A/N: Posted the same day as chapter 9, so read that first! This chapter has mentions of attempted sexual assault and graphic depictions of violence somewhat consistent with the show.
Late July 1927
The next night, after she got the boys to bed, she hurried to dress. Madeleine was performing at the bar. Tonight, she wore a blue evening dress with a hat. She looked glamorous, like a proper star. She could never get over how well she sang.
Of course, Patrick was there. As she slid in to sit next to Sam, she spotted him at the bar with his lemon water. He raised his glass to her, acknowledging her presence and she smiled at him.
Sam wrapped his arm around her shoulder before leaning in. "Who's that man at the bar?"
"That's Miss Hightower's driver, Mr. Jane." He grumbled. "Is something wrong?"
"Other than how he's looking at you?"
"Sam! He's not looking at me. He just waved. He's being friendly!"
"His eyes are lingering. He looks half in love with you! How do you know him?"
She paused for a moment. He would be angry if he knew that he held her hand on the Ferris wheel because she was frightened. "He helped Jimmy find Ella the elephant."
"He helped Jimmy find Ella the elephant? Is that all it is? You didn't seem too sure about your answer."
She wasn't good at lying, but she hadn't lied. Though, she felt a pang of guilt when she considered why she even thought she couldn't tell Sam the whole story in the first place.
"Yes. He was just showing us kindness for a debt owed."
"What debt?"
She sighed. "He may have said something unkind to me that doesn't bear repeating because he apologized."
Sam stared at her in disbelief for a moment. "Why don't you let me decide that?"
She swallowed thickly. "Sam, it's not important."
"Well, you just told me a man who's gawking at you in our bar said something unkind to you. I'd love to know what that is because maybe he doesn't belong in this bar."
"Please, Sam. Just drop it. I don't want you to be angry."
"I'm not angry, but you're avoiding my question. It's making me a little upset."
"I'm sorry."
He exhaled sharply. "What is it, Teresa?"
"He called me a kept woman."
He slammed his glass down. "He said what?! I'll throw him…"
"No, please! I didn't say anything because I didn't want you to get mad and throw Madeleine out too. He apologized, and when we ran into him at the carnival, he took Jimmy to see the elephant."
Sam was definitely angry. She'd never seen his entire face turn red before. "And you spoke to him after that?"
"Just chatted a bit."
"Chatted? He's practically sending you an open invitation!"
This was odd. Sam had never acted this way before. She furrowed her eyebrows as he drained his entire glass of whiskey. His hands were shaking, so she placed her hand in his. He squeezed her hand before he dropped it to signal for Wayne to come over.
"That blond man at the bar who keeps looking at my table? Please ask him to wait in the back room until Miss Hightower is finished singing."
She closed her eyes as Wayne ushered Patrick to the back. "Please don't get upset with her. It wasn't her fault."
"I don't think that at all. He looks like a fraud or a criminal, and I don't want him here. I just wished you'd told me, so I could handle that. I will handle these things, Teresa! I won't have people like that in this place disrespecting my wife!"
Patrick Jane still looked like a boy. He looked like neither a fraud nor a criminal. He was clean cut with a sharp appearance. Though, in their line of work, that could probably make him appear a criminal.
"Sam, we're bootleggers. We are criminals." Hoping to lighten the mood, she laughed a bit before taking Sam's hand, but he continued looking at her with a stern look on his face.
"I don't trust him, and I don't like the way he's looking at you. He probably rushed to show Jimmy to that damn elephant to get near you!"
"Sam…"
"Teresa, don't! I know these things. You're my wife, and I need you to trust my judgment!" He used that voice when he didn't want to discuss something further. Patrick was friendly to her. Nothing more, but Sam automatically assumed the worst. Did he think she would betray him for a friendly smile?
She leaned in closer. "I only see one man in this bar who I love. He's the one I'm marrying." He grinned ear to ear at that.
