The Finish Line

by Vania Rheault

  “And you really are okay with me and Brett?”

  Marta gave Alyssa a hug. “I think you saved him. I think you saved him in a way no one could have. I can see it when I look at you two together. You’re perfect for him. Don’t doubt it anymore.”

  “You guys talking about me?” Brett asked, walking across the living room.

  “Of course we are. Since you’re here, can you take this out to Ian?” she asked, holding up the platter of meat for the grill.

  “Yep. Nikki asked for a bottle of water.”

  “I’ll bring it to her,” Alyssa said.

  Marta stood in the kitchen, leaning against the counter as Brett and Alyssa used the sliding glass door and stepped onto the porch.

  The kids played in the grass, the men sipped on beers as Ian laid out the steak and chicken on the grill.

  Nikki lounged on a chair in the sun, Hunter sleeping next to her.

  It would have been nice if they’d all stayed in Tower City, but life had a way of moving along, and she didn’t mind the direction hers was headed.

  She had Ian and her girls.

  She had Sadie who pulled into the driveway and bolted inside wanting to hold her baby. She stopped to give Marta a quick kiss on the cheek before joining the others. Ian captured her in a gruff headlock and pressed a kiss to the top of her head before releasing her.

  Sadie slapped at him, but she grinned. Like the rest of them, she’d grown up, looked to the future, put in the work to make it happen.

  Ian met her eyes through the glass, and he beckoned to her. She joined her friends on the porch and snagged the beer out of Ian’s hand.

  “Hey,” he said, but laughed as she took a swig.

  She gave it back, but he set the bottle on the patio table and pulled her close. He nuzzled her mouth with his, and he tasted of beer and sunshine, of love and promises.

  The scent of barbecued steak permeated the air on this warm, sunny day.

  She leaned against Ian’s chest, content.

  Nikki

  Nikki lounged in the shade while Dane sat next to her holding her hand.

  Marta and Ian made out near the grill, and Alyssa and Brett played with the kids in the grass.

  She turned to Dane. “What did you think when you first saw me?”

  He grinned. “You want to know the truth?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I thought you had a great ass.”

  “Seriously?” She stuck her tongue out at him.

  “You asked. And you were carrying all those books. When you looked at me after I took those boxes from you, I lost all thought in my head. A long time ago I told Brett it was love at first sight. I really think it was.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I feel the same way. I never thought answering your ad would turn into something like this.”

  “We started something, didn’t we?”

  “Yeah, we did. I’m sorry about the store. In a way, it brought us together, and it will be sad to say goodbye.”

  Dane shook his head. “I thought that, but you know what? It wasn’t the store, it was running. I would have seen you at an expo, or you would have made your way to race headquarters eventually. We were meant to be together, Nikki.”

  She met his eyes, the eyes she once described as a gooey Twix bar. They were still the light golden brown with the dark brown edges, and right now they were full of love for her. Sincerity and joy, and maybe not just a little arousal from thinking about her ass.

  “You really believe that,” she said.

  “Damn straight I do. I was looking for something, but I didn’t know what it was. I didn’t know after I found you either, that what I needed was someone to do something. Do something for me, do something about me. Do something to show me how someone can love me. You went into the store that night and that guy knocked you around. You went in because you cared about me, and you wanted to help.”

  “Yeah, I did. The last thing I expected was Daniel ripping you off.”

  “The stock didn’t matter, but it was a turning point for us, I think. And then we met Liz and you told her off. She said she admired you for that, by the way.”

  She grimaced. “I’m not looking for her approval.”

  “No, but you didn’t sit there and let her talk shit about me either. And after what I did to you, you still went and talked to my parents, explained what happened. You were in my face from the minute we met—the store’s handbook, the social media accounts. You didn’t let up, and I didn’t know it then, but I needed that.”

  “You make me sound like a bitch.” She laughed. “It wasn’t on purpose.”

  “No, maybe it wasn’t, but you made me see I could do better because a woman like you loved me.”

  “That’s sweet.”

  “Don’t ever give up on me, Nik. I’m probably always going to need a good kick in the ass from time to time.”

  She tilted her head for a kiss, and he pressed his lips gently to hers. “I’ll always be here.”

  “Good, because God, I love you, and I know I wouldn’t be able to live without you. You made me try once, and it almost killed me.”

  “I think you needed that, too.”

  “Yeah, I did. Probably more than you know.” Dane looked over the large back yard. “I’m going to miss these goofballs.”

  “Me, too. Alyssa and I have been friends forever, but you know, she wasn’t moving in a good direction, either. Maybe none of us where. I was chasing men who didn’t mean anything to me, Alyssa was hiding. Marta and Brett were trying to run from the way their relationship ended. We’ve all come such a long way in such a short amount of time. Even Sadie has changed.”

  Dane looked down at her. “Taking the credit?”

  Nikki laughed. “Sure. Why not?”

  “Because . . . maybe it’s mine. I was the one who needed a store manager.”

  “I was the smart one who applied.”

  “But I was the one who hired you.”

  “Are we going to do this all afternoon?”

  “We could, but how about we do this instead?”

  Dane slid onto the large lounge chair with her and took her mouth with his.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck and let herself sink, Stacy’s babies kicking between them.

  Maybe they’d both made a few mistakes here and there, but they had the rest of their lives to get it right.

  There would always be bumps in the road and hills to climb, but Nikki had good running shoes and a solid partner, and she knew life couldn’t get any better than this.

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you to David Willis and Sarah Krewis for giving this novella a quick read for me before publication. It means a lot that I have friends in my corner! I appreciate you!

  About the Author

  Vania Rheault has lived in Minnesota all her life. In 2003, she graduated with a BA in English with a concentration in creative writing. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, playing with her three cats, or going to movie night with her sister.

  Find Vania on www.vaniamargene.com and these social media platforms: