Chapter Twenty-One
One Week Later
Finn was grateful for the luxury sedan Hurst Capital dispatched for him and Simon. He didn’t think he was able to tolerate small talk from a cabbie, so the staunch professionalism of the well-dressed driver suited him just fine. Without the distraction of meaningless conversation, Finn’s thoughts were free to take over completely. He barely registered the cacophony of the busy world just outside of the backseat window except to will the sea of traffic away.
You’ve made it this far, he told himself. What’s another couple hours?
He sighed. Torture, that’s what. He had no idea how to make it through an entire meeting pretending to be nothing more than a friendly acquaintance when he hadn’t seen Emanuela in a month.
Simon seemed to sense his anxiety and reached out to squeeze his shoulder. The driver let the partition down to give the time, 1:20, and announce that they were about five minutes away. Before he could think better of it, Finn pulled out his phone to call Emanuela.
“Hey you,” she said in the velvety, singsong tone she saved just for him. “Are you finally here?”
“Nearly. Just a few more minutes. Wanted to give you a heads-up.”
He couldn’t hide the strain in his voice, and after a brief silence, Emanuela spoke again. “Tell Simon I need a favor.”
****
Once they got through building security, Finn left his laptop briefcase with Simon in the lobby. He followed Emanuela’s directions, and now waited alone in front of a service elevator, swallowing against the pulse beating in his neck. Thankfully, no one seemed interested in using the stairwell, the only other feature in the quietest corner of the forty-eight-story building, or they’d have wondered at his fidgeting. He stuffed his hands into his pockets and shifted his weight to his right. Finally, the doors opened.
The sight of Emanuela in her icy blue sheath dress, standing in the fluorescent light of the stark white elevator, caught his breath. She was the closest thing to an angel he’d ever seen—an angel with a lanyard around her neck and her arms folded across her chest. She grinned.
“Are you going to stand there and stare at me all day? I’m playing hooky to see you right now, so the least you can do is—”
It took only two of his long strides before he was on the elevator, cutting off air to her lungs, crushing her to him with one movement of a powerful arm around her waist. Their hearts beat against each other for several long seconds, their eyes hungrily reacquainting. Finn reached his free hand between them for her lanyard, pulling it over her head and scanning her ID before shoving it into his pocket.
Without waiting for the doors to close, he leaned forward and kissed her. Every cell in his body screamed with the urge to let go, to let down the elegant sweep of her hair, to give in to his needy mouth and the restlessness he felt in his hands. Even now, his fingers ghosted along her bare arms, her shoulders, her neck. She sighed as he took her face in his hands and let his mouth rove her flushed features. He wanted to make up for the time apart, but once he started, he wouldn’t be able to stop. Already, the elevator had ascended a dozen floors and he could feel their moment slipping away.
Emanuela wrapped her arms around him inside of his suit jacket, rubbing his back, letting him bury his face in her neck. Whatever sound he made was muffled against her throat, but he didn’t feel the need to say anything. His mood was obvious, his desperation to hold her again.
The moment ended all too soon. He kissed her neck then, pulling away with a crooked smile. “Hey you.”
“Hey back.”
“I missed you.”
“Me too.”
“I am so sick of missing you.”
She rubbed the sides of his arms. “Me too. I promise we’ll talk about it, okay? But right now—”
“You have to go.”
“We have to go.”
The elevator reached the twenty-fifth floor and the doors began to open. She dropped her hands, taking a step back. “Make a left at the end of that hallway and you’ll end up in the café. You can take those elevators back down to the first floor. I’ll see you soon.”
“Yes, boss.” Finn pecked her nose and stepped from the elevator.
“Finn?”
He cocked a brow at her.
“Behave.”
“I love you,” he mouthed through the closing door.
She grinned, and a silent “Ditto” left her lips.
****
“Miss Monroe!” A startled Lydia nearly collided with Emanuela after rounding the same corner from adjacent hallways.
“Hey Lids, were you looking for me?”
“Uh, yes, actually. Doctor Kane and Doctor Faulk just arrived. Mr. Hurst is already out there.”
“Okay, I’ll just be a minute,” Emanuela walked toward her office.
“Oh!” Lydia said, scurrying back to catch up with Emanuela. “I printed that information you asked for. It was pretty substantial, so I made a little booklet for you. On your desk.”
“Great. Thanks, Lids—”
“Miss Monroe?”
Emanuela stopped in her office doorway and looked at her assistant with curiosity. “Yes?”
“I-is there anything I should know? I mean, should I start looking for another job?”
