Finn (23 page)

“Absolutely. Last night was nothing compared to what we can really do. Next time, we can extend it all the way to the wall and bring the TV inside. It’ll be like your own personal movie theatre.”

“You know how to do that?”

“Sure I do.”

“That sounds wonderful.” The tears are now gone, replaced with an eager grin. “When?”

“How about the next time you spend the night?”

“You’ll still be around?”

Presley sucks in a breath, snapping her head to Winnie. “Whitney.” She uses her formal name, which causes the little girl to wrinkle her nose. “I thought we talked about this. Finn’s going to be around a lot, even staying the night sometimes.”

“Are you still okay with that?” I ask cautiously, not sure what will happen if she says no. Presley and I never discussed the possibility of her not approving.

“So you’re staying?”

“Where would I go?”

“Come here.” Presley reaches out, and Winnie crawls out of her seat and into Presley’s lap. “Let me try to explain this again. Finn’s going to be spending a lot of nights with us. He still has a job and his school, but when he’s able, he’ll be here. I can’t promise it will be every single time, but it will be often.”

I sit in the vacated chair and reach over to hold Presley’s hand. “When you asked where I was going? I’m not going anywhere.”

“Are you going to keep kissing Aunt Presley?”

Wait? What the hell? How did the subject change at lightning speed?

Presley starts to giggle and buries her face into Winnie’s hair.

“I hope so,” I answer honestly, wondering what the hell she’ll think of next.

“Randy tries to kiss me on the mouth all the time, but I run from him. Kissing is gross.”

“Who the hell is Randy?” I growl.

“He’s an adorable boy in her camp,” Presley informs me, still giggling.

“Tell this Randy boy to keep his lips to his damn self! Do Jeff and Johnny know about this?”

“Oh yeah, I tell my grandpa all the time, and he laughs at me. Uncle Johnny’s face always turns red, and he looks sick.”

“Okay, that’s enough. Go get your shoes and socks. We’re going to be late. We can’t be late on your last day of summer camp.” Presley puts her on the floor, and she scampers off.

“I feel dizzy. Did you put LSD in this coffee? Did we just have three completely different conversations in the span of four minutes? One that started with crying and ended with her being chased by boys?”

“Yes, welcome to life with kids. This happens often. Not too late to change your mind about staying with the Chamber girls on Wednesday and Thursday nights.”

“You trying to get rid of me already?”

She slides out of her chair and into my lap, wrapping her arms around my shoulder. “Oh no, just letting you know what you’re in for. You’ve only been here for two mornings. This is pretty tame. Wait until she wakes up grumpy and argues that going to daycare is a form of punishment. Those are always fun.”

“You’re kidding me?”

“Nope, it doesn’t happen often, but when it does, she almost sways me. Then I remember who’s the adult and who’s the child.”

“I have a whole new appreciation for parenting. Maybe I’ll invite my parents to lunch on Sunday, so I can tell them how thankful I am they put up with me.”

“That’s a good idea. But for now, maybe you should kiss me before we’re interrupted.” She starts to nibble on my neck.

I tilt my head and find her lips with my own. When my tongue slips in, the taste of her vanilla creamer fills my mouth, and I groan, diving in deeper. The kiss is soft and sweet as I take my time to savor her. My cock grows hard against her thigh, begging to take her back to bed.

“I love you, Finn,” she breaks away and whispers in my ear.

“I’ll never get tired of hearing that.”

“Thank you for showing me that safe is boring and taking a chance was worth it.”

I hold her close and pray I never give her a reason to regret that decision.

“Babe.” I answer my phone and move to the back of James’ office.

“Finn! I have the best news!” Presley shouts so loud Robbie starts to snicker.

“Sounds like it.” I chuckle.

“K9 for Warriors called, and they have three new dogs that are in progressive training. They asked if I would come to help out.”

“That’s great news.”

“And I finished Stace’s edits, and it’s fabulous.”

“I have no doubt it’s great.”

“And I spoke to Ember this morning. She was still upset about what happened last weekend, but I explained that it all worked out in the best way possible. So we made plans, and she’s coming to kickboxing with me this afternoon.”

“Glad to know.”

“So, it’s been such a great day so far, I had a wonderful idea.”

“Hit me with it.”

“Remember how you mentioned inviting your parents to brunch on Sunday? I think you should invite them to my dad’s house. I’ll cook. He’d love to have them over.”

“Sounds like a plan. I’ll make the call.”

“Okay, great. Are you having a good day?”

“It’s been normal, nothing like yours. Standing in a meeting right now.”

“Oh my gosh! Why didn’t you say so? I’ll let you go.”

“What’s the plan for tonight? Your place or mine?”

“I invited Ember over for a drink after our workout.” She laughs. “No judgment.”

“None at all. I’ll talk to Robbie, and we’ll pick up dinner?”

“Sounds good to me. Ask Tripp to join us.”

“Why?”

“Don’t be grumpy. I love Tripp. He’s funny, and Reese thinks he’s cute.”

“Presley,” I warn. “We have an unspoken rule between us guys. No set-ups.”

“Good thing I’m not a guy. See you around six-thirty.” She hangs up before I can argue further.

“Who’s being set up?” Robbie joins me as James’ assistant starts to hand out folders.

“Apparently, Tripp.” I fill him in on the conversation with Presley, and he gives me a sideways glance.

“Ember texted me about the kickboxing class. What do you know about this place?”

“As in, have I researched Presley’s gym and know that it’s completely safe and secure? The membership is sixty-five percent women because it’s in close proximity to five area schools.”

