“Come on, Noles. You and me are better together. I saw the news article. You don’t even love this guy. It was an arranged marriage. Come back to me, and we’ll forget all about this. It’ll be nothing but a blip.”
I shake my head and offer Collin a small smile when he glances over his shoulder and looks at me. “He clearly didn’t see your press conference. Could have saved himself a lot of trouble.”
“What are you talking about?” Nelson says, indignant sounding.
“I’m very much in love with Noli Kasper,” Collin says to him. “And if you ever come near my wife again, I’ll—”
I put a hand on Collin’s back. “While I appreciate what you’re about to say, let’s not give him any more ammunition. Can you arrest him for breaking and entering?”
“You better believe I can, and I will. Come on, Nelly boy. To the station we go.”
“Is that really necessary? I promise I’ll leave Noli alone. I was trying to do what was best for her,” Nelson whines.
“Stalking me is not what’s best for me. Giving me a fat lip is not what’s best for me.”
A vein pulses in Collin’s neck. It’s obvious all he wants to do is tear Nelson limb from limb. But he’s a professional. He keeps his head. “Let’s go. Fingerprints and a night in the holding cell at least while we figure out what charges we’ll be pressing.”
“No way, man. Come on! I—”
I don’t hear the rest of his tirade because Collin walks him out the front door and toward his police cruiser. He grabs a pair of handcuffs, secures them around Nelson’s wrists, and maneuvers him into the backseat. He shuts the door, and it makes a defiantwhompsound.
I’m going to have a long road of dealing with this ahead of me. In fact, I better put my therapist on speed dial. But for right now, with the slamming of that cop car door, I feel a victorious sense of closure.
Collin spins toward the house, to where I’m standing on the front porch. He strides back across the yard, and I’m in his arms before I can utter a single word.
I cling to him as he runs his hands up and down my back, whispering words of apology and love. He brushes his lips lightlyagainst my temple, in my hair, behind my ear. He’s so tender, so keenly aware of my feelings and what I need in the moment.
He pulls back and searches my face, his gaze catching on my swollen lip.
“I am so sorry, Magnolia,” he whispers, his tone strained with both sadness and anger on my behalf.
I shake my head. “It’s okay.I’mokay.”
And I am. I finally feel like I am. I look up at Collin. “Honestly, it’s a relief this finally came to a head. I was freaked out, but somehow, I trusted that you would show up. I’m glad you got here when you did.”
He presses a kiss to my forehead. “Me too.” He holds me close for a long moment and then leans away. “I’m going to call in another officer to take Nelson to the station in my squad car. I’ll go in and file the report, but I want to drive with you.”
I nod.
“Will you be okay coming too?”
I tip my head to the side, an idea wiggling its way to the forefront of my brain.
“If it’s too much, I can get your statement later,” Collin says, sensing my hesitation.
“No, it’s fine. I’ll gladly tell my story now. I was thinking about the interview with Ashlyn. Sorry I blew that, by the way.”
“You didn’t blow anything,” Collin interjects.
I smile at him. “Either way, if we’re going to tell our story to the press, we may as well tell the whole story—including the reasonIwanted to marry you.”
“You mean beyond my amazing looks.” Collin offers me a wry grin.
I chuckle. “I mean, that was the main reason, but yeah, beyond that…” I turn serious again. “What if we talked about Nelson?” Collin makes a face as I say his name. “As much as I’d like to forget he exists, if I talk about what happened to me, I might be able to help someone else who’s in my situation.”
Collin studies me before nodding slowly. “You are incredible, you know that?” he whispers. “If that’s what you want to do, I will be with you through every step of it.”
He leans in for a full-on kiss then, careful of my lip, and I savor the feel of being in his arms, safe…where I belong.