Emanuela gasped, and she suddenly felt very inconsiderate. She was so distracted with work and trying to sort out her future, it hadn’t occurred to her that her shrewd assistant of four years would draw conclusions from the information she was being asked to look into. Emanuela planned to have this conversation when she had it all figured out, but she couldn’t leave Lydia in the dark any longer. She wasn’t ready to divulge everything just yet, but she wouldn’t lie, either. She respected her far too much for that.
“Yes,” she said, carefully. At Lydia’s petrified stare, Emanuela quickly tried to reassure her. “I don’t want you to worry, Lids. I know you have a family to take care of. Come see me Monday, first thing, and we’ll work it out together, okay?”
Lydia nodded, obviously relieved. “Thank you, Miss Monroe.”
****
Finn survived Philip’s emphatic handshake, but wondered how many people were walking around New York City with dislocated shoulders.
“Damn shame it’s taken so long to finally meet you in person,” Philip said, “but I can tell you I’ve been looking forward to it for some time now.”
They were in the conference room, where a few employees filtered in and out, enjoying some of the light refreshment provided on the long table. The wall of windows running the length of the room offered an amazing view of the financial district below, and peeks of the harbor between business towers.
“It’s a pleasure!” Simon said, matching the young mogul’s enthusiasm. “I know how busy you are.”
Philip flashed his brilliant smile. “Nonsense! It’s not every day I get to meet true innovators.”
Charming son of a bitch. Philip was just a couple of inches shorter. With great hair, Finn admitted begrudgingly. He was handsome—beautiful, even—and his suit must’ve cost more than a month’s rent in the city. Even as he stood there, talking about absolutely nothing with Simon, charisma rose from him like scented vapor.
Finn was only too happy to have his attention diverted, nodding to a couple of familiar faces that came and went. There was Brian the Asshole, the twenty-something benevolent geek from their video-conferences, and a few others. Where are you, Emmi? He wasn’t in the mood for small talk but, thanks to Simon, no one seemed to notice.
Right on cue, Emanuela’s crystal clear, confident voice filled the room. “Mind if I join you?” She smiled and walked toward them, carrying a pretty substantial box.
All three men moved to give her a hand, but Finn’s longer strides brought him to her first. He lifted the box easily, and nearly leaned in to kiss her when her eyes got huge and her posture went stiff. Shit! It was like second nature to him, and his heart pounded in his ears at his near blunder. He recovered quickly, giving her a wink only she could see. “Where would you like me to put it?”
She stepped away from him. “On the end of the table is fine.” She turned to hug Simon.
“So good to see you again, Emanuela!” said Simon.
She grinned. “Glad we’re still using first names. No need to try and impress this guy.” She tilted her head in Philip’s direction. “He’s already stuck with you.” She hugged Finn, avoiding eye contact, and moved away again.
“Help yourselves, gentlemen,” Philip said.
He sat next to Emanuela, indicating the seats across from them for Simon and Finn. They ate fruit and assorted cheeses, making small talk to break the ice. Then Philip piped up again. “Shall we open the box?”
Simon clapped. “Great idea! Why don’t you do the honors, Emanuela?”
She nodded and stood to open the box at the end of the table. It was previously opened, so she untucked the flaps and reached in to remove what looked like a very real human arm.
“It’s frightfully accurate, isn’t it?” Simon asked.
“Surreal,” said Finn.
“That’s not all,” Philip said, obviously enjoying their reactions to seeing their prototype fully developed. “We’ve created an interactive website so patients can customize their prosthetic limbs. It was Em’s idea to widen the spectrum of skin shades. It offers a range broader than any other on the market for even better personalization.”
“I’d love to see that,” Finn said, impressed with their attention to detail.
“Absolutely,” she said with a smile. “May I?”
“Of course.” Finn pulled out his laptop, flipped it open and typed in his passcode.
She tapped away at the keyboard, and he tried not to notice her stiff posture, or the return of the impenetrable mask she wore when uncomfortable. This wasn’t any easier for him, but he wished she’d relax. Her nerves were giving him nerves.
“Excuse me.” Philip rose from the table with his cell in hand. “I’ve got to take this. Please continue. I’ll just be a moment.”
Finn offered Philip what he hoped was a courteous nod, then returned his gaze to the soft lower lip Emanuela held captive between her teeth. He wanted nothing more than to give it a nip himself, but first, they had to make it through this meeting.
When Philip left the room, Simon shook his head. “Walking. Smoke. Signals.”
****
A few hours later, Finn, Emanuela, Simon and Jamie were well into happy-hour thirty stories above the city on the roof of The Skylark lounge in Midtown. Philip had apologized when their meeting ended, expressing that he would have liked to have drinks with them but had a dinner to attend in another part of the city. It was just a formality, of course, since Emanuela knew about the dinner ahead of time, and already made plans for the evening. The lounge was the perfect place to catch up over cocktails, with intimate couch seating for conversation, and fantastic views of the skyline and the Hudson river in the distance.