Thankfully, Madeleine started to sing their song. Sam was crooning it into her ear as she leaned back into his chest. At the end of the song, he squeezed her closer to him and kissed the side of her head. "I love you, sweetheart."
She whispered: "I love you, Sammy."
That night, when she went to greet Madeleine, Sam went with her. After they retired to the front house for the evening, Sam stopped her in the parlor. He put a record on and drew her into his arms before they started to sway to the music.
"I'm sorry. I didn't act very well tonight, my love."
"It's ok, Sam."
"It's not. I was overcome with jealousy."
"Jealousy?"
He nodded. "I know you can't control how people look at you. When I saw him looking at you, I lost my mind."
"You're the only man who's ever been interested in me!"
"I know you think that's true, but I can guarantee you it's not. You're a very beautiful woman."
"But why were you so upset? I'd never betray you, Sammy." She'd given him everything she had to give.
"I know, sweetheart. I'm still a man though. I'm sorry for how I acted. I feel foolish for it."
She reached up and kissed his lips as they kept swaying to the music.
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Two days before their wedding, Stan left to go play ball with some neighborhood boys after breakfast. Like Tommy, he was good at sports when his asthma wasn't bothering him. Even if he didn't talk a lot, the other kids liked him on that basis alone. Sam had Jimmy working on some project in the garage with him. She cleaned the dishes and picked up around the parlor and settled in to read a book.
She had been reading for a while when Stan came running into the parlor. He was struggling for breath when he stopped, clearly trying to tell her something. "Stan, what is it?"
"Some guys…they got papa...he owes money...beating him…"
"Where?"
"Over at Mr. Bertram's place."
Bertram. She thought for a brief moment about whether she should go. If papa said he didn't have a daughter, should his daughter pay his debts? Looking at Stan's distress led her to believe she probably should. She ran to her room and grabbed her purse. She could clear the debt so they didn't kill him. "Ok, Stan. You stay here. I'm going to go over there!"
"I should...go…get..."
"No. You stay here and practice your breathing." He nodded as she ran toward the car.
She drove straight over to Bertram's place. She didn't see her papa, but she did see Mr. Bertram. "Miss Lisbon, what can I do for you?"
"Is my papa here?"
"Now, that depends on why you're asking, darling."
"Does he have a debt?"
"He does."
"If I settle his debt, can I see him?"
He smirked at her, making her feel uneasy. He ushered her to the back room where her papa was seated. It didn't seem the beating had started yet.
"Well, Tom, it seems your little lady is here to do business with me."
Papa closed his eyes. "It seems so. Can I go?"
She wasn't sure why papa was asking to go. Everything about this seemed off. "Please, Mr. Bertram. What does he owe?"
"No need to rush...what's your name?"
"Teresa."
"No need to rush, Teresa. That's a pretty name. Papa likes to place bets and not pay. Then, to add insult to the injury, the louse thinks he can hide or talk his way out of everything. I've had to put in considerable manpower to find him. He's really tried my patience."
"I'm sorry to hear that, Mr. Bertram."
He chuckled. "You're sweet. Do you know that?"
"Thank you, Mr. Bertram." The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as he stepped closer to her. She remembered Sam telling her never to come here alone. Why didn't she get Sam from the garage before she took off?
"How did God make something as sweet as you?" He sniffed her hair.
"Mr. Bertram, I can pay his debts if you'd like."
"Oh, I'd definitely like." He wrapped his arm around her and squeezed. She yelped. "How would you like to pay?"
Why was papa just sitting there? She felt her own panic rise, but she remembered when Sam gave her her first driving lesson. She tried to remain calm and steady. "I have cash on hand. If it's not enough for your trouble, I will find the money to pay you. Please don't hurt my father."
He laughed darkly. "Oh don't worry. Now, that you're here. I'm not even interested in him anymore. I don't take money from ladies. I let ladies pay me with their natural talents."
"I don't settle my debts that way."
