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Colleen held her hands up. “Thanks, but I’ll pass right now.” They would only be here for a few days, so she hoped she’d never have to touch him.
Finn set Alfie down and the dog immediately growled. He hopped on his hind legs, barking at her.
“He’s a little standoffish with strangers, but he’ll warm up to you.”
Colleen eyed Alfie with skepticism, saying, “I’m sure he will.”
“Let me take him out in the backyard and then I’ll put him in his bed.” Finn attached a leash to Alfie’s collar, talking to him in the way parents do with babies. “I’ll be right back.” Having to take a dog out to pee and poop underscored again her belief that cats were superior pets. They did what they needed to do in a litter box without any help from anyone.
After Finn left, Colleen took a closer look at the Kinkade prints. She cringed inwardly at the blatant sentimentality.
She paused to inspect a print over the fireplace. It was one of Kinkade’s famous cottage scenes. The cottage was made of stone with a thatched roof. A resplendent garden with a variety of flowering shrubs welcomed the viewer to the cottage. A babbling brook and an adjacent pond with lily pads included a few ducks paddling around in the water. The soft, evening light filtered through the trees in the background completed the romantic, fairy tale setting.
“It’s impressive, isn’t it?” Finn said, coming up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. “My mom never gets tired of looking at all the details. There’s always something new to see.”
Colleen turned in his arms. “Why does your mom like this stuff? It’s pure schmaltz.”
“These prints brought her a lot of joy during a tough time. He said quietly, “It’s not fair to judge another person’s journey unless you’ve been in their shoes.”
“You’re right,” she said. Finn and his mother had been through so much with Patrick. Molly had earned the right to plaster every room of the house with whatever she wanted to look at that would make her feel better. “That was rude of me. I’m sorry.”
“Look, it’s late, do you want to stay up for a while? Play a game? Talk?” he asked, his eyes lighting up with mischief.
“Talk like we did in the park that night?” Colleen tried to be nonchalant, but her pounding heartbeat betrayed any attempt as subtlety. She wanted more than what they had that night. She wanted all of him.
“Yeah, just like that,” Finn said, placing a finger gently on her throat, undoubtedly aware of her rapid pulse. “I think we’re ready to move beyond talking, don’t you?”
Colleen swallowed and Finn leaned in, whispering, “Don’t be nervous. I’ve wanted to be with you for a long time. And, I think,” he said, his lips hovering close to hers, “you’ve wanted to be with me.” His lips brushed against hers as if waiting for permission.
“Yes,” Colleen said, pressing her lips to his, her nervousness slowly dissolving as warmth spread throughout her body.
Finn took her in his arms, pulling her close for a kiss. His lips parted, his tongue stroking hers. They had all the time in the world and yet, his kiss became urgent.
Clicking nails on the hardwood floor and the barking of a familiar scruffy dog filled the room.
Finn broke their kiss. “Alfie,” he said in a firm voice. “It’s time for you to be in bed.” He scooped Alfie up in his arms. “This time you’re going in your crate, little man.”
Colleen stifled a giggle and followed Finn into his mom’s bedroom and placed Alfie in a metal crate with a plush bed.
She wanted the dog out of the way, but she didn’t want him locked up. “Do you have to put him in a cage?”
“It’s not like that. He’s been crate trained and he goes in here a lot; it’s his safe place.”
“It still seems like a cage.”
Finn stood and approached her. “Trust me. He’ll be fine.” He took her by the hand and left his mom’s bedroom. He led the way down a short hallway until he reached another bedroom. He opened the door and switched on a dim side light.
Colleen stepped into the room. There were a few framed posters of various basketball players on the walls, as well as a couple of sports trophies on the dresser. “Was this your bedroom?”
“It technically still is whenever I come to visit.”
“Do you come here often?”
Finn gave her a shrug. “I try and help my mom out as much as I can.”
“I always imagined you living in a playboy penthouse, dating and bedding every woman in New York City.” After everything that had happened, she was impressed that he cared enough about his mom to keep a close eye on her.
“I’m flattered you thought about me,” he said, dragging his teeth over his lip. “But I’m not that guy anymore.”