Jamie was laughing his ass off at Finn and Emanuela’s expense. “I wish I’d been there! My God. That must’ve been the most awkward meeting. And Finn can’t lie for shit.”
“Jamie…” Simon cast an apologetic smile at Emanuela. “I can cut off his drinks if you want.”
“No, it’s okay,” she said. “I can laugh about it now, but it wasn’t very funny when it was happening.”
“It wasn’t.” Finn tossed a balled-up napkin at Jamie, who only laughed harder. He spoke low in Emanuela’s ear. “I don’t see why we needed to pretend in the first place, Emmi. We aren’t doing anything wrong.”
“I know, but I don’t need everyone in my business. I’ve never made announcements about my personal life before, and I’m not going to start now.”
“What are you two lovebirds tittering about over there?” Jamie asked, making Emanuela giggle.
Simon smacked his arm. “Leave them alone, honey. They haven’t seen each other in a while.”
“Well it’s been just as long since I’ve seen you, gorgeous, so come over here and talk to me.”
He was pouting full stop and it made Emanuela laugh. She kissed Finn’s chin and left his embrace, taking her second cocktail of the evening to sit with Jamie across from Finn. Jamie shooed Simon away to make room for her, and Simon went to share the couch with Finn so their significant others could carry on.
“Kicked to the proverbial couch again, my friend,” said Simon.
“’Fraid so. I like seeing them together though. Just feels right.”
“I have to admit they look good together. Jamie might be a bad influence on her though. She’s too sweet for him.”
Finn frowned. “You don’t mean that. I think they balance each other out. I think Jamie balances you out.”
“And she balances you out. Perfect equilibrium.”
“It’s almost too good to be true.”
Simon’s brows went up. “Trouble in paradise?”
“No, nothing like that,” Finn said, watching Emanuela.
She was letting go of soft peals of laughter at Jamie, who was fully animated and talking with his hands, describing the hilarious ways in which Seattle and New York were completely different.
“I thought it would be easier—not that I assumed long distance dating would be easy,” Finn said.
“Dating isn’t easy, even without three thousand miles between you.”
“True. Maybe I’m just not good at dating. I want to be married, Sy. What is the proper convention? Six months? A year? Two?”
“Screw convention, Finn. You two have managed to keep this thing going for four months when many haven’t accomplished that living in the same city. That means something! It means you’re committed. I know I’m not really an expert on women, but she seems like a lady who knows what she wants. I’m sure she’d tell you if you asked her.”
“I have. Of course I have, Sy.” Finn sighed. “I know she loves me. She’s hinted at the things I want but— I guess I’m looking for a sign. I need a sure thing at this point because I don’t know how long I can keep this up. I’m old.” He tried to smile, lighten the mood.
Simon was about to respond when Emanuela’s agonized tone cut their quieter conversation off in mid-air. “Ugh, I wish I’d never told you!”
Jamie didn’t seem to be trying very hard to recover from another fit of laughter at whatever she’d unwisely disclosed, refueling each time he caught a glimpse of her chagrined expression through his tears.
“Oh, thank God you’re loud,” a crisp, feminine voice said from a few feet away. “Makes it easier to find you.”
“Allie, you made it!” Emanuela stood to hug her friend. “I was going to introduce you to Jamie, but that was before, when he was human and not a laughing hyena.”
“Em!” Allie said under her breath. “What’s gotten into you?” A devilish grin painted her beautiful face. “Or hasn’t…”
“Ugh.” Emanuela tugged Allie behind her by the hand to introduce her to the men, who were now standing.
“Save it, Em. It’s pretty obvious.” Allie extended her hand to Simon. “You must be Simon.” She flashed her pretty smile. “Alison Whitney.”
“I must be!” he said. “Nice to meet you, Alison.”
She nodded and turned to shake Finn’s hand. “And you are definitely Finn.” Her gaze traveled his suit-clad form without a shred of shame. Emanuela pinched her slender waist. “Ow!” she yelped, then grinned. “Right. Sorry.”
“I’m definitely Finn,” he said, his lips twitching. “Emmi’s told me a lot about you.”
“She’s told me exactly as much about you, but I could hear more.”
He chuckled, shaking his head and sitting back down.
“You’re gorgeous,” Jamie said, quickly appraising Allie’s model-like frame and flowing, deep red mane. He turned to Emanuela. “Seriously, do you know any ugly people?”
Emanuela simply grinned and shrugged. “Allie, Jamie. Jamie, Allie. Now sit down, I’m starving!”
