Previously in "Pages in Between", Meredith and John make love, Finn and Sage take Ruby to a blind school in Italy and Colin & Tanya both tell someone that it's over between them.

Chapter Eighteen

Back in the States…

Finn approached Elijah as his younger brother stood up to greet him. Finn had asked Elijah to distract him with something other than what was really on his mind. Elijah hugged his brother and it was quiet between them until Finn cleared his throat. "So, how's Eleanor?"

"She's doing better," Elijah said. "It's still hard sometimes, but she's healing. They were soul mates, the two of them, and she'll always love him and miss him."

Finn nodded then stepped back. "I feel that Sage and I have reached the point where the spark has died," he said sadly, turning away to pick up the glass of bourbon his brother must have ordered before he got there.

"But you are not positive?" Elijah questioned Finn as he picked up the second glass on the table.

Finn sighed. "I don't know."

Elijah nodded. "Do you love her?"

"Of course I do," Finn said. "Sage is the air I breathe, the love of my life." He sighed again. "I just…we're facing yet another challenge in our lives and it's taking its toll on both of us."

Meanwhile…

Sage approached the mansion and knocked gently on the front door. Katherine opened the door just seconds later, opening her arms to the tall redhead, who fell into them, sobbing quietly.

Katherine rubbed Sage's back consolingly. "What's wrong, Sage?"

Sage sobbed. "I think Finn and I might get a divorce! We lost our spark!"

The olive-skinned brunette guided Sage into the house and closed the door behind them. "You don't really believe that, Sage, do you? You and Finn have been married for, what, 30 years? I've seen the way you two are around each other, around Ruby, Bridget and Cooper, and our great-nephew. You're meant to be."

"Do you really think so, Katherine?" Sage asked as she dried her eyes with a tissue that her sister in law gave to her.

Katherine nodded. "I know so, Sage. You and Finn have been through worse things than this. You may not know this, but we all look up to you."

Sage gently wiped her eyes with the tissue. "I had no idea."

"We do. Elijah and myself, Klaus and Caroline, Rebekah and Stefan, Kol and Lexi and even Henrik and Francesca," Katherine said with a sympathetic smile.

Sage bit her lip. Maybe she and Finn could work this out after all. "You're right. We're a role model for all your marriages. Maybe Finn and I can still fix this."

Later…

Katherine sank onto the couch next to her sisters in law, Francesca and Lexi. "So, what is the plan going to be?" Lexi asked Katherine as she threw aside the magazine she'd been reading.

Katherine cleared her throat. "I was thinking that maybe we could arrange for Finn and Sage to have a romantic weekend together so that they rekindle their romance."

"That's awesome," Lexi said. "Maybe they could go to a bed and breakfast in the country. That's always romantic."

"I know the perfect one," Francesca said from her spot beside Lexi.

Lexi looked at Francesca. "Which one were you thinking?"

"The Birchwood Manor," Francesca said. "Henrik and I stayed there on our anniversary, and I think Finn and Sage will love it."

"Are we, like, going to arrange for them to have the same room?" Eleanor asked as she wandered in to where her daughters-in-law were. "I think it would have to be arranged that way, otherwise, they'll be suspicious…but not until after they're already there."

Katherine nodded at what Eleanor said. "We'll definitely arrange for them to have the same room, Eleanor. Only, we won't make the reservations under our names, it'll be under Finn's." She whipped out a card. "I even stole one of his credit cards so that it'll look like he paid for it."

Lexi smirked. "Kat, you are so devious!"

"I know, aren't I?" Katherine said. "I'm also very sneaky." She winked at the ladies at the end of her statement.

Francesca giggled then grabbed the credit card from Katherine's hand then ran out of the room to go use the computer Mikael had in his office. She put all the right information in while her stepmother-in-law and two sisters-in-law watched before giving a triumphant smile. "It's done. Now, all we need to do is arrange for the persuasion part," she said with a grin.

A Few Days Later…

"No! I cannot leave Cooper by himself and just…go away on a trip randomly!" Sage screeched at her sisters-in-law.

Katherine shook her head. "Sage, Cooper won't be here by himself. He'll be well taken care of by me and his great-aunts. I know that you're worried about him, but trust me, he couldn't be in better hands." She looked at Lexi and Francesca. "Ladies, back me up here, will you? Cooper's in good hands with us, isn't he?"

