Page 92 of For Your Love

Her eyes filled with tears and he pulled her into his arms while she sobbed into his chest.

He rocked her in his arms. “I love you, Colleen. You’ve been brave for so many years. Tell me what you need.”

“Just you,” she said between sobs.

Two simple words that distilled everything they’d shared together. He’d do anything to protect her. When she stopped crying, Finn murmured into her hair, “Feeling better?”

She pulled away and blinked a few times. “I’m thankful Dan Pike was arrested, but my heart is broken for all the little girls he abused.”

Finn leaned in, cupped her cheek. “Let me take care of you.”

“I’m fine. Really I am.” She gave him a kiss and sat up. “It just was such a shock.”

“Sit with me for a while.”

She folded herself into his side, and together they did nothing but watch the sun slip away. It would be fall soon. He wanted to share his favorite season with Colleen. He wanted to share everything with her.

CHAPTER 38

FINN

After dinner, Finn took Alfie out to pee at the small park nearby. While Alfie sniffed around for the perfect spot, Finn glanced up at his building, wondering what Colleen was doing to prepare for her appointment. He was relieved she was being proactive about the recent events and he was ready to put aside his own discomfort to help her.

When he returned, he put Alfie in his crate and joined Colleen on the couch to wait for Jalane’s call. The Skype call came promptly at seven o’clock.

Following brief introductions, Jalane wanted to speak with Colleen alone for the first half of the session. This was perfectly acceptable to him because he wanted to give Colleen all the privacy she needed to review recent events with her therapist.

While they spoke, Finn kept busy in his home office, answering a few work emails.

“Finn?” Colleen said, her head poking her head into his office. “Jalane’s ready for us.”

Finn got to his feet and wrapped his arm around her. Her face was relaxed and that made his pulse slow down a bit, but just in case, he asked, “Should I be worried?”

“Nah, but she’s very direct, so don’t be offended by anything she asks you.”

They took a seat on the couch and Finn took Colleen’s hand in his.

“Hello, Finn.” Jalane’s face was round, almost cherubic. Her relaxed smile and calm voice helped ease his nerves. “My conversation with Colleen is confidential, but of course, she’s free to give her permission for me to summarize what we discussed.”

“I have no objections,” Colleen said.

“All right. Colleen and I discussed the events around the storm the other night. She not only confronted her worst fear, but she engaged with it. That is a remarkably brave thing to do.”

Finn squeezed Colleen’s hand and said, “I’m very proud of her.”

“The other issue we discussed is that because Dan Pike pleaded guilty, he’ll be sentenced without a trial. I’ve recommended Colleen contact the San Bernardino DA handling the case to find out if she’ll be allowed to give a victim impact statement before his sentencing. She’s also agreed to inform her family about what happened to her. She’s going to need a lot of support to do both.”

He took a moment to look at Colleen. She gave him a small nod and lifted her chin, her eyes clear and full of confidence. He was in awe of her courage. “I’ll support Colleen any way I can.”

Colleen smiled. “Finn’s afraid to fly, so he might need some counseling before coming to San Bernardino with me.”

Finn grimaced. “That’s true.”

“Will you be able to fly with her?” Jalane asked.

“There’s no way I won’t be with Colleen.”

“Excellent.” Jalane turned her attention to Finn. “Is there anything you’d like to share regarding your feelings or concerns about Colleen?”

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