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After entering the lounge bar on the right, she dropped her things onto one of the low coffee tables farthest from the front door.
Along the left was a cherrywood bar. Its high stools with black fabric cushions were pushed in and perfectly aligned along the length. The American bistro ambiance was pleasing to the eye. The lounge housed oversized brown leather furniture arranged in small groups with a dark wood coffee table in the middle. A few high, round tables sat along the back wall.
With an hour to go over her plans for Sterling and Jack’s wedding, she was beyond early, but considering her mind was on other, much more dramatic things, she needed the extra time to focus and prepare.
She pulled out the files from her case. They had two agreements to go over today, along with fabric samples for tablecloths. But despite having a pile of papers to concentrate on, she couldn’t help but be distracted by Cal’s unexpected, and troubling, revelation. Her new life as a single woman, and her plans to expand her business, were being put on hold. Not to mention that her first—and only—chance to seduce the man she had lusted over most of her life would now probably never come to fruition. How could it? When was she going to have time to properly seduce a man and also make sure Cal was turning into a productive member of society, let alone concentrate on her business? She’d had friends whose mothers put sex, men, and careers ahead of their children. Her own mother had done so. The sex and men part, anyway. Veronica would never in a million years do that to her siblings. No matter how horny she got, or how much she wanted Finn in her bed.
Her gaze skimmed past the open section to the opposite side of the restaurant. The dining room hadn’t been set up for evening service yet. The bare tabletops had a black laminate finish, and when dressed they were covered with champagne-colored tablecloths and set with all of the cutlery and glassware one would need to enjoy a delicious meal. And she knew firsthand how amazing the meals were here. She had eaten at Carmel too many times to count.
“Good morning.” Finn’s delectably sexy voice carried over her shoulder. “I thought I heard the back door.”
He came up behind her, the heat from his body engulfing her like a Florida heat wave. She patted the tight bun at the nape of her neck, cleared her throat, then turned. Her stomach tightened the moment her gaze settled on his face. His broad shoulders always dwarfed her tiny stature. His beach-ready blond hair reminded her of a summer day, even when it was the middle of winter. And his chiseled jawline gave his looks just a bit of an edge. But it was his eyes—the deep-blue eyes that always saw too much—that made her knees weak.
The man never failed to take her breath away.
“M-morning, Finn.” She stuttered her words; his presence was just too overwhelming.
Last night had changed the game, and now, instead of the tiny tingle of excitement she usually got in her stomach whenever he was around, her entire body lit up in a heated frenzy. How was she ever going to go back to just being friends with Finn O’Reilly? No way.
“You’re a little early.”
“I…uh…” She moved to the opposite side of the table and bent, picking up the book of tablecloth swatches. “I have some things I need to prepare.” She sifted through the swatches, pretending to be busy. She had too much to deal with. Not just her job and Sterling and Jack’s wedding, but Cal and the bomb he’d dropped this morning.
She made the mistake of looking up. Finn’s grin was way too inappropriate so early in the morning. But his smile turned into a curious gaze and it froze her in place. His scrutiny meant only one thing—his mind was working a mile a minute and he was trying to figure something out.
“Are you going to tell me what’s bothering you?”
“I’m…fine.” Damn him. And damn him for knowing her for more than half her life. She couldn’t hide anything from him.
“No, you’re not fine.” He crossed his arms over his chest.
She readjusted her glasses on her nose. “It’s nothing.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled, directing her to the back hallway leading to the washrooms.
He settled his back against the warm beige paint, one leg bent with his foot resting on the wall. “Spill it.”
“Finn, everything is—”
“Not fine.” He lifted his hand. “See this spot right here?” His finger caressed her temple. “This is where your worry vein makes an appearance whenever something is bothering you.”
“I have a worry vein?” She lifted her hand and rubbed at the spot.
“So you are worried.” He pushed off the wall and crowded her, backing her against the opposite side of the hallway. His hard body hovered against hers.
If she had been worried, she was no longer. Funny how his simple touch had the ability to cloud her thoughts and make her forget her name.
“So, spill.” His simple command coaxed out all of her troubles.
With a heavy sigh, she told him everything. “Cal’s not going to university. He’s just not going. Which means he’s not leaving home. Which means the new start I was planning to make has been put on hold, and I’m feeling a little bit frustrated. Okay, a lot frustrated.” She fisted her hands. “Could I be any more selfish? There’s obviously something going on with him but all I can think about is myself and how my plans are ruined.”
She choked back a sob. So much for being the sexy seductress Finn could fantasize about. With one tiny rant, she’d just ruined any chance she might have had of changing the way he saw her. She was once again the pesky little sister who needed his help.
“Shhh…” He stroked the sides of her cheeks with his thumbs. “You are not a bad person just because you’re searching for personal fulfillment. It’s about time you got a chance to fulfill your own dreams. You’ve had to carry the burden of raising those kids all by yourself the last couple of years. That couldn’t have been easy.”
Finn had never told her how he felt about Mark leaving. It made sense that a good buddy might keep those feelings to himself. But she wondered what he thought about losing his best friend. It wasn’t something they’d talked about, but he must have felt the loss almost as much as she had.
“What’s Cal going to do if he doesn’t go to school?”
