Chapter 5
A smart man would’ve waited five more seconds to hear what Nina didn’t do. Finn cursed his stupidity as she spoke into the phone while glaring at him.
“I was supposed to get some peace and quiet. How’s that going to work when he’s swinging a sledgehammer at the walls?”
“Is that Peyton?” he asked.
She waved him away with a muttered, “Yes.” But she was speaking into the phone, not answering him. She said the word no twice before making a sound of frustration as she thrust the phone forward. “She wants to talk to you.”
He took the cell with a grin. “Well, if it isn’t Peyton Riley. How’s New Zealand?”
“Gorgeous. How’s Wisconsin?”
“Gorgeous.”
She laughed, and he was pretty sure she knew he wasn’t talking about their home state. Even as Nina leaned back on one heel, arms crossed as she glared at him, he still meant it. Not only that, but she was cute all bundled up in her winter gear, skinny jeans, and fur lined boots. And she smelled sweeter than his favorite vanilla cake with butter cream frosting. Just the thought of the decadent treat made his mouth water.
No, it was the woman in front of him that had him hankering for a taste.
“Can you help me out here, Finn?” Peyton said. “Nina’s doing me a big favor, so I promised her the house to write for the month. Eric never told me he was starting the remodel early, so surely you could stay with your parents, or one of your brothers or sisters?”
He perked up at the word favor, but he wasn’t admitting anything when it came to his family. “I can work around her schedule,” he suggested to Peyton while making eye contact with Nina.
“I don’t have a schedule.” She leaned closer to Finn and the phone, her voice raised. “That’s the whole point of having the house to myself, so I can write whenever I feel like it.”
“She has a point,” Peyton said in his ear as he got another sweet whiff of Nina. “However, I like the sound of your idea. I know she gets up early to write back home, so what if you only work in the afternoons? It’s not like I’m in a rush for the house to be finished.”
“She’s suggesting you write in the mornings, and I’ll work afternoons,” he relayed to the annoyed, yummy smelling blond three feet away. “Say from one to five each day, and then your evenings will be quiet again.” After a few moments without an immediate no, he said to Peyton, “She’s considering it.”
“Good. Give me back to her. But wait—Finn?”
He’d already started to hand the phone to Nina, but quickly pulled it back. “Yeah?”
“Answer me a question honestly?”
“Sure.” Why not? He seemed to be telling everyone whatever they wanted to know today.
“Are you still the same, ah…Casanova you were ten years ago?”
Great. They were talking about me when I walked up. He didn’t like the thought of Nina thinking he was still a player like back in high school. In truth, Casanova was the polite word for his behavior back then, however, he hadn’t been that guy since joining the Army.
“We’ve all grown up, Peyton.”
“Good to know. But just so you know, Nina doesn’t do flings. She never has.”
Good to know. “Can you answer something for me?” he asked.
Peyton said, “Sure,” just as Nina’s hazel gaze jerked up to his, narrowed with suspicion.
“What’s this favor she’s doing for you?”
She lunged forward and grabbed for her phone before her friend could answer. It flew from his hand and bounced a few times on the entryway runner. Whatever she didn’t want him to know must be pretty darn good.
“I’m going to find out,” he teased as she scrambled to reach her phone before he could go after it.
“Stop being so nosey. Peyton, you still there? Yeah, okay. I gotta get going, too. Knock ’em dead.” Her brief smile faded as she disconnected the call and pocketed her phone. “Let’s go.”
Finn grabbed two of the grocery bags from the cart, and she lifted the third. Once they were in the truck and leaving the parking lot, he turned the opposite way they’d come.
“Where are you going?”
“I thought I’d circle through town and show you some of the things that have changed since you left.”
“You could’ve asked instead of deciding for me,” she grumbled.
“If I feed the dragon will you stop being so hangry?”
She let out a big sigh, but then surprised him with a, “Yes.”
Progress. “Josie has great quiche and breakfast bake at The Bakery Box. We’ll be there in two minutes.”
She didn’t seem to be listening as she leaned forward to stare past the steering wheel. “When did Pulaski get a hotel?”
“A couple years ago.”
“Perfect.” She sat back and gave him an overly sweet smile that oddly felt like a peace offering. “You could stay there.”
“Sure. You paying?”
“If I’m paying, then I’ll stay there.”
“Don’t let me stop you. Be their guest.”
“Yeah, you’d love that, wouldn’t you?”
Not really. The past two hours were the most fun he’d had in months. Maybe even a couple of years. And she’d softened after he’d accused her of being grumpy. Her voice even held a hint of a smile with that last comment. Finn had a good feeling having her around promised to brighten his future considerably.
He found a parking space down the street from the bakery. Nina was out on the sidewalk before he could make it around the truck with his cane. He didn’t need it around the house, but while out and about, it was handy in case he lost his footing, especially in the snow. Faced with the knee-high bank from the freshly plowed street, he paused. Even with his cane, this had the potential to end badly.
