The Outliers (The Outskirts Duet #2)

With one snip of the giant scissors Finn and I both held, we officially reopened The Outskirts Public Library to the applause and shouts of our family and friends. Except now it had a new name. “Are you ready?” I asked, pulling on the rope connected to the tarp covering the new sign above the door. We stepped aside to avoid it falling on our heads. Finn laughed until he looked up and read the sign.

OUTSKIRTS PUBLIC LIBRARY

In Loving Memory of Jackie Callahan



“You did this?” he asked, looking over at me.

“Yes. I didn’t want anyone to forget about her. Including you,” I said. “Plus, I might have put two and two together when I saw you talking to the skull on the porch,” I added, nudging him with my elbow.

Finn smiled down at me and held my face in his hands, planting a kiss on my lips.

“Thank you,” he said, pulling back slowly. “And I sent her home. To her parents. So, they can bury her properly.”

“Always the gentleman,” I sang.

Critter cleared his throat nearby. “You two need to cut that shit out.”

“I’ve already knocked her up,” Finn argued. Critter marched toward him and Finn bolted into the library.

“I guess we’re going inside,” I said, linking arms with my mother.

In addition to a ton of new romance novels I reserved an entire wall dedicated solely to the history of Outskirts, complete with pictures and maps of the town from inception to how it lies currently. In the center of the display is a book with plastic pages safeguarded both old and new letters and stories from current and past residents about life in Outskirts.

“This is incredible,” Finn said, looking at the display in wonderment, smiling and beaming with pride.

“I have a surprise for you too,” Finn said, pulling me into his arms.

“There are other people here,” I warned between my teeth, knowing how Finn operated.

And liking it.

Finn chuckled. “Like I would let any of them stop me,” he said. “Come on. I’ll show it to you.”

“Oh, it’s like a real surprise,” I said, following him along. We left the library and much to my surprise we past his Bronco in the street and kept on walking.

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“You’ll see, it’s not far. Are you okay to walk?” Finn asked.

“Yes,” I said. The baby had gotten bigger, but I was feeling great.

We walked hand-in-hand in enjoyable silence. The warmth from his skin pressed firmly against mine as it should be. Although I was much heavier with a big round belly full of baby my steps were still lighter than they’d ever been.

Finn broke the silence. “Did you know that Critter threatened me again?”

“He did not,” I said, clapping my hand over my mouth and trying not to laugh.

Finn nodded. “He sure did. He told me that now that I’m dating his daughter, and because I’d knocked her up without marrying her first, that we aren’t to be friends anymore.”

“What? But he wasn’t serious…was he?”

Finn smiled and the dimple made an appearance. “He said he’s moved me up the list and has made me ‘enemy number one’ in his eyes. If I wasn’t the father of his grandchild he’d have disposed of me properly a long time ago.” Finn quoted the air on the word ‘enemy’. “And if I hurt you, he’s going to, and I’m quoting him directly now, ‘rip out all my vital organs and leave a trail of them on the highway from here to Tuscan’.”

“Points for being creative,” I remarked. “What else did he say?”

Finn swayed his head from side to side. “Well, after making me promise to never hurt you he told me he was going to hold me to that promise.”

“That’s not so bad.”

“At gunpoint.”

I laughed. “That sounds more like him.” Easily picturing Critter saying those exact words. I loved all his threats. They made me feel special and in a way, I don’t think Finn really minded them either.

“So, have you given any more thought into changing your last name?” Finn asked as we turned down a street I’d never been on before.

“Critter and my mom suggested it since she’s legally changed her last name that I should think about doing it too. I think it’s a good idea. A fresh start.” I admired the large oak trees lining the street. There was also what appeared to be a newly poured sidewalk, the first I’d seen in Outskirts. “I never felt like a Dixon anyway.”

Finn bumped my shoulder with his. “That’s because you were never a true Dixon, you were a…Critter.” Finn said, making a face by pushing out his bottom lip to show his teeth and tucking in his chin.

I bumped him back with my hip. “Ha. Ha. I know it’s a ridiculous name, but it’s my dad’s ridiculous name. Which makes it pretty great.”

We walked along in comfortable silence again until we stopped at a house at the end of the street. A brand-new house from what I could tell. It was white with black shutters and a red front door. “Wow, it’s like a two-story version of my little house.”

“I know it’s not like the three-story Victorian you liked so much but I decided to turn that into a home for women and children.”

My shock almost outweighed the extreme happiness that just washed over me like someone had poured a bucket of water on my head. “You own that?”

Finn looked down to the keys in his hand. “Yes,” he said, like he was reluctant to admit it. “That’s where Jackie and I lived. That was our house.”

I reached out and brushed my knuckles along the stubble coating his jaw. “It was a beautiful house, but now it’s going to be even more beautiful because of your plans for it.”

Finn turned and kissed the palm of my hand before spinning me back around to face the house. “Do like it?” he asked, swinging open the little picket fence and pulling me inside. The flower beds on each side of the door were filled with tall sunflowers that reached halfway up the windows.

“I love it,” I said. “Even more than the Victorian.” It was the truth. There was something about this house that felt homier. More real. “Is this what you’ve been working on?” I asked, unable to tear my eyes away from it.

Finn had started taking on some smaller construction projects, but I had no idea he was building houses like this one. “Who is the client??” I was envious of whoever got to live in such a house, but proud of Finn for having created something so beautiful. Before he could answer I added, “Can I see the inside?”

I felt like I needed to at least see it once before it the house changed and became someone’s home.

Finn smiled that smile that made gave me chills and threaded his fingers with mine. He lead me up the front steps opened the door, guiding me through first and following behind.