Bertram grinned. "Now, see that's not what your papa says. Daddy told me you're Sam Bosco's little whore. I don't mind sharing. I'll even be nice to you...if you're nice to me."
"Girl, just go with him like you did with Bosco so we can get out of here."
She looked at her papa in shock. He had her brought here for this? She'd never cleared a single debt this way. She made love to Sam because she loved him and was to be her husband. How could he think she would do this?
Papa wasn't going to help her. Did he want this man to hurt her to teach her a lesson? Why didn't she get Sam first? She tried to reign in her nerves when she thought of that Ferris wheel: "You don't need Sam Bosco to throw your punches, do you?"
She closed her eyes. She thought of sweet, loving Sam who she promised herself to, who she wanted to have a family with, who she was meant to marry in two days. No, she'd not be going off anywhere with this man if she could help it. She inhaled deeply before she picked up her foot and brought it down hard onto Bertram's foot.
He yelped in pain as she ran towards the door. She'd run all the way home if she had to and send Sam back for the car. The car! She needed to get to the car. She opened the door, but Bertram was behind her, pulling her back.
"Oh come on! I can't be any worse than Sammy Boy!"
"Get off of me!" She grabbed a cloth pouch from the car before he pulled her by her hair, dragging her back inside.
"I was going to go easy on you, but I guess now, I need to teach you a lesson!"
He slammed her down on a table. "Papa! Please help me! Papa!"
"Bertram, you got what you asked for. I'm going."
"Don't you want to watch what I do to your little girl? Teach her the respect her papa couldn't." She sent a silent prayer, asking that if she died today, she would be shown mercy, Sam would find it in his heart to love again, the boys to be safe...and that her aim would be true.
She pulled Sam's revolver out of the cloth pouch before Bertram flipped her over. Once she was on her back, she cocked the gun and shot him in the gut.
He screamed in pain as papa's face went white. "Girl, what did you do?"
"Stay away from me!" She'd never spoken to papa that way before, but he didn't much seem like her papa in how he'd just sat there without lifting a finger, willing to let Bertram hurt her.
"You little bitch! You've done it, now! You'll be begging for mercy when I'm done with you." Bertram was on the ground, groaning and bleeding from his wound. She had to think fast. She didn't know what she was meant to do now other than get the hell out of here. Was she meant to go to the police? McAllister, that was Sam's guy. Should she go find him immediately? Would he help? Get Sam first?
"Teresa!" Sammy! He ran into the back room and grabbed her immediately. Kimball was with him.
"Bosco, your whore shot me. We're going to have to talk about this. How are we going to make this right?" He looked to Bertram and then back at her, glancing at the revolver in her hand.
"It's all right, sweetheart. You're safe." She was bleeding from a cut on her head from where he slammed her down. She didn't know it until Sam was wiping it off with his handkerchief. "Did he hurt you?"
"He tried to...he wanted me to…"
He spoke calmly. "It's ok. Everything is fine now." He gently took the revolver from her hand. Without any hesitation, he turned toward Bertram and emptied the chamber. The groans stopped.
"There's your talk." He used the handkerchief to wipe the gun off before handing it to Kimball. "Get this cleaned up, and slide a few extra dollars to McAllister."
She stared at the dead man on the floor before Sam took her hand and faced her away from him. Now, she was looking at papa who stood there wide eyed. She'd never seen him look scared before. Good.
"How much did you owe him, Tom?"
Papa stuttered. "$200."
Sam picked her purse up off the floor. She dropped it when she tried to escape. She didn't care. She just wanted out of there and to return home to her family safely.
Sam rumbled through her purse, withdrawing a wad of cash and throwing it at papa. "Is that what she's worth to you? $200? You'd let him take your daughter beat her, rape her, and do God knows what else to settle your debts?"
"It wasn't like that. He was asking after her because he had a soft spot for her. He said if I got her here to talk to him, he'd clear some of the debts up."