Heat pricked his neck as he glanced right and left for an easier way across the bank. He hadn’t considered this when parking, and unfortunately, cars blocked the few pathways that had been shoveled to the street.
“Here.” Nina stood across from him, hand extended over the snow as if him needing assistance was no big deal. When he clenched his jaw in hesitation, she challenged, “When someone offers to help, say thank you, and let them.”
Finn gave a short laugh at his own advice being thrown back in his face so soon after having voiced it, and reached to take her hand. Another tingle zinged up his arm as her warm fingers held his in a strong grip to provide the extra support he needed to make it to the other side without making a fool of himself.
Once he was on even ground once more, he tightened his grip on her hand to keep her from pulling away. Catching her gaze, he bent forward while raising the back of her hand to his lips. “Thank you.”
Color washed her cheeks when he let her fingers go. For the first time in a while, he didn’t feel the least bit self-conscious as he limped along beside her into the bakery.
Nina paused inside the door and sucked in a deep, appreciative breath. “This is definitely new for me. It smells amazing.”
And still, not as good as her.
“Everything here is good.” He noticed a couple empty tables and tilted his head. “You want to eat here or take it to go?”
“Here’s fine.”
They made their way along the bakery cases before reaching the counter to order from the youngest of the four Sullivan sisters. At twenty-five years old, Kyra Sullivan sported cotton-candy pink hair this time around. Last month it had been brunette with purple streaks. Next month he assumed she’d go green for St. Patrick’s Day.
Kyra was nice and funny, and she usually flirted like crazy when he stopped in. He couldn’t deny he flirted back, because even with the wild hair, she was as pretty as her sisters, not to mention she always made him smile. It was nothing but harmless fun, though. In six months, deeper interest had never sparked with her like it had within the first few minutes of meeting Nina.
He tensed when she spotted him and gave her usual inviting grin. The last thing he wanted was for Nina’s low opinion of him to have more ammunition.
“Hey, Finn. We’ve missed your smile.”
“Hi, Kyra. Been busy. By the way, this is Nina.”
The younger girl murmured a polite greeting, her speculative gaze darting between him and his companion. He’d only ever come in alone.
“She grew up here, but hasn’t been back in a while. I figured the best way to re-acclimate her to town was to start with an introduction to The Box.”
“Aw, you’re so sweet.” She held his gaze for a moment, then widened her smile for the both of them. “Welcome back, Nina. What can I get for you guys?”
They placed their orders, and Nina gave him a raised eyebrow smirk when the girl turned to get their coffees. He shrugged his shoulders, palms up. She shook her head with a roll of her eyes.
After Kyra slid their coffees across the counter, she plated their breakfast items, and rang up the order. When Nina reached for her purse to pay, Finn snagged the strap to keep her from setting it on the counter.
“I got this. You are letting me stay in the house after all.”
She turned slightly. “I didn’t realize it had been decided.”
He smiled while handing a twenty to Kyra as her sister Josie carried a tray of turnovers from the kitchen. “Peyton’s idea is going to work out perfect,” he told Nina. “All you gotta do is give it a chance.”
On the other side of the counter, the red-headed bakery owner slid the display case closed and straightened to focus on the two of them. “Did you say Peyton? By chance, are you Nina Delveaux?”
“I am.”
“Awesome. Hi, I’m Josie.”
“You’re married to Peyton’s brother, Nash, right?”
“Yes.”
She let her purse fall back to her side and looked up at Finn. “I’ll meet you at the table. I need to talk to Josie for a second.”
“Um, sure.”
He watched her motion the baker off to the side, then strained to make out their conversation without appearing to eavesdrop. Their voices were too low to understand, so he gave Kyra an absent smile of thanks and carried their breakfasts and coffees to the table.
When Nina joined him a few minutes later, he couldn’t help but notice her flushed cheeks and averted gaze. “What was that all about?”
Her attention remained steadfast on her food in the long moment it took for her to answer. “I, ah, asked her for Eric’s number so I could talk to him about the remodeling.”
Disappointment flooded his chest. “You still want me out of there?”
“No,” she denied with a quick glance. “That’s not it. But I do want to talk to him. Peyton’s always sending me pictures of things she likes, and I’ve been compiling a folder for when he started the work so he could add a few surprises for her.”
“You could’ve asked me for his number.”
She froze for a second, then set down her fork and pulled out her phone. “Of course. I forgot. What is it? It’ll save Josie the hassle of having to get it for me.”
He recited the number from memory and she added it to her contacts. When she picked up her fork to eat again, he asked, “You going to let her know you’ve got it?”
“What?”
He glanced toward the counter where the two Sullivan sisters were talking. She swiveled to follow his gaze as he added, “You know, save her the hassle of getting you the number.”
“Oh, yeah. Hey, Josie,” she called out. “I got it from Finn. Thanks anyway.”
The redhead looked confused for a moment, but simply waved, and headed back into the kitchen.
Nina turned back to give him a quick smile. “This is good. Thank you for breakfast.”
“Sure.” Finn smiled back, even though he was certain Josie had something to do with whatever his new roommate was hiding.