They chatted well into the evening. Cocktails turned to wine, and they had their fill of the lounge’s rich truffle fries, beef sliders dripping in gooey gruyere, and spicy tuna tacos. It was a comfortable seventy degrees by then, and Simon and Finn had both shed their jackets, with Finn’s sleeves pushed up to his elbows. Emanuela was buzzed, practically sitting in Finn’s lap by the end of the night, and Jamie was absentmindedly running his fingers through the tangled mess of hair Simon sported at the late hour.
“God, I’m glad I’m a secure woman because you people are hopeless!” Allie said, standing up and preparing to leave.
“We’re making you feel like a fifth wheel.” Emanuela stood to accompany her friend out and see that she caught a cab.
Allie lifted a finely arched brow. “I’m nobody’s wheel.” She tossed her hair over her shoulder. “I am a siren.”
“All right, Siren,” Jamie said, taking a slightly tipsy Allie’s arm. He looked at Emanuela. “Let’s see her out, then you can go back to canoodling.”
Allie bid the others farewell, exchanging cheek kisses before letting Jamie and Emanuela escort her out. They made easy conversation on the elevator ride down. Jamie shared that he and Simon would remain in the city for a few more days. His grandparents had immigrated to a sprawling Jewish community in central Queens in the fifties, and three generations of his family were settled in a few of the cushier neighborhoods of Queens and Brooklyn. By the time they secured a cab, Allie had exchanged numbers with Jamie and promised to have coffee before his time on the East Coast came to an end.
Allie turned to kiss his cheek. “I like you, Jamie. I’m glad Em’s gonna have you.”
“Hey, I’m standing right here, you know,” Emanuela said, but she sobered up at the maternal look on the scarlet-haired beauty’s face. “Oh, Allie. You’re drunk.”
Jamie waved Emanuela away. “She’s gonna have both of us.” He kissed Allie’s pale cheekbone and guided her into the seat by her elbow. “Goodnight, babe.”
****
It was after midnight by the time Finn and Emanuela made it to her condo on West Ninety-Fifth Street. She’d made sure to have his carryon delivered from Simon’s hotel, and it awaited them in the security office on the first floor.
“You have a doorman,” Finn said of the elderly tuxedoed man stationed at the main entrance.
“I do, but I don’t want to talk about that man.”
“No?” Finn followed her onto the elevator, his ears prickling at her suggestive tone.
No sooner had the doors closed then Emanuela had him cornered, snaking her arms around his neck and pulling him to her. “Uh-uh,” she said against his lips.
He wrapped an arm around her waist, beside himself at the joyful little sounds coming from somewhere in her throat, her lips eagerly mapping his face. He knew what floor she lived on from their many conversations, so he pulled away for a moment without releasing her, pushing the button for the twelfth floor.
“Someone’s missed me,” he said into her neck.
She giggled and slid a thigh between his legs. She gently moved it against his pants and grinned at his answering groan. “I’m not the only one.” She sighed and kissed him again.
The month apart seemed like an eternity, so they reacquainted themselves with the feel of each other’s lips, delicate and full meeting supple and strong. Soft touches became long presses, and by the time the elevator arrived, both were breathing heavily, sharp longing coursing through their bodies.
Emanuela adjusted the recessed lighting so the open living space was softly lit. Finn abandoned his carryon and jacket near the door, then let her pull him by the hand into her living room to stand in front of the wall of eight-foot windows.
“I wanted to show you the view,” she said. “It’s my favorite thing about living here, seeing the city lights at night.”
He was behind her now, wrapping her in his arms, cuddling her neck a moment to enjoy her scent. He looked out at the glittering towers in endless midnight blue. He couldn’t make out any stars, but what looked like millions of lighted windows twinkled so high up, they seemed to light the sky on their own. The place felt more alive at night than any other city he’d seen by day.
“I can see why you love it.” His deep voice hummed through her body and he felt every tremor. With a groan, his hands left her tummy and moved up to cover her breasts.
She gasped, arching her back and filling his hands. “Your sunrise is probably better.”
He remembered the sunrise they watched together and turned her around to look into her eyes. “No sunrise will ever compete with that one, and I’m prepared to ruin all other nighttime skylines with you too.”
Her shiver was anything but subtle this time, and he kissed her again. They helped each other out of their clothes, eager but not hurried, trailing kisses over newly exposed flesh until they stood naked before each other. He lifted her, hooking her legs over his arms, her thighs hugging his waist, and pressed her back to the window. She gasped, her warm flesh meeting the cool, thick glass, wrapping her arms around his shoulders for support. He grinned at her ragged breathing, knowing full well she enjoyed his blatant display of masculinity.
“Is this okay?” she asked, eyeing his leg.
“I’ll be fine. I probably won’t last long anyway. Missed you too much.”
“You can make it up to me later. But one of these days, we should make it to a bed first,” she said breathlessly against his lips.
He moved against her and moaned. “Maybe next time.”