Her face went pale. Papa brought her here to give her to a man to settle his debts, and he wasn't even remorseful. "I've never been a whore, papa! And even if I was, you had no right to bring me here like this! And when I begged you to make him stop...were you just going to watch him violate me? Did you even care that I said no?"
"I wasn't going to watch, but all you had to do was just lay back! He wasn't going to hurt you. He promised me that!"
"He promised you? Perhaps if you cared so much for Bertram's promises you should've laid back for him!"
"Girl, don't sass me! You think you can talk to me any which way now because you lay up with a man with a bit of money?! That's all you had to do for Bertram. He'd been sweet on you since you stopped by. Now look what you've done!"
Sam was very still and spoke very deliberately. "The only soft spot is the one in your head. She's my wife, but she's your daughter. You'd toss her about to different men just so you'd never have to be a man and take care of your affairs."
"Well, Sam, you got her started! So why not?"
Sam withdrew his own revolver and cocked it. "I should put one of these between your eyes, you worthless sack of shit. She's your daughter! What kind of father would do something like that? You beat your children, and you abuse them! You want them to live in fear of you for no reason other than having that power of them makes you feel like a man."
"I was desperate! I gambled to get some whiskey money and it didn't turn out right. Besides, she'll always take care of me." Tommy was right. She was papa's fool, and he was expecting it. He probably thought she'd be happy to lay down with Bertram if he told her to do it.
Sam guffawed as he rubbed his head with his free head. "Aye, I guess you did everything you could to train her to be a stupid little girl, a puppy, that you kick over and over again, and she still comes and does what you want. Not anymore!"
She closed her eyes. Did Sam think her a stupid little girl? Was he angry with her?
"You think you can manage my family better? Then, do it!"
Sam waved the gun in papa's face. "You stay away from Teresa and the boys. They don't need anything from you. They're my family now! All you've ever done is hurt them. I will take care of them."
Papa laughed. "And she said she never took her clothes off for you! Look at you! She got you to take on an entire family for nothing in return? You lapping after her scent that bad, or can you just not act like a man?"
Sam looked away from her and kept rubbing his head. Sam was every bit a man and more. All she could think was papa must be out of his mind. He was antagonizing Sam. Surely, he'd seen him empty that revolver into Bertram just like she had!
He screamed at papa as he brought his pistol down, hard, into the side of papa's face. "I love her, and you will never hurt her again! You'll never lay your hands on those boys again either! She never had to do anything for me to love her, especially not the things you'd ask of her!" He kept hitting papa until his face was broken and bloodied and papa was out cold. Sam spat on papa. "You're not even worth a bullet!"
Sam took her by her elbow and guided her out of the back door. She could hardly believe what she had just witnessed. Papa had her brought here for unspeakable things, and Sam killed the man who would've violated her before beating papa. Was her sweet Sammy, with kind eyes and a gentle heart, truly a violent man? Did he hide it well because she was a stupid little girl? Did he mean to start beating them after they were married?
"Teresa, we need to talk." He reached for her hand. She pulled away.
"Please. Don't touch me."
"I told you not to come here alone!"
"Don't worry, Sam. I'm fine! Thank you for asking!" No, she wasn't. She'd thought of him when she thought she might die. Thoughts of Sam kept her head on straight, but he blamed the stupid little girl for getting into this mess. And now, she was barely certain she even knew who Sam was.
He closed his eyes and huffed. "We need to get our stories straight. We were out on a stroll in Michigan this afternoon if anyone asks. Stan will say the same."
How did this come so easy to him? "Our stories straight?!"
"Teresa, it's ok. You're safe now."
"Safe? How could I ever feel safe again after seeing what you just did? Of course, you'd tell me I'm safe and expect me to believe it since I'm just a stupid little girl, right?"
"Well, you acted like one! I told you never to come here alone. Bertram loved getting girls messed up to the point they couldn't pay and extracting payment for his debts as cruelly as possible. You, desperate to help your sorry excuse of a father, were easy pickings for him! It's why I told you never to go there alone, but you did it anyway. You could've just got me. I wasn't far away from you, but you just took off without a word. I would've told you it was probably a trap. I would have at least gone with you! You're lucky Stan got me once he caught his breath. Your papa gets himself into shit you go running right toward him!"