Lexi nodded. "Katherine is right, Sage. We'll take care of Cooper while you're gone."

"I agree with them," Francesca said. "We're responsible, mature ladies who love our great-nephew very much."

"Well, what about the studio? I cannot leave my responsibilities there," Sage tried to protest again.

Katherine sighed heavily. "Again, it's all taken care of. Lexi, Francesca and I will handle everything at the studio as well as looking after Cooper."

Sage was about to protest again when Lexi said, "Sage, it'll do you good to go away for a while."

"Alright, fine. When do I leave and where am I going?" Sage said with a loud sigh.

"You're leaving now, and you're going to the Birchwood Manor, where Henrik and I went for our anniversary a few years ago," Francesca said.

Sage nodded. "And how am I paying for this?"

Katherine smirked. "Don't worry about it. It's already paid for."

In the Meantime…

Finn was looking through some bills when he noticed a rather unexpected purchase on his credit card one.

Finn eyed the bill. "I don't remember paying for this."

"Well, you certainly did, brother," Henrik said, coming up behind his brother. "And it also looks like you're going on vacation."

"A vacation…I can't go on a vacation!" Finn said. "Where the bloody hell am I going on this vacation?"

"Birchwood Manor, the place Francesca and I spent our anniversary a few years ago."

"This isn't some kind of trick, is it, Henrik? I cannot go. I have to look after the clinic," Finn protested.

Henrik smiled. "Oh, it's not a trick. It's perfectly legit. And as far as looking after the clinic is concerned, Kol, Elijah and I have it covered."

Finn sighed. "Alright, I'm going to need directions to this place you're talking about."

Henrik smiled and handed his brother a brochure. "The directions are on here. They're easy to follow."

Finn took the brochure from Henrik and looked at it. "And you're certain that this is a good place?"

"It's better than that, it's amazing," Henrik said. "It's so amazing; in fact, Francesca was raving about it for weeks after we got back."

Meanwhile, Sage was on the road, the top down in her vintage 1978 Ford Mustang and the wind blowing through her red hair, streaked with gray.

When Sage finally arrived at the Birchwood Manor, she was surprised to see Finn's car in the parking lot. How did he find out about this place? She couldn't have told him, and neither did any of the other women. Deciding it wasn't important, she went inside to check in.

She removed her sunglasses once she was inside and smiled at the woman behind the counter. "Hello, I'm here to check in," she told her as she put her sunglasses away into her purse at her elbow.

The woman behind the counter returned her smile and said, "Ah, yes, Mrs. Mikaelson. You're in Room 214."

Sage nodded and when she went to walk away, she ran into Finn, who had just approached the reception desk. "Finn, what are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he replied. "I saw that I paid for a reservation at the Birchwood Manor and then, Henrik talked me into coming here."

"I was talked into coming here by Katherine, Lexi and Francesca," Sage said. "They said they would look after Cooper and cover for me at the studio."

Finn began to shake his head. "I don't believe this. I don't bloody believe this! We've been set up by my brothers!"

"No. They wouldn't dare try and pull a stunt like this, would they?"

Finn nodded. "You don't know my brothers, Sage. They're capable of just about anything, including this."

Sage sighed. "Well, they obviously must care about us if they went to the trouble of arranging this. Don't you think that maybe we can try to…you know, give this place a chance? I mean, if Henrik and Francesca liked it here, maybe we'll like it too."

Finn nodded again, smiling over at her. "What room are you staying in?"

"Room…214," she replied.

"There has to be a mistake. I'm staying in 214," Finn said before turning to the woman at the counter.

Sage gently grabbed his arm. "Finn, I think I know why we're in the same room. Katherine and the girls did this."

Finn mused on that and nodded. "I think you're right. Katerina is quite clever, and I think she was the one who charged the reservations on my credit card." He sighed. "Elijah married himself a sneaky woman, he did." Curiously, he added, "Why do you think they did this?"

"It's probably because we told them our situation."

Her husband nodded then smiled. "I know why they put us in that room. It's the anniversary of when we first met. Do you remember?"

Sage smiled. "I do. You were so sexy that night, I couldn't resist you."

"Is that so?" Finn said. "Well, you were absolutely beautiful that night, Irish Rose." He kissed her softly. "And you still are."

His eyes lowered back to her lips before he was tugging her to him and claiming her lips in a desperate, hungry kiss. Sage's arms wrapped around his neck and she stepped backward toward the stairs, as they stumbled up the flight of them until they reached the second landing and went up more stairs.

