Page 89 of Wild Scottish Fortune

It was new, a dignified blue tartan, and had his name etched on the fabric.

“Buddy! A new collar. Aren’t you fancy?” Running my hands along the collar, my breath caught as I found the tag. Twisting it, I flipped the metal tag to read the inscription.

“If lost, please contact Orla and Fin.” I read the words out loud and then the tears really came on. Collapsing to the ground, I buried my face in Harris’s fur and cried and cried.

When I lifted my head Fin was there, kneeling on the other side of Harris. He looked tired, dark smudges beneath his eyes, and still, impossibly perfect. Frankly, I couldn’tbelieve he was kneeling in the grass, what with his trousers potentially getting dirty.

“Fin.”

“Orla.” Fin gave me a gentle smile.

“I’m—” My voice cracked, and I swallowed, forcing my eyes away from where I drank in the sight of him. “I’m confused. The tag here seems to indicate that Harris belongs to us.”

“Aye, the lad has found his forever home.”

Cue more tears.

“But … but … how?”

“We’ll make it work. Together, Orla.” Fin’s voice was steady, and we both stroked Harris’s back, the dog loving the attention.

“But work? We’ll be away all day?—”

“I’ve been assured that Harris is welcome at the castle any time, much to Sir Buster’s annoyance. Lady Lola didn’t seem to mind, which might be why Sir Buster is annoyed.”

I coughed out a laugh, wiping the tears with the back of my hand.

“And after? When this job is over?”

“He’s a work dog. He’ll come with us. Sleep in our lorries. Or we can drop him by the castle. Or some days he’ll stay at home and sleep in a patch of sun on the rug. Either way, we’ll figure it out.”

“We will?” Hope bloomed.

“Aye, we will.” Fin studied me, seeming to wait while my world recalibrated around a future with both him and Harris in it.

“Fin, I’m sorry,” I rushed out.

“No,I’msorry?—”

“No, please, let me.” I needed to say what I had to say before he started talking. I’d rehearsed it enough that if I didn’t get through it, I might go back on my resolve. And I’d drank my courage tea and cried all night and had a stern talking to about my future life choices, hadn’t I? Now it was time for me to make good on my decision to shore up my life’s foundation, so to speak.

“While I’m sorry for not telling you about my magick, so, so, so sorry … there’s something I’m even more sorry for.” I looked up as Fin’s face fell, and I realized he was worried I was going to reveal something worse. “I should have been honest with you about my feelings.”

“Oh.” Fin stiffened.

“I love you,” I hurried out before he could think the worst of me. “I’ve loved you for a while. You’ve been so good to me, saying it over and over, and still I held back. I was so scared that you would leave me, and if I didn’t say it to you, well, then I’d be okay, you see? When you eventually left, I’d be able to tell myself that I never really loved you anyway. And that you didn’t own my heart and weren’t taking it with you when you left. But that would have been a lie, a lie I told myself, because it isn’t true. Not even a little bit.”

Fin’s eyes were on mine, steady, gentle. Patient.

“See, I can feel it. Here.” I was tapping my chest, as I usually did, understanding now that this was how I self-soothed. “I see now, that is what love is. I don’t really own my heart anymore, so it doesn’t matter how much I hide my love from you, it’s yours anyway. You could leave or stay, and I’d have no say in it. My heart has decided. It knew, long before my head did, that you were it for me. And I’mtrusting you with it, knowing that one day, yes, you could still go. But it’s worth it to me, Fin. I want to take this chance. I don’t want to be scared anymore. I don’t want to worry that I’ll be left alone and sad. You know what? I already have. And I survived that. And I could survive losing you in the future, but oh, God, please don’t make me feel that pain.”

“Orla.” Fin reached for my hand, entwining my fingers with his in Harris’s thick fur. “I understand. I’m not going anywhere. I bought a house here hoping you’d see that you’re it for me. I’m not going anywhere, and you can’t make me leave, no matter how many spells you do to try and get me to go.”

I barked out a laugh. Was he really joking about this already?

“I don’t know, I might be able to make you go.”

“Maybe, but you wouldn’t.”

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