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“In mine, I have also kept every rock Bridge and Penny have ever given me.”
Finn squeezes. “I’ll give you a second to understand how that isn’t a defense at all.”
I huff. “Yeah, no. I heard it.”
He swears, fighting down a swallow. “I’m so sorry about all of this… I don’t know what I’d do without you. Thank you so much, Marcella. Just…just for being here with me, thank you.”
Listening to his heart, I mutter, “Hey now…you’d be just fine. You’d probably buy a yacht and cry on it where no one could see you use hundred dollar bills to dab your tears. After pulling yourself together as much as possible, you’d descend into the kind of madness Disney Channel kids contract when they outgrow their shows. You’d be dyeing your hair even louder colors, getting face tattoos, and commissioning NASA to build you a luxury spaceship so you could circle the moon for funsies.”
The weakest laugh in the history of laughs causes Finn’s chest to tremble against my cheek. Seemingly unconvinced, he says, “Wow. You’re right. You know me so well.”
“It’s true. But, unfortunately, I’m here.” I grip his clothes as tight as I can. “So, I guess, instead of collapsing into an overfunded midlife crisis, we’ll just have to get through this together instead. Is that…okay?”
He sniffles.
“I mean, if it’s not, I’ll dye my hair and circle the moon with you. Gonna have to pass on the face tattoos, though. I have a desk job. I’m sure you understand. My boss is a bit of a prick. Sometimes he even makes me do the job I signed up for.”
Every muscle in him seems to sag, but I hear the incessant smile in his voice when he replies, “I’m sure your boss would understand if you tattooed his name on your face. Only because it might match yours on his.”
I mumble, “I do hear our names have the same number of letters. And even the same number of syllables.”
“Like someone planned it that way…”
“No one is that coordinated. We, Finnegan Marsh, are an adorable, drunk accident. And that’s all there is to it.”
He murmurs, “Marcella, does any of this imply that you’re going to marry me next week?”
I hum. “You’ll have to find out at the altar. On another note, my entire family has flown in for unrelated reasons. For similarly unrelated reasons, they’re probably in my parents’ backyard right now. With turkey.” My nose scrunches. “That sounded insensitive, like I just want turkey, because I expected turkey when we came here, and I will be honest. I do want turkey…but what I’m really trying to say is that while the turkey will probably be cold and dry by now, my family will be just drunk enough to be funny. And, still unrelated to your previous inquiry, they’re probably about to become your family, too. So it’s very important to begin gathering blackmail on them. If that would make you feel better. I can organize to take notes in the car.”
He exhales a damp laugh into my hair. “That’s…a very tempting offer. But I kind of don’t want to be around people right now.”
“Such a mood. I respect that.”
“You’re not people. Just in case you thought I’d be dropping you off at home or with your family.”
I let all my weight rest into him. “You know something? That wasn’t even a concern that crossed my mind.”
“Marcella?”
“Yes, love?”
He squeezes me, and even though his voice is still thick with emotion, his weak smile hasn’t faltered since it returned. “Can we pick up something to eat on the way home, grab my laptop, and play Stardew together in your room?”
Breaking away when he begins to, I grin up at him. “Dibs on the couch.”
Chapter 25
I, Finnegan Marsh, will never, ever, grow sick of you, Marcella Marsh.
– Finnegan
“Dude,” Cody says as he adjusts my tie and jacket. They’re both crooked. Which is fairly unlike me. But I’m getting married in twenty minutes, so perhaps an exception to the rule is allowed. Unless, of course, I’m not getting married in twenty minutes. Marcella could still change her mind at the altar. Cody pushes his glasses up his nose. “Calm down.”
“What if she reaches me, and her father steps away, and she takes a good, long look, then says, actually, nah?”
Cody echos, “Actually, nah? Are you serious?”
I have never been more serious in my life. “I think I’m panicking. She would absolutely prank me on my wedding day. Probably to get back at me for taking all the olives out of her grandmother’s homemade sauce yesterday at family dinner. It’s just…who puts olives in their pasta sauce?”
