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“Uhhh…”
“Hey, Marissa, what can I do for you today?” Finn’s deep voice filters through the line, and my shoulders instantly relax.
I’m not ashamed of what’s going on between Finn and me, but I want to keep it quiet for a little while. At least until I know that he isn’t going to shatter my heart into a million pieces. I promised myself I would never give a man so much power over how I live my life, and here I am, afraid of my best friend finding out who I’m going on a date with.
“Hey. I just wanted to know where we were going on our date. I’m trying to figure out what to wear.”
“You don’t have to wear anything if I get a vote.” Finn’s gravelly voice sends a shiver down my spine. “But you can dress casually. We aren’t doing anything fancy.”
“I can hear you!” Peyton shouts, causing my cheeks to heat in embarrassment.
“Shut it, you,” I growl at her.
“No need to be so rude,” Finn responds.
“I wasn’t talking to you.”
“To who? Me? I thought you were on the phone with your mystery man, who sounds gorgeous, by the way.”
“Why thank you, Peyton.” Finn raises his voice slightly, probably to ensure she can hear him.
“Oooh, he knows my name. That narrows down the list considerably.”
“Will you both shut it for two seconds so I can ask my question?” I huff, pulling the phone away from my ear and covering it with my other hand.
“This is not helping. I’m freaking out here, Peyway. Can you please just sit there quietly and let me find out where we are going tonight?”
“Fine. Take away all my fun,” Peyton huffs, crossing her arms and poking out her bottom lip.
“Thank you.” I flash her a smile before bringing the phone back to my ear. “Now, as I was saying. Are you going to tell me what we’re doing?”
“No, it’s a surprise.”
“I hate surprises.”
“I know.” He chuckles softly before ending the call.
“He’s good.” Peyton giggles, causing my cheeks to heat even further.
“Shut up.” I spin in my chair to face the wall, not wanting to see the smug look on Peyton’s face. “He said to dress casually.”
“Okay, that helps. Now, let’s find you an outfit.”
We spend the rest of my shift searching for the perfect outfit before Peyton makes a beeline back to my apartment to grab everything I need to get ready. She does my hair and forces me to use the shower in the locker room to take a shower and shave my legs. I smell just like a field of strawberries once I’m finished, and I head out of the station with a pat on the butt and well wishes from both Dolores and Peyton.
I arrive at the bar quickly, pulling into a spot near the back stairs leading down from the apartment above the bar. Just as I’m locking my car, I notice Finn strolling out the back door. His hair is damp from a recent shower. He’s wearing an almost-new button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled to the elbows and dark jeans fitted perfectly to his muscular legs.
“Didn’t your mama teach you not to stare?” He chuckles as he comes to a stop a few inches away from me.
I drop my head to my chest. Nothing like ogling a man to make things awkward. To maintain some of my dignity, I ramble off all the ideas I came up with of what we might do tonight, trying to look anywhere but at him.
Finn steps into my line of sight, causing me to stop my rambling and look into his eyes. “Good evening, sugar.” Finn stalks toward me. “I’ve been looking forward to seeing you all day. I missed you.”
My breath catches in my throat as I straighten my back, unwilling to give in. “It’s only been four days. How could you possibly have missed me that much?”
I back up slightly, eager to get away from him.
“Spending a minute away from you is torture. I want your face to be the first thing I see in the morning and the last thing I see when I close my eyes at night.” He continues to stalk toward me with passion in his eyes.
