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“Varsity football and lacrosse,” Finn said, before adding, “And fencing.”
“Really?” Cora almost stopped in the middle of the dance floor. She never imagined him as an athlete. He always seemed more like the CEO type. The guy in the suit, watching the game from a private box up in the stands.
“And golf, too, I suppose,” Finn added. “But that was more of a leisure thing I did on the weekends with my dad.” A quirk of his mouth. “You seem surprised.”
“I am, a little,” Cora said. “I just honestly had you pegged as more of an indoor-sport type of person.”
“Indoor sports.” His lips twitched like he was trying not to smile. “Such as bowling or darts?”
“I don’t know...” Cora glanced sheepishly up at him. “Chess, maybe?”
“Actually, I was in the chess club in high school,” Finn admitted. “Captain of it.”
“I knew it!”
“And I was also a Mathlete,” he added with a boyish grin that warmed Cora all the way to her toes. “So, your assumptions were still accurate.”
Huh. A high school jock and a nerd. Well that explained the muscular shoulders he was hiding underneath the tailored suit of his. Suzette’s comment about him being an undercover Clark Kent type was beginning to make sense. Cora started to imagine what Finn looked like out of his suit, then a hot blush scorched across her face. What the heck was she doing? This was Finn! Her dad’s stuffy golf buddy. The man whose dress shoes were shinier than hers. Pull yourself together, McLeod!
When the song ended, Finn walked Cora back to their table, where Rob Hopper was now trying to convince Suzette that Fight Club was a better movie than Pride and Prejudice.
“Give it up, Hopper,” Cora said. “I happen to agree with Suzette, so you’re outnumbered.”
“What about you?” Rob asked Finn hopefully. “Surely you’re team Fight Club. Tell them how good it is. A classic, really.”
Finn looked back and forth between Rob and the two women, then chose neutral ground. “Sorry, man. First rule, remember? I can’t talk about Fight Club.”
Rob slapped Finn on the back, and for the next hour, Cora sat in comfortable companionship with her best friend, Finn and Rob. She drank more wine, ate more desserts, and, to her utmost surprise, found that she was enjoying herself.
It was past two o’clock in the morning when Finn pulled his car up to her house after the gala. Cora’s mood had shifted during the quiet ride home, and she was back to brooding about Liam’s no-show, but she owed it to Finn to put on a good face. She’d ended up having a nice time, in spite of everything, and Finn deserved her gratitude.
He walked her to the front door, and tension suddenly crackled in the air between them. It was dark, and the rest of the world in her bedroom community was fast asleep. The only sound was the soft rustle of leaves in the breeze, and a faint tinkling wind chime somewhere in the distance.
Cora dug around in her purse for her house key. She was aware of Finn’s solid presence standing quietly beside her. What now? This was weird. It suddenly felt so...datey. Surely, he didn’t expect a good-night kiss, or anything. Her face flushed with heat. Of course, he didn’t. There wasn’t anything between them except friendship. God, she shouldn’t have had that last glass of champagne. Her brain had jumped the track and was zooming into the weeds.
She let out a shaky breath and pulled her keys from her purse. Dropped them. Bent to pick them up. Began fumbling with the lock. “I don’t know what’s wrong with this stupid thing,” she muttered when the lock stuck. “I had someone come out and fix it just last week. I swear this house is falling apart. I can’t wait until—”
“Here, let me try.” Finn reached out to take the keys. A spark of energy snapped between them when his fingertips brushed hers.
Cora sucked in a breath.
His face was half in shadow, but she could hear the smile in his voice. “Static electricity.”
She gave a shaky laugh, wondering if he was going to start explaining the science behind it. Finn was a brilliant attorney; she already knew that. But he was really smart about other things, too. And while some of the topics he chose to discuss were unusual, he was like a bright ember, glowing with intelligence and surprising charm. Funny, she’d never really realized that about him before.
The lock clicked and Finn pushed the door open for her.
Cora stepped over the threshold, her breath catching when she slid past his chest and their arms brushed against each other. She felt everything so acutely, the rasp of fabric on her bare skin, the warmth emanating from his solid body, the evergreen, spicy scent of his cologne. She turned to face him and shoved all her strange feelings into the background.
“Well, thanks for that.” She gestured wildly to the street.
He cocked his head and studied her. Maybe he didn’t catch her meaning.
“The um, the gala. For taking me. And stuff.” Wow. She was really killing it in the eloquence department. He must be astounded by her scintillating conversational skills. That’s probably why he wasn’t speaking. Uh-huh.
He handed back her keys and she took them. This time, when their fingers brushed, a languid, lazy warmth slid up her arms, spiraling through her limbs. A lock of hair dangled from her updo and fell into her eyes. She shoved it away, but it fell right back again.
Very slowly, Finn reached out and tucked it behind her ear. It was an oddly endearing gesture, the kind of thing someone would do if they knew another person for years. But in the moment, it felt so intimate, Cora’s smile began to fade. She bit her bottom lip, overwhelmed with nervous energy.