His face breaks out into a wide smile, but before he can say anything, his dad walks in. “We have a situation,” James announces to the group.

The room goes silent, everyone waiting for him to elaborate.

“Governor DeSantis received a disturbing envelope. It came to his home office in the Governor’s mansion. It’s a set of pictures of his three kids at the park. His wife was with them, but not pictured. They’re all clean—no prints, no identifying agents in the photo-finishing, nothing. The video cameras around the area show nothing unusual.”

There are a few low rumbles through the room. You don’t ever fucking take chances when kids are involved. Too many variables come into the mix, including kidnapping, torture, dismemberment, and death.

“The envelope was marked private and confidential so his assistant didn’t open it. Besides sharing it with me and the guy I assigned to investigate, it’s being kept quiet.”

“He doesn’t want to tell the local police anything?” Robbie questions, inspecting the contents of the files we were given.

“No, this is tricky. DeSantis has stepped up his stance on issues in the campaign. It’s no secret he’s an extremely conservative candidate and his values are in-line. His newest endorsements and ads are making people angry. He’s drawn a line in the sand and pissed off a lot of people. With the election only twelve weeks away, he’s now asking for complete protection. I’ve convinced him to talk to two of my contacts with the FBI. Along with his current security, I’ll be assigning new people to his detail under the ruse of campaign consultants. All their credentials have been created, and the wheels are in motion. He’s conducting mock interviews today, including one for a full-time nanny with a trained undercover consultant I trust fully.”

“So what do we do?” Ray, a member of our team speaks up.

“Each of you have your assignments, but to break it down, Finn and Robbie will be heading to Louisiana next Friday to install additional security measures, including wiring the current system to feed directly to us. A few of you will be assigned as direct liaisons to the team I have undercover. Once I get my FBI contacts in the loop, we’ll have frequent updates. Any more questions?”

We all take a few minutes to go over our assignments, confirming we understand. I think of Presley on my way back to my office and wish we could have stayed in bed another day.

Presley

“S
top the madness!” I double over laughing and try not to spill my drink, as Ember nods enthusiastically.

“No, I promise! It really happened. He was a complete dick to me. Twice. Then he walked into my shop, and after five minutes of conversation, he says, ‘That stops now’. Of course, I was stunned almost silent. A minute later, he walked out to get us dinner. Robbie isn’t a man to take no for an answer. Don’t get me wrong, we had our ups and downs, but all in all, I’m not sure I ever stood a chance.”

“Ups and downs? Yeah, right. That man worships you!” Reese wags a finger at her.

Ember gives a dreamy smile and takes a large gulp of her wine. “Maybe, but I’m convinced it’s in their DNA. All of them. I haven’t been around for long, but I know the stories. Declan and Jimi fell hard and fast. Gabe took years to admit it, but the instant he realized his mistake, he claimed Harper in front of a room full of people.

“And don’t get me started on Finn. I actually felt the air change when his eyes landed on you. There was a shift in the atmosphere. Told him that, too.” She beams with pride. “I’m so glad it worked out.”

“Me too,” I agree. “I’ve been meaning to thank you, too, Ember. Thank you for coming over here on Tuesday to try to help me see the light. Finn never gave me any reason to doubt our relationship. It was my own insecurities bursting through at Raven’s declaration that he loved her. The fact that Declan, Tripp, and you came to talk sense into me was a testament to your loyalty and friendship.”

She puts her glass down and looks between Reese and me with apprehension before speaking. “Look, Raven is my sister-in-law, and I adore her. What she said and the way she blurted out her feelings was out of character. But I’m not going to defend her. What you may not know is Finn’s reaction. He went ape shit. No one, and I mean no one in that group has ever seen him lose his composure like he did.

“It’s no secret how close he and Raven are, and they don’t talk about their time away because it’s private. Finn didn’t hesitate to blast her. I was personally scared to death that he and Declan would come to blows because Declan is wildly protective. But Finn had fire in his eyes and the kind of raw emotion no one could deny. His passion was pouring through his words. I’ve known for a while he was in deep, but I had no clue. Never in my life, even with my husband and our hurdles, have I ever seen a man so hurt and scared.”

“Wow, I wish we could have seen that.” Reese tips her glass at me. “Thank God you came to your senses.”

I nod in agreement, picturing the scene Ember described. Finn told me he had words, but he never told me how intense it was. Part of me wants to ask him about it, but then again, he’s proven how much he cares about me repeatedly since our reunion on Tuesday. Bringing it up doesn’t seem like a good idea.

“Since we have a little bit of time before the guys get here, can I ask you a personal question?” I nibble on my lip to see Ember’s reaction.

“Of course. You’ve met my aunt and cousin. There’s not a lot of room for privacy unless Robbie stands up to them.” She refills our glasses. “Ask away.”

“Do you ever get scared of their jobs?”

“Every day. But I’m a special circumstance. I’ve seen firsthand how awesome they are at their work. It’s amazing. James is a master in his field, and he’s trained each of his team members well.”

“What do you mean, you’ve seen firsthand?”

She looks between Reese and me again, then looks over her shoulder to make sure we’re still alone. “I’ve already told you my sister and mom are total bitches. Well, my sister completely fucked me before she went to hide out in a rehab facility. To get back at me for a lifetime of jealousy and cruelty, she gave my name to her drug dealer. He found me and tormented me, threatening everyone I love. It was easy to fall into his trap, and I put myself in a bad position, not sharing with anyone. Unbeknownst to me, Hayes Security was working on a sting to get this man. I was caught up in it, and when it all exploded, I was on the wrong side.”