Three hours later, Finn let himself into his house, completely numb.

The first thing he’d done was try Charlie’s phone. It’d gone immediately to voicemail. The way it had the next one hundred times he’d called her.

Just in case.

Next, he’d texted Wavy to ask their mom to get Ethan. He couldn’t go back inside. He couldn’t see any of them right now. Not when his own world was crumbling at his feet.

Then he’d asked Sheriff Nelson to take him to the morgue. He would’ve begged if necessary, but it hadn’t been. Even if the body was burned beyond recognition, he had to see it for himself. He couldn’t possibly believe it until he did.

The sheriff had wanted to drive him, but Finn had refused. What if this was all a mistake and Charlie called and needed him somewhere? He would have to be able to get to her.

He still couldn’t accept that this was happening. How could Charlie possibly be gone?

The sheriff directed him to sit in a hard plastic chair in the hallway outside the morgue while he went inside to arrange things. Finn looked up and down the empty hallway. He had lived in Oak Creek his whole life and never been here, even when his dad had died. He’d never even thought about where the morgue was.

He was in some sort of fog.

The door at the end of the hall opened and Zac hurried in, breathing hard like he’d been running. He stopped as he got to Finn.

He and Zac had known each other their entire lives. This man was closer to him than even his own family. Zac didn’t say anything, just put his hand on Finn’s shoulder.

Two minutes later Aiden walked through the door, followed by Gavin. They both gave him solemn nods, but neither said anything either. When Dorian, another partner, entered the hallway not long after, it was the same.

These were his brothers. They had stood with each other before as soldiers when death had come for one of their own. They would stand shoulder to shoulder now.

After the sheriff and coroner showed Finn the body, he came back out into the hallway.

He shook his head at his friends, every emotion he had buried in ice. “The sheriff was right. There’s no way to visually identify her. They’re working on dental records.”

But he had to admit the size of the charred body roughly matched Charlie’s small frame.

“I should feel something, shouldn’t I?” he asked Zac in that barren hallway. Zac had lost his wife, knew death firsthand. “Knowledge in my gut that that’s not her? Or that it is?”

Zac shook his head. “It doesn’t always work that way, brother, you know that.”

“Right.”

The guys had wanted to drive him home, but he’d refused. At least one of them still followed, probably Gavin, and no doubt Dorian would be running around in his beloved wilderness, keeping an eye on Finn’s house from a distance.

They didn’t need to worry that he was going to have some sort of breakdown. That required emotion. He couldn’t feel anything.

Sheriff Nelson was now trying to find Charlie’s parents. He’d promised to call as soon as he’d reached them. Finn didn’t know why he’d insisted on that, or why he was going to insist on being with the sheriff when he talked to them. Charlie’s parents had never liked him. But if the sheriff was going to tell them their daughter was dead, Finn was going with him.

He tried Charlie’s phone again, just in case. And to hear her voice.

This is Charlie. Leave a message.

He didn’t. He hung up and called again.

This is Charlie. Leave a message.

He set his phone on the table and sank down onto his couch, unable to bear the thought that might be the last time he ever heard her voice. He could feel the ice begin to crack and knew the pain wasn’t far behind.

There was a light tap on his door, but he didn’t get up. Instead he tried to pull the ice back around him. It had to be better than the pain. His front door creaked open.

“Finn, are you here? I saw your Jeep outside. Did I get our tutoring appointment time wrong? I went to the library, but no one was there.”

Charlie’s voice. For just a second, he thought his brain had taken her voice and transposed it to his doorway. Then he realized.

Charlie was at his door.

“Oh, my God.”

Less than three seconds later he had her yanked inside the door, pinned against the wall, his mouth on hers.

“Charlie. Charlie.” He couldn’t stop saying her name, even as he devoured her mouth. He wasn’t sure if it was a prayer of wonder, thankfulness, or both. His hands cupped her cheeks, her jaw, moved down her shoulders to her arms, touching her all over as if to convince his mind she was really there.

“Finn, what’s wrong?” Her eyes were frantic as he finally eased back. Now her hands were wandering over his face and jaw and shoulders. “What? What happened? I went into the library when we were supposed to meet but you guys weren’t there. Are you okay?”

“Where is your phone?” He couldn’t be angry, not when relief was still flooding every part of his system.

“I left it at . . .home.”

He noticed the slight hesitation at the word. He needed answers, but first he had to make a call before the sheriff found Charlie’s parents and told them she might be dead.

“Hang on a second and let me stop the world from ending.”

“What?”

He still hadn’t moved his body completely away from hers. Panic simmered just underneath the relief. He couldn’t stop touching her. He started to take off her shirt with one hand as he reached for his phone with the other. He called Zac, who picked up after the first ring.

“You doing all right—”

Finn cut him off. “Charlie just showed up at my house. Notify Nelson and let him know he’s got the wrong girl. I’ll call you later.”

He wasn’t even sure he got the last word out before he disconnected and tossed the phone aside.

All he knew was he had to be inside Charlie right now.

She was wearing that same skirt from last week. Which was a good thing, because Finn didn’t think he had the patience to get any other clothes off of her. He backed her up hard against the wall, reached under her skirt and pulled her underwear all the way down her legs.

“Finn . . .”

He could feel her wetness against his fingers, could hear her breathing just as hard as he was. He knew she wasn’t trying to stop him with her words, just trying to understand what was going on. But he couldn’t stop, couldn’t take the time to explain things to her. He barely got himself out of his jeans before he slid his hands under her ass and lifted her against the wall.

Her legs slid around his hips and with one thrust he slammed home. Her grunt was full of equal measures pleasure and pain, but he couldn’t stop. He slid in and out of her brutally, angling her weight so he could get as deep inside her as possible.

He’d thought she was gone.

He would know all the details of what the hell had happened, but right now he would know nothing but the tightness of her surrounding him, milking him like a fist.

Her eyes started to close. “No.” The rasp of his voice was harsh. “Keep your eyes open. Look at me.” His forehead fell against hers, his eyes pinning those crystalline blue ones just as his hips pinned her lower body.

He had to see those eyes. He’d thought he would never see them again.

But soon neither of them could keep theirs open. He buried his face in her neck as their sweat ran together. Her fingernails scored his back under his shirt as he thrust into her, his pace frantic. Manic.

But for the first time in his life—especially with Charlie—his orgasm seemed elusive. Physically, everything was perfect . . .her tight, wet heat gripping him. But oh God. Oh God, he’d thought she was gone.

He didn’t want to stop, didn’t want to separate from her. But he was afraid nothing would wipe away the thought that he’d lost her. No amount of sex. No number of orgasms.

“Finn, look at me.”

He opened his eyes and brought his face up, so he could see her, keeping her body pinned tightly against the wall. He was still thrusting in and out of her as her small hands gripped his cheeks, her thumbs rubbing over his brow.

“I’m here, okay? Whatever it is, I’m here.”

And then, even though he’d been pounding her against a wall, still moving hard inside her with no other foreplay or touch, she smiled. It was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen.

“I’m here,” she whispered again.

And that was what his mind needed to release the demons that had consumed it. She was here. He began thrusting earnestly again, holding more of her weight, careful now not to hurt her. Within moments, his orgasm was bearing down on him.

He hooked her leg higher with his arm, hitting that place inside her that would have her chasing her own, holding on until she caught up with him. Only when she was yelling his name, her hands digging into his shoulders, clutching him to her, did he finally let himself go.

And as he did he whispered her name.