She knew how terrified she was in those few minutes before Sam arrived. If he'd done that and worse to other unsuspecting women, he deserved what he got and worse. She wouldn't be too upset over the creep, but Sam was upset with her. "You just committed murder, and beat a man half to death, and you're mad at me? I don't even know what to say to you right now, Sam!"
"'Thanks from saving me from the pig who was planning to violate me and carve me up for fun because I went to his place alone after you told me not to, Sam,' would be a good place to start!" He let out a huff of air. "I'm not mad at you. There are bad people in the world, and I'd protect you from every single one of them, including your father. I'd kill Bertram 100 times over if it meant protecting you. But whenever your father comes calling, you turn into a stupid little girl that just wants to please papa. I told you what he was about, didn't I? To him, you're only as good as what you can give him. But you just keep running back to fix his problems!"
Everything was just wrong! Her papa, Sam…all of it! It was hard for her to breathe. She was just a stupid little girl they could kick around, like a puppy as Sam said. They knew she would take whatever they dished out! She had to get out! She had to get free.
"You know, when he first grabbed me, I thought of you. I realized I made a mistake coming here alone, but then, I thought of what Sam would do. He'd want me to be brave. I even prayed that if I died here, you'd find it in your heart to love again. I never stopped thinking about how to get home to you."
"Teresa, I'm not mad at you for anything! I took the matters into my own hands. That's on me! I was just..."
"I figured out how to get free on my own! I got myself into trouble, but I fought like hell to get myself out to get home to you. I wanted to get home to my family, but men like you and my papa will always just think I'm simpleminded and good for nothing more than what you want from me! You're not the man I thought you were, Sam!"
She wasn't sure when she raised her voice, but she had. Sam was staring at her in shock. He tried to put his arm around her. "Teresa…"
"No! Don't touch me! If I'm a stupid little girl, then what the hell do you want with me?!" She got in the car and drove off. She could hear him yelling for her to come back, but she refused to turn that car around. She had no idea where she was going until she ended up in the car park at the carnival.
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She wandered around for a bit. She had no idea why she came here, but she needed time away. She needed to think.
"Teresa?" She turned to see Patrick Jane staring at her.
"Patrick, how are you today?"
"I'd say a great deal better than you." He tilted his head. "Do you want to go talk? Or just walk in silence?"
She shrugged as she fell into step with him. They walked in silence for a bit.
"Dare I ask what he did? I know it's Mr. Bosco. Did he tell you that you can't bootleg anymore after the wedding? Put a limit on your lemon water? Kill someone?" He laughed as though he were trying to lighten the mood, but when she looked at him with panic in her eyes, his laughter stopped.
He grabbed her hand and quickly walked through a bunch of tents. When they finally entered a tent, she realized it was his living space.
"Holy shit! He did kill someone." She started to respond. "No, don't tell me. You shouldn't talk about it. Ever. With anyone. People talk. Stories get back to cops."
"Why would you even ask that?"
"He looks like would definitely kill for you under the right circumstances, which leads me to ask, are you ok? What happened to your head? He didn't hit you, did he?"
She shook her head. "No, he didn't. He looks like he'd kill for me? That's funny: I never thought him capable of anything like that."
"But that's not true, is it?"
She sighed. "Other than in the war." Well, when she asked him if he'd ever shot anyone. He never said it was in the war.
"Well, there are different types of enemies. I assume whoever was involved in this tried to hurt you." She just nodded. Turning to face her, he placed his hands on top of her shoulders. "Are you ok? Did they hurt you?"
"He didn't hurt me. Sam was protecting me."
"Good. I suspect Sam wouldn't hurt you. The man is madly in love with you."
"I don't know if we're safe."
"From Bosco? Definitely."
