Chapter 27 #3
Smiling, he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “So why do you think it would matter to me if one day you were unable to work? I’d take care of you, and you’d take care of me when I needed you. That’s how it goes when you love someone. You take care of each other.”
“You love me.”
“Hell yes, I love you. I’m batshit crazy about you.”
She leaned her forehead against his, staring into his dazzling blue eyes. “Same.”
“And I’m going to want very much to marry you at some point.” Before she could protest, he rested a finger over her lips. “And because we might get married, it makes sense for us to have a family health insurance plan.”
“You think you’re so clever, don’t you?” she asked, amused and touched by his logic.
“I’m not being clever. I’m being practical.
And I’m being self-serving. I want forever with you, Chloe.
I want everything with you—the good, the bad, the healthy, the sick, the ups, the downs.
I’ve never wanted that with anyone, but I knew about two days after I met you that if I let you get away, I’d regret it forever. ”
“I’ve never known anyone like you.” She flattened her hand on his face, feeling the prickle of his late-day whiskers against her palm. “You’re so certain about what you want.”
“I’m sure about you, but I haven’t been sure about anything before now.
Just ask my boss in Connecticut. I’ve given him whiplash with my indecision.
I kept thinking I had to go home to figure out my life, but it turns out my life was right here, waiting for me to find it.
Two years I was on this island, and you were right here all along. ”
Smiling, she pushed the hair back from his forehead. “I was waiting for you to need a haircut.”
He barked out a laugh. “I needed a haircut months before I got one. And P.S., your fingers combing through my hair made me hard in your chair.”
“No way.”
“Yes way.”
A throat clearing reminded them they were not alone. “Sorry to interrupt, but dinner is ready.”
“Bring it on, Pops.”
Kevin brought out a salad, salad dressing and a bowl with steaming potatoes and corn on the cob. Then he went back for a platter to get the lobsters from the pot on the grill.
“Allow me.” Finn took one of the lobsters and cracked open the shells for Chloe, then handed the plate over to her. “There you go.”
“Thank you.”
“So,” Kevin said after a long silence while they ate, “it seems to me that you two may not need my help after all.”
“I think we might be good,” Finn said, gazing at Chloe.
“I think so, too.”
“If I may make one suggestion,” Kevin said. “Find out everything you can about RA. Join the online forums, get all the support you can. Things are less frightening when you have all the info and you’re well supported.”
“She’ll be very well supported, but I agree with you, Dad. We need to get all the info we can so we can be prepared for whatever might happen.”
“Even with the info, there will be obstacles and difficulties and things you don’t see coming. Maintaining communication will be key to getting through it together.”
Chloe put down her fork, took a sip of water and summoned the courage she needed before glancing at Kevin. “Could I ask you one thing…”
“Anything.”
“Are you okay with Finn being with me, knowing what you do about my condition? I mean, if we stay together, someday in the not too distant future, I may be reliant upon him, and I’d totally understand if you didn’t think it was fair for me to get involved with him, knowing that.”
Kevin propped his elbows on the table.
Chloe resisted the urge to squirm while she waited to hear what he would say.
“We learned when our Finn was very little that when he sets his mind to something, get the hell out of his way. When he played Little League baseball, he was determined to be an all-star, and damned if he didn’t make that happen.
He wanted to be class president, ran a professional campaign that would’ve made the pros weep and was elected class president all four years of high school.
If Finn wants something, really wants it, he finds a way to make it happen.
And if there’s one thing I knew after the first time I saw the two of you together, it’s that Finn wanted you as much as he wanted to be an all-star and as much as he wanted to be president of his class. ”
“More,” Finn said, his eyes sparkling. “I want her much, much more than that.”
“I know my son, Chloe, and I’ve never seen him glow the way he does when he’s with you.
So if you’re asking for my approval, you have it.
You have my approval and my support and my appreciation for making my son so happy.
That’s all I’ve ever wanted for him and his brother.
And if the time comes when you need additional support because of your condition, you’ll have it—from me and our entire family. ”
Overwhelmed by Kevin’s heartfelt words, Chloe used her napkin to dab at her eyes. “I see that you come by your charm naturally, Finn.”
Both men laughed.
“It’s a McCarthy family trait.” Kevin placed a hand on her shoulder. “But I mean every word, Chloe, and I appreciate your concerns about how your condition might impact Finn.”
“I don’t care how it impacts me. I’ve spent a lot of time online this week, reading about it, and I have a much better understanding of what we’re up against. I firmly believe it’s nothing we can’t handle.
I even joined a support group for partners of people with RA.
They talk about everything. There’s a whole thread about the best ways to have sex with someone who has aching joints.
” He waggled his brows for effect. “They’re very inventive. ”
Flabbergasted, Chloe could only stare at him.
“What?” Finn asked after a long silence.
“Just when I think I’ve seen the full extent of your fabulousness, you go and top yourself.”
Finn flashed a cocky grin. “Like I’ve said before, you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
“Is he for real?” Chloe asked Kevin.
Kevin beamed at his son with fatherly pride. “Very much so. In my completely unbiased opinion, he’s one of the very best men I’ve ever known.”
Chloe looked at Finn. “I couldn’t agree more.”
“Aww, shucks, you guys. My head is swelling.”
Chloe laughed as she rolled her eyes at his predictable response. “Doesn’t take much.”
“You know it, baby,” he said on a dirty laugh.
Her face burned with mortification as she glowered at him. She couldn’t believe he’d said that in front of his dad! Well, yes, maybe she could…
“On that note,” Kevin said, his lips quirking with amusement, “who wants dessert?”