Page 101 of Heir of Fire
She hardly waited for Luna’s answer before she was walking to the garage. Inside, Augustus and Finn stood huddled by his bike, pointing at some piece of machinery. They turned to look at her as soon as the door opened.
“Augustus, go inside,” Gianna said curtly.
“That’s my cue,” he said, immediately dropping everything and walking out. She moved out of the way so he could walk out of the garage. She appreciated that he didn’t put up a fight, but then again, he was probably using the intrusion as an excuse to go searching for a particular someone.
Finn stood, his brows pinched together in confusion and concern. “What happened now?”
“Why didn’t you tell me that your mother visited and you saw her?”
His face fell. “Luna brought it up?”
“Yes, and you didn’t,” she said, walking towards him. “Why wouldn’t you tell me about that?”
He set the part down and grabbed a rag to wipe off his hands. “It was wrong for me to tell you that my mother had just walked back into my life when yours had just walked out. I wasn’t going to put that on you, not when I wasn’t even sure if I was going to keep a relationship going with her.”
His words hurt despite her knowing that he hadn’t meant any harm by them. It was the truth. “Despite what I was going through, you should have been able to talk to me about it.”
“I didn’t want to, though. I wanted to focus on you.”
Finn walked closer to her, throwing the rag over his shoulder like he was some sort of mechanic. He wrapped his hands around her waist, pulling her closer while he leaned on the car behind him.
Gianna shook her head. “I understand that, and I appreciate you being there for me. I seriously do. I want to be there for you as well, though. When were you planning on telling me?”
He shrugged. “Whenever it felt right. I don’t know. I didn’t know it was going to hurt you keeping it from you. That really wasn’t my intention. Everything going on this week just kind of made it slip from my mind anyway, princess.”
She nodded her head, finally accepting his answer. She wrapped her arms around his neck and immediately he grinned, pulling her closer. It seemed like he knew he was forgiven. “What did you decide?”
“I told her I need it to be slow. I’ll call her when I’m ready and we’ll go from there. I’m not sure when that’ll be though.”
Gianna nodded her head. “You’re really lucky that she’s wanting to work things out with you.”
“If you don’t want me to, just say the word.” The dead seriousness in his voice made her stop. Was he being serious? He would cut out his mother just because Gianna asked him to? She would never. His mother returning and wanting to fix things was amazing for him. He deserved to have a good parent in his life if that was what he wanted, and she would always support it.
She shook her head immediately. “I would never do that to you, are you kidding me? If you want a relationship with her, I support you one hundred percent.”
He dropped his forehead against hers. “I know you will. And I absolutely love that about you, princess.”
“What else do you love about me?” she asked.
Finn laughed. “I love your big heart.”
“What else?”
“Your selflessness. Your intelligence. Your sense of humor. Your smile. Your ability to be the best person I’ve ever met in my life. Your strength. Your courage?—”
She cut him off with a kiss. It was the only way she could express the emotion that was swarming through her chest. Words didn’t seem like they would do what she was feeling complete justice, but the kiss did.
“I love you,” she said.
Actually, maybe there were some words that could.
FORTY-FIVE
GIANNA
Backstage at showswere always busy, but something about it gave Gianna the rush of her life. It was finally the night of the showcase, the night that everything she had been working towards had been leading up to.
Her costume consisted of a light pink tutu and bodice covered in embroidered flowers of all colors. Green vines and leaves swirled around the flowers, creating the perfect spring look for her. She had her light pink tights on and her pointe shoes. Her hair was in a tight bun and the headpiece she wore had flowers sewn into it, creating a flower crown piece.