"How can you know that? I-you didn't see what I saw. He acted so calmly when he...I have to protect my brothers. There's no one, not our papa not Sam, who's going to protect them."
"He may have seemed calm, but that doesn't mean he wasn't full of fear, anguish, or rage. You know you don't have to protect your brothers from him. If you believed that, they'd be here with you now. No, you ran off because he did something to anger you."
Well, that seemed silly hearing it that way. He was right; she wasn't even that upset about the murder stuff, or papa even. Those men would've hurt her, but Sam wouldn't stand for that. "He called me a 'stupid little girl.' I went to help my papa, and the man was waiting for me."
"Hmm. That'll do it. He doesn't really think that, you know? Most men with a little money and a wife younger than them treat their wives like a possession. He treats you like his equal-or however close you can actually come to that. If he thought you were a stupid little girl, he wouldn't even be around you."
"My papa used to call me that."
"The one you went to help?"
She paused for a moment, thinking of the words it hurt so much to say aloud. "Papa was in on it. He wanted me to lay with the man to pay his debts. I would never do anything like that!"
He whispered. "No. Never."
"I had money in hand to pay him. He said he didn't want that kind of payment from a lady." She started to cry.
Jane squeezed her hand. She looked into those sharp blue eyes filled with worry.
"When you met me, you assumed I was a kept woman. Is that what I'm meant to be? Trying to get papa out of his drinking debts is how I got in with Sam. He used to come collect. He started lingering a bit and talking to me, until he offered me a job. Only I didn't know for months the job was how he hoped to impress me to get me to agree to a courtship. Am I just a stupid little girl who pays her papa's debts?"
"No, you're more than that. Sam knows that."
"I just...I thought I knew him. He said he would never hurt me."
"He didn't mean it."
"You don't know that!" Whose side was he on, anyway?
"You're right. I don't know that, but I can tell you what I know. He loves you, and you love him. You asked me how I know you're safe. From what I can tell, there's only one thing that Sam Bosco fears: losing you. It's etched in his face. Like the other night when he had me removed. He seemed angry, but his eyes held fear."
"You didn't see it. He became a different man!"
"Sometimes, that happens to protect the people we love. I don't doubt that he'd do anything to protect you, and deep down, I think you know that. If he did anything to hurt you, he's giving himself a harder time for it than you ever will."
"He was protecting me."
Patrick furrowed his brow in confusion. "Teresa, why did you come here?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I needed space to think. I just wish everything wasn't so complicated!"
"Well, Teresa Lisbon, how would you like to join the carnival for a day? Experience a life so free of complications for one day, and one day only!" He spoke in his showman voice, which cheered her up a bit. He reached for her hand, and they were off.
First stop was food. She was famished! They ate corn on the cob and some pork. Later, he got them a funnel cake with extra sugar on it. He took her to all of the attractions, whispering how each one of them was rigged and obviously drawing the ire of those who ran the booths. They even stopped to see Ella. Sitting atop Ella, she could see why this appealed to Jimmy so much. Their day culminated in dancing. They danced for hours to the live music playing different songs, even some Irish dances that she hadn't done in years. She laughed and had so much fun. Is this what life was meant to be?
She remembered the last time she danced to Irish music. She was drunk for the first time and Sam held her up to dance because she wanted to dance. They held each other up on the way to the front of the house. He was good like that. It was the first time she acknowledged he was hers, too.
As the last song ended, Jane hugged her into his chest. "I know why I came here now."
"Why?"
"Before I broke free to try to get away and save myself, I heard you up on that damned Ferris wheel asking me if I needed Sam Bosco to throw my punches."
He chuckled. "And?"
"No." Her voice broke as she whispered. "But it sure is nice to have his help."
"Teresa, do you know what you have to do?"
She looked up into his blue eyes. "What if I'd rather join the carnival?"
He smirked at her. "I could tell you that I'd like that, and in fact, I'd love nothing more than to take Sam Bosco's place. Hell, we could have a carnie wedding in 20 minutes if it suited you!"
