Page 68 of Love and Order

Whipping back the covers, she didn’t even bother to change. She just shoved her feet into some sneakers and grabbed her keys. It was late, but she could always find a cab at the corner taxi stand. She opened her door, and a large fresh bouquet of pink daisies sat on her doormat.

She took the steps two at a time down the stairs and burst outside the door to find Finn getting into his car.

“Babe,” she yelled, and his head popped up. Closing the door, he met her on the sidewalk as she hurtled herself into his arms. Warm soothing hands ran over her back before he lifted her off her feet in a hug that felt intimate and intoxicating. His mouth settled in her hair by her ear. “Did you just call me babe?” he asked.

“Yes. I was just going to storm over to your place, and here you are.”

“Because of the flowers?”

“No, because I am ridiculously in love with you and trying to resist gravity is futile.”

His mouth was on hers and his hand slid up her back behind her neck to cradle her head. She could feel a smile spread on his mouth.

“Those flowers worked even better than I’d hoped,” he said, lifting her up off her feet again.

Still holding the pink flowers while her arms were wrapped around his neck, she gave him a week’s worth of kisses before either of them could speak again.

“I missed you so much,” he said.

“I’m sorry it took me so long to figure it all out.”

“What did you figure out?”

“That I’m going to love you either way, so I may as well enjoy you, up close and personal. That life is too short to hold back on having everything with you and I don’t need to be alone or prove I can do it all myself anymore. I don’t even want to do it all myself anymore.”

“Emm, my baby is so smart,” Finn said.

“I love you.”

“I love you more, and I’m about to show you all night,” he said before swooping her up in his arms and carrying her back up the stairs. True to his word, Finn loved her into blissful oblivion. They took turns kissing away the doubts, and Hailey knew she met her match with Finn. He was her one and only.

Chapter Nineteen

Finn

Amonth afterresigning from the firm, Finn was dressed in his white Navy uniform and leaving the JAG office at the Naval Command Headquarters in Washington D.C. Hailey was supposed to pick him up, and they were heading out of town for the Fourth of July. They’d been sharing his car and basically living together since they’d made up.

Scanning the street, he didn’t see his black sports car and checked his watch. But then a midnight-blue Porsche hummed up to the curb and a familiar gorgeous blonde popped out.

“Hey sailor, need a lift?”

“That depends, whose car did you steal?”

“Maddox lent it to me; said we need something safe to drive in.”

Laughing, he got inside.

“Did he say safe or fast?”

“Maybe both.” She leaned over for a kiss before maneuvering back into traffic.

“Are you ready for a weekend with all the Maguires?” he asked.

“Yes, I’m excited to meet your sister. I bet she has the best dirt on you.”

“I see, this is a recon trip.”

“Are you sure it’s not weird if my dad—I mean if Maddox comes down on Saturday?”

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