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Can you tell me what she said to you?”

Sarah takes a deep breath, her eyes leaving mine as she stares into her drink, her hand swirling the glass and the amber liquid inside it.

“A lot of what she said was nonsense,” she eventually says.

“Rambling statements that didn’t really form anything coherent.

She did tell me that you were mine though, that even though she was your ex, she was still giving you to me. ”

“Jesus Christ,” I mutter as I wonder just how delusional this woman is. Maybe I’ve been wrong about her, maybe this is more than just some weird obsession built off one encounter back in high school.

“I think what scared me most though,” she continues, once more leaning back so she’s looking up at me.

“Is that she knew where you were tonight, knew you were working late.” Sarah puts her drink on the ledge around the bath and turns now, so she’s facing me, lying on top of my body.

“I mean I wouldn’t normally be afraid of someone standing in front of me spewing random shit,” she continues.

“But there was just something about her, something unhinged that had me scared to be alone with her.”

I put my glass beside Sarah’s and wrap my arms around her, pulling her closer so I can press a soft kiss to her lips. “I’m going to take care of this Sarah, I promise you,” I tell her, my words serious.

“I know you will,” she says, smiling.

“You’re important to me,” I continue. “Really important. And I’m never going to let anything happen to you.”

Sarah’s smile widens as she slides higher, resting her forehead against mine. “I really love this sweet caring side of you,” she whispers. “The side that only I get to see,” she adds before kissing me.

I spend most of the night awake, fingers flying over the tiny keyboard on my phone as I make a note of everything that went down tonight.

Sarah sleeps peacefully beside me, her breathing slow and even and I’m glad that she’s able to get some rest, that she isn’t as rattled by this whole incident as I am.

After I’d found the magazine clippings in my trash, I’d made copies and sent them to Detective Greenwood, explaining where and when I’d found them.

I still hadn’t told him about the video, but he’d acknowledged the magazine pictures with Sarah’s face superimposed over them was something to be concerned about.

But I’d heard nothing from him since then.

No updates on the investigation and no report on what had happened about the pictures.

There’d been nothing else from Carla though and a part of me couldn’t help but wonder if maybe Detective Greenwood had gone to see her.

Had spoken to her about what I’d found in my trash can and maybe scared her into stopping with all of this.

Clearly not after tonight’s incident.

The next morning after I drop Sarah at the train station, I head into work and immediately type up everything that happened to Sarah last night. I attach the word doc to an email and send it to Detective Greenwood.

I don’t expect a response but by the time I walk back to my desk with a cup of coffee, there’s an email from him in my inbox.

Thanks, this is concerning. Would Sarah be willing to talk to us? Make an official statement?

I swallow hard, hating the fact that she’s now getting caught up in all of this. Hitting reply, I type out a quick response.

Yes, I’m sure she would.

Detective Greenwood again responds immediately.

Great, I’ll be in touch. Let me know if anything else happens. To you or Sarah.

My mind immediately flicks back to the video I still have. Given everything that’s happened, especially after last night, I know I should tell him about it. At the very least, they could trace the sender, which would hopefully lead us back to Carla.

But I can’t bring myself do it. Not yet. Not when there’s a small chance I might be able to spare that part of Sarah.

Exhaling hard, I don’t reply to his email, instead filing it away in the folder I’ve created for all of this shit. Then I pull out the file containing last night’s duty officer report and flick my eyes over it to get up to speed.

Suddenly my phone chimes out with a text, my pulse immediately racing as I imagine it’s some new message from Carla. Maybe her gloating about last night. A wave of relief washes over me though when I see it’s from my brother.

Beck: so I had Joe, a guy Ryan & I used to work with in BPD run the records on your phone. Numbers a bust though – burner phone and no way to tie it back to her. Sorry.

I exhale in disappointment, even as I can’t help but be amused at my brother’s explanation of how he knows Joe. Clearly he’s forgotten I met the guy when we took down Erin’s ex.

Me: thanks for trying, Beck – appreciate it.

Beck: sorry I couldn’t be any more help. Hope things have been better. Talk soon.

I don’t bother to tell him about last night because really, what’s the point. There’s nothing Beck or anyone else can do at this point and I just have to hope that Detective Greenwood does his job.

Or that Carla fucks up and gives us a reason to prove all of this is her doing.

Before I leave work, I make a quick phone call before grabbing a few things from supply.

I then head home to change and grab a change of clothes for Sarah before heading over to the train station to pick her up.

Even though she’s technically staying with Erin and Ryan, she’s pretty much spent every night at my place since she came to Rockport.

It’s almost assumed that’s what will happen now.

She’s even kept my spare key and right now, I honestly have no intentions of asking for it back.

Because even though I’d never entertained the idea of this before, I actually love the thought of her being in my house. And once again, I’m surprised by how easy it’s all been, how much I love the idea of coming home to her every night and waking up beside her every morning.

There’s been no more talk of her moving to Boston either, which I’m not sure how to take, especially given how she feels about her job and this dickhead boss she has. Knowing how she feels about him though, only confirms what I’m about to do with her tonight.

I also don’t want her to think I’ve forgotten about him or her worries. The last thing I want is for her to feel like her problems aren’t important to me.

“Hey,” she says, as she hops into the passenger seat and leans over to give me a kiss. “You okay?”

I nod, smiling at her as I pull her in for another kiss. “Yep, you?” I ask. “How was your day?”

Sarah cocks her head as though she’s thinking about her reply, shaking a hand as if to say so-so.

My smile disappears. “Your boss do something?”

Sarah looks away, eyes staring out the windshield as she says, “Nothing I can’t handle.”

“Sarah,” I say, turning in my seat as I reach out and gently turn her so she’s facing me again. “What happened?”

She lets out a long breath, eyes searching my face as though she isn’t sure what to tell me. “It’s nothing, really,” she says, even though I can tell it is.

“Bullshit, baby,” I say gently. “Talk to me.”