She laughed at that. "That's not the kind of thing I'm really into. I think. I don't know. What exactly is a carnie wedding?"
"It's exactly what it sounds like, but that's my point. You wouldn't be happy! You'd hate it here, but there's a place you'd love to be, even right now."
"I know you were just showing me a good time today, but it's not that bad is it? To be free?"
"I guess not, but isn't the grass always greener on the other side? You have your family, not your sleaze of a father, but your brothers and Sam. He loves you very much, and you love him. Otherwise, you would have never agreed to marry him. You're too strong willed for that. I have a sneaking suspicion that you loved him before you even knew you loved him."
There was a pause as she took in his words. "If I met you before I got involved with Sam…"
"Then, your life would be totally different. The you that exists now wouldn't be here!" That was true. Sam's words were the ones she heard to get herself out of trouble. His encouragement made her strong enough to fight and to know that she should expect better than who papa was.
Patrick whispered. "We wouldn't have just danced the night away at the carnival. You're a beautiful woman, Teresa. I don't just mean that about your outside appearance. You deserve only the best."
Sammy. "I have to go home."
"You do. Go home to Sam. Hear his apology because I am willing to bet he's spent this entire time thinking of what to say and do to make you happy again. Have a good life with him. Besides, if you're really fond of the carnival, when he's begging you for forgiveness later this evening, you can always ask him for a pony."
She laughed. She leaned into his chest just a little longer before she broke away, deciding it was time. He walked her to the car park. "It was nice to meet you, Teresa Lisbon."
"Likewise, Patrick Jane." He was a good friend. He really could see what you needed.
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As she entered their parlor, Sam immediately rushed to her and pulled her into his embrace. "Sweetheart, I'm so sorry. I...I've done a lot of things wrong today. I never meant to hurt you. Please forgive me. I'm so sorry. I love you."
"I love you, too."
"Forgive me. Please. I love you. You're not a stupid little girl. You're the furthest thing from it. I spoke in anger and fear. I said that the rule of this house was to never be cruel, and I broke my own rule. I was so afraid when I heard you'd gone there alone that I couldn't think of anything else other than getting to you. When I got there and saw the situation, I...I lost control. I would never hurt you or the boys."
"I know that, Sam. You love us. I forgive you. Do you forgive me?"
"For what? You didn't do anything wrong, Teresa. Not a damn thing! I wish you'd let me handle things, but it's taken care of now. It's done. You've always had that bravery about you, and you did so well protecting yourself. It doesn't make you stupid. It makes you the woman I love! You'd run directly into a fire to protect the ones you love. I just hope you'd remember to take me because I can't lose you. I can't think of a life without you, my love!"
His voice broke, and her heart along with it. "Please don't leave me, Teresa. I don't know what I would do without you."
"I wouldn't leave you, Sammy. I never thought he would do something like that, but you knew. You knew it! And you wanted to protect me. I realized when I got there that I made a mistake, but I tried to be as strong as you always tell me I am."
"You are so strong, sweetheart. I wish I could be a better man for you."
"You are a great man! My world is better for seeing how kind and loving you are, for seeing how a man can love his wife and children-even if they're not his own. My brothers adore you. I want them to be good men like you, and I know that's how they'll grow up because of you. You make me happy, and I want to have our children. I don't want to lose you either."
Their foreheads touched as he kissed her lips. "I'll always love and protect you, your brothers, and our children no matter what. You won't lose me."
"I'll never talk about what happened today. I won't let you go to prison because of me. I'll take it to my grave. We were on a stroll in Michigan today."
He nodded at her words as he took her hand and led her into their bedroom. Two days later, they were married.
A/N: Some of you are going to think this was a Jisbon bait. It was not. The next two chapters are the epilogue split into two parts. When you read them, you will understand why they are split (and why I included Jisbon in the summary for this story). Thanks for reading!