It wasn't long until they arrived at the room and Finn used the key to get in. Once they got in, he pushed Sage against the door. "I love you, Sage."

"I love you more, Finn," she said then framed his face between cool fingers and let her arms drift up until they were around his neck. He took the hint and claimed her lips again, pressing himself against her and pushing her further against the door, making it rattle a little.

After a few minutes, Finn then picked her up bridal style and carried her over to her bed, following her onto the cool sheets.

Sage's hands drifted to his shirt's buttons and she began to all but rip them free, tilting her head back to give him better access to her neck and letting out a strangled cry as he moved further down.

Finn smiled against her neck and felt the vibrations of her screams. "That's it, Irish Rose. Let it out, let me know you're enjoying this."

"Oh, I'm enjoying this alright," she said with a smirk as she pushed on his chest until she was over him, her arms crossing down by her sides and lifting the blouse she wore until she was nearly naked from the waist up, save for her bra.

Finn smiled. "You're as beautiful as ever."

Sage grinned. "And you're still as sexy as ever," she replied as she arched her back when he sat up to peel his shirt away then used eager hands to release the hooks of her bra and all but pushing it away then suckled a breast into his mouth.

Sage felt his mouth on her breast and moaned before letting out yet another scream. Finn pulled away before shifting her onto her back, lowering his head to press open-mouthed kisses along the skin of her stomach until he reached the waist of her dark wash denim jeans, where he used his hands to caress the soft skin underneath before coming back to the front and unfastening the button. He also lowered the zipper then sat up and teased her more as the tip of his finger along the waistband of her silk panties.

Sage felt his finger along the waistband of her panties and ran her hands down to his pants, loosening the belt and then undoing the button, running her finger along the waistband of his boxers.

Finn's head fell back when he felt her returning the favor and he held back a groan, biting down on his lip before he lifted her hips then removed her panties before standing up and removing the rest of his clothing.

Sage licked her lips. "My handsome British Prince."

"My beautiful Irish Rose," Finn returned as he moved up the length of her body, lips licking a trail up her slender thighs, placing open-mouthed kisses along them and going further up.

Sage felt his lips on her and trembled slightly. "Finn, please don't…"

"Don't what, Sage?"

"Don't tease me."

"Oh, love, I'm just getting started," he said with a smirk but obliged her anyway, moving up and briefly kissing her breasts before claiming her mouth again.

Sage moaned against his lips and returned his kiss, wrapping her legs around his waist. Finn grasped one of her thighs then thrust into her, moving slowly at first then growling when he felt her heel lift to push against his rear end and he began thrusting harder, faster.

Sage gyrates her hips in time with his thrusts, keeping in sync with his movements, and Finn rolls them over until she's on top. "I love you, Sage," he whispers.

Hours Later…

Finn eases Sage out of his light embrace then gets dressed and leaves their shared room to head downstairs and outside.

Sage woke up and saw that Finn's side of the bed was empty. "Finn, where are you?"

It then occurred to her that she knew where he was, so she got dressed and hurried out of their room. She stepped outside and saw him on the porch. "Hey, what are you doing out here?"

Finn turned to her and smiled. "I was here, hoping that you'd find me."

She smiled back and stepped up to him, her arms embracing his neck. "I love you, so, so much, Finnegan Cooper Mikaelson," she whispered to him.

"Not as much as I love you, Sage Victoria O'Reilly Mikaelson," he whispered back.

Sage smiled and kissed him. "I'm glad that we're here together. This was just what we needed." She sighed. "I never want to be without you, Finn."

"I never want to be without you either," Finn said. "I love you more than anything, Sage, you know that. If it seemed like I wasn't paying attention to you, I apologize."

"Finn, it's all right, I've already forgiven you," Sage said. "If there's anything being married to you for thirty years has taught me, it's that there's nothing we can't accomplish together."

He nodded then kissed her softly on the lips. "What do you say to this: when we leave here after a few days, we go visit Bridget?" he suggested as they stood with her back to his front and his hands gripping the porch railing on either side of her.

Sage smiled. "That's a great idea. I love it."

Author's Note: The next chapter will see the appearance of Bridget Mikaelson! I hope you enjoyed getting to see this one, because it was a great journey for the fans of Sage & Finn!