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Chapter 33 by micdan282 micdan282

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The Present

Rikki and Thatcher stood there in silence for a while.

" I don’t know where her line is anymore.”

“She still cares about you, she told me that herself.”

He looked away, toward the skyline.

“Too late for that.”

Rikki stepped closer. “Luke… I think she's gone.”

“I figured, she does this, comes back causes trouble for me then leaves again,” he said with a bitter laugh.

"And you never revealed her identity to the police?"

“Nope. That’s the problem with people like us. We keep bending the rules for the people we care about. Until we don’t remember where the rules were in the first place.”

Rikki’s mind flashed not just to Sandra but to Devin and what she’d been doing to Finn.

Another long pause.

"There's something else," Rikki began, the words struggling to escape her throat.

"Sandra and I... We, well we had sex. Before I knew everything and before she told me she knew who I was we had a moment and well..."

Thatcher let out a long, tired sigh.

“Rikki,” he said, his voice softer than she’d expected. “Sandra… she’s always been like that. Charming. Manipulative. It’s what she does. She finds the cracks in you and makes you believe you need her.”

His gaze shifted back to her, and she saw a flicker of something—pity, maybe, or resignation. “You’re not the first, and you won’t be the last,” he continued. “Hell, even after everything she did, sometimes she still manages to get under my skin. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t fallen for her tricks now and then.”

Rikki’s eyes widened. “You mean...”

He gave a weary, bitter smile. “Yeah. Even after we separated, there were times. Weak moments. She’d show up, and I’d think maybe, just maybe, she’d changed. But she never did. She’s a master at making you forget who she really is.”

Rikki’s throat tightened.

“I should’ve known better,” she murmured.

Thatcher shook his head. “Don’t beat yourself up, Rikki. You were ****. She knows how to exploit that. But listen to me: don’t let her define you. Don’t let her win.”

Tears stung at the corners of her eyes, but she blinked them away. “I won’t,” she promised. “I won’t let her control me.”

He nodded, a hint of pride in his eyes. “Good.”

Silence settled over them again, but this time it felt different. Heavy, but not crushing. She felt Thatcher’s acceptance, his understanding and even, despite everything, his compassion.

“Thank you,” she said softly. He smiled at her, patted her on the shoulder and headed back inside. Her world was a wild and crazy place but things between her and Thatcher were going to be okay.

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