“You’re going to take this,” he murmured. “Because this isn’t knight-in-shining-armor time. I’m not trying to save you. I’m repaying a debt and giving you one of the tools you’re going to need to build your better future.”

When she didn’t reply, he tapped one of the bundles. “Think of it like this—I’m helping you buy your own white horse…. Gretchen, for God’s sake, you need to take the money.”

The bastard used her real name.

Damn him.

God…it had been so long since anyone had called her Gretchen. To Robbie she was “Mom.” To everyone else, she was Marie-Terese. She’d always loved her real name, though, and hearing it now, she wanted it back.

Gretchen…Gretchen…

She stared at the money. Vin was right: She took that and she had serious breathing room. Except…how was this different from before? It was still a man bailing her out.

It just didn’t feel right.

She stepped up to him and put her hands on either side of his face.

“You are a lovely, lovely man, Vincent diPietro.” She pulled him down to her lips and he went willingly, his palms settling lightly on her shoulders as their mouths met. “And I want to thank you.”

Happiness flared in the hard lines of his face. But only for a moment.

“I’ll always remember your gesture,” she murmured.

“You don’t have to take the hard route,” he said, his brows drawing together. “You—”

“But see, that’s what I learned. Things are hard for me now because I tried to take the easy way out first.” She smiled up at him, thinking that she was going to remember how he was looking at her now for the rest of her life. “That’s the problem with white horses. You have to pay for them yourself or you’ll always be using someone else’s reins.”

He stared down at her for the longest time. “You’re breaking my fucking heart in half right now, you really are.” His hands tightened on her arms and then released as he stepped back. “It’s like…I can reach out and touch you, but you’re already gone.”

“I’m sorry.”

He looked over at the cash. “You know…I’ve never realized this before. But money is really just paper when you come down to it.”

“I’m going to be okay.”

“Are you.” He shook his head. “Sorry, that came out wrong.”

Except he was right to be worried. Hell, she was, too. “I’ll stay in touch.”

“I’d like that…. Any idea where you’re headed?”

“I don’t know. Haven’t given it a lot of thought.”