‘Why? Are you planning to mess about in the lift again?’ I looked up at him, saw the thoughts that had suddenly shown in my own mind’s eye reflected there and quickly looked away.
Silence settled again, broken only by the sound of my heels clacking on the floor. I couldn’t help wishing I’d worn quieter shoes.
‘How’s the project going?’
‘Yeah, good, thanks. All on schedule so far. How’s the exhibition planning?’
‘Going to plan at the moment. Hopefully everything will tie up. I’ve got a meeting about it later online. If you’re in the office, I can wear headphones so as not to disturb you.’
‘You don’t disturb me.’ He glanced down, as I looked up and felt a bolt shoot through me. I took a quick scan of the corridor and then gave Finn a hefty shove into the room just down from my office which we used as storage. Thankfully he was off his guard as I’d have had no chance of moving him otherwise. He stumbled back against the shelving as I shut the door.
‘What do you want?’
He gave his surroundings a quick survey before looking down at me, his face scrunched in displeasure. ‘I want to be in a place that there aren’t long-dead people peering at me.’
‘Oh for goodness’ sake, it’s cleaning supplies. No one’s about to mummify you.’
‘You’re saying I’m not important enough?’ He flashed a smile. ‘I’ve been reading up.’
I squashed the little glow that he’d taken the time to further his knowledge on the subject and concentrated on the task in hand. ‘Finn, I don’t know what you want and frankly it’s driving me crazy.’
‘Crazy in a good way?’
‘No! Not in a good way!’ I snapped back. ‘In a bad way. In a messing with my head way. We agreed to never discuss what happened again and then you go around looking all hot in a hard hat – I mean you’re supposed to look like Bob the Builder but you don’t. It’s not fair and you absolutely refuse to have a thing with Bella which would be perfect as it would distract everyone involved and then you turn up at my door, acting all concerned and Alpha Male but then walk straight off.’
‘That’s not my intention, Elizabeth.’
‘Then what is your intention, Finn?’
Finn sucked in a deep breath and tipped his head back as he slowly let it out before looking down and hooking my gaze onto his.
‘You really want to know what my intention is?’
‘Yes!’
There was a beat of silence between us and then Finn’s hands were cupping my face, his mouth on mine, hard and desperate before suddenly pulling away. ‘I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have—’
I wasn’t listening. I reached back up for his face, not wanting the kiss he’d begun to end. Finn responded immediately, his hands wrapping around my thighs to even the height difference as my own hands linked behind his neck and my legs hooked around his waist. He drew back for breath, his eyes shining with the same smile his mouth curved into now that it was free of mine momentarily.
‘Does that answer your question?’
‘To an extent.’
‘I’m happy to explain further,’ he whispered, his lips travelling down my neck.
I let out a sigh of pleasure and felt him smile against my throat. ‘I love it when you make that noise.’ His voice was low, gravelly and soft and I wanted this moment to last forever. To forge it in amber like some of the exhibits in our collection. Clacking heels outside dragged us both rudely back into reality.
‘Bella,’ I mouthed to him.
And then another thought hit me and I slid down his body, finding my feet once again. ‘We can’t,’ I whispered.
‘What?’
‘This. I can’t. We can’t. Bella would be—’
I didn’t finish the sentence because Finn kissed me again and any thoughts I had momentarily imploded in my brain, leaving nothing but dust.
‘Bella would be upset? Is that what you were going to say?’ he whispered, his hand still splayed on my hip, the warmth feeling sturdy and secure.
