Recipe For Seduction (A Madewood Brothers Novel) (Entangled Brazen) (20 page)

“Right,” she said. But no. It was so not right. It was wrong, wrong, wrong. She wanted so much more than a temporary relationship with Finn.

She wanted him. In her life. For always.

But that would be incredibly selfish of her. He desired a family, and she had already raised hers. He deserved someone who could give him everything he’d dreamed of, including a mini version of himself. Or two, or three.

She groaned. “It’s too complicated to move forward, but God help me, Mad, I can’t go back to the way it was before.” Just the thought of never being able to touch Finn anywhere and any way she wanted made her twitchy. But the impossibility of a future together was something she was going to have to accept, because they were at an impasse.

“I’m sorry, honey. If I had known it would make you so sad, I wouldn’t have pushed you into pursuing this.”

“This isn’t on you. It’s all on me. I wanted it.” Tears threatened to expose just how devastated she was about the situation. But any tears she would cry were only a result of her own foolishness. “I just didn’t understand how hard it would be.”

Madison gave her another hug. “Come on. You need a distraction. Let’s harass the bride and groom into cutting the cake so I can take some more pictures.”

It was time to get back to work and celebrate a couple who had found true love.

Maybe one day Veronica would find her one true love, too.

Or maybe she’d already found him, but it just wasn’t meant to be.

…

Finn wiped the edge of the plate, doing his best to clean up his line chef’s mistake.

“There should be thin lines of coulis on this dessert, ladies and gentlemen.” How many times did he have to instruct his staff on how to get things done? Did no one listen? “No globs of red all over the plates. It shouldn’t look like a vampire just ripped open someone’s neck.”

“You shouldn’t yell at your people.”

Finn recognized the voice behind him. His best friend’s shadow appeared over the line of plates on the stainless steel.

He continued to wipe. “Just because this is my brother’s wedding doesn’t mean my food and presentation can be anything less than one hundred and ten percent perfect.”

“Does that theory work for my sister and me, too?”

He turned and shot Mark a wary look. “What are you talking about?”

“Just because you’re fucking my sister doesn’t mean you’re not giving our friendship one hundred and ten percent of your consideration, right?” His voice dripped with sarcasm.

Who the hell told him? This was not what Finn had wanted. And this was definitely not the time or place to have this conversation. His chefs had mastered the art of pretending
not
to listen to his conversations. But he knew they were hanging on every word.

Finn laid the squirt bottle of raspberry coulis on the table and leaned against the edge.

He and his best friend stared at each other, silence taking over, but the concern in Mark’s eyes said it all. Finn didn’t need to be yelled at to feel like a piece of shit.

“You had sex with my sister.”

Where did he even begin? How did he explain?

“My
little,
vulnerable sister.”

In his defense, she wasn’t so little anymore. And he hoped Mark hadn’t used that word when he spoke with her. Though, he didn’t have any visible cuts or bruises. Finn figured he wouldn’t get off so lucky.

“You’re not denying it. So it must be true.” Mark turned his head and his neck cracked. “Hell, Veronica already confirmed it. She even thinks she seduced you.” He laughed. “As if.”

Finn shook his head. This attitude from the people who supposedly knew her best was exactly why she’d felt the need to seduce him in the first place. She had become a stereotype to everyone. She wanted to break free of other peoples’ perceptions. He was beginning to understand her frustrations.

“I would expect this from Jack, not from you, man.” Mark shook his head. “Not from you.”

“That’s not fair to Jack.”

Jack had changed a long time ago, but was still paying for his womanizing ways. Even here on his wedding day, where he had pledged himself to one woman forever. Talk about people’s perceptions. Would there ever be a day when he wasn’t paying for his past?

Mark grimaced. “You know what I mean.”

Finn took a deep breath. “It wasn’t my intention to betray your trust, bro. I just…”

He’d just what? He’d just fallen head-over-heels, completely in love with her…that’s what. But it didn’t matter. Because it was destined to end. Even if they decided to pursue whatever it was between them long-term, one of them would have to compromise. And over time, that compromise would end up ruining everything they had tried to build together.

“So, what
are
your intentions? Are you seeing her? Is it serious between you?”

“I—” Finn cleared his throat.
God fucking knew
. “I don’t—”

Mark’s lips pressed into a thin line at his wavering response. “Fuck. This isn’t like you, Finn. You’re not the fuck-em-and-leave-em type. Why start with my damn sister?”

“We’re not just fucking. It’s—” They were sharing something so very special. Something he would remember forever. But it was something they should have left alone, to avoid the fallout all around. “I don’t want to hurt her,” he said at length.

“But you’re going to, aren’t you?” Mark’s accusing words struck him like bullets to the chest. What had she told him? The small vein in his friend’s neck was pulsing again and his fists were clutching. Not a good sign.

“I didn’t think it would change things between us. Any of us.”

“How could it not?” Mark demanded, fury seeping from every word. He was not letting up. He was like an attack dog. But Finn would stand there and take every insult, every accusation. If he’d had a sister, he would be doing the same thing, feeling the same way.

But what Mark failed to realize was that Veronica had set up the casual,
temporary
arrangement herself. And when the dust settled, and they both went their separate ways, it would be Finn’s heart that was broken.

His servers scurried silently around them, picking up the finished plates to bring to the dessert table. And this food wasn’t even the last course. He still had the midnight supper to prepare. Sliders and poutine weren’t going to make themselves.

He lowered his voice. “Mark, I’m sorry.”

“I’m really trying not to punch you right now.”

Which was a good thing. Finn wasn’t a man who liked to use his fists to settle an argument. To settle anything, ever. And he most definitely wasn’t going to start now. Nor did he want to be on the receiving end of someone else’s.

“I appreciate that,” he said.

“I told myself I wasn’t going to do this here. I wasn’t going to cause a scene. But I can’t help it. I just can’t believe you would do something like this. You know how fragile Veronica is.”

Finn shook his head. “Whoa, there. Your sister is
not
fragile. Far from it. She’s strong, determined, and braver than anyone I know. If you hadn’t taken off and left her here to fend for herself for so long, maybe you’d know that.” Finn’s voice was raised now. He knew it wasn’t very professional to have a fight in his own kitchen, in front of his employees. He was always so calm and collected. But damn it, this was important.

Mark reared back. “What is this? Gang up on Mark day? Christ. I work my frigging ass off to help support those two kids, but because I’m not here everyone forgets if it weren’t for me they’d all be living far below the lifestyle they’re accustomed to.”

Anger simmered under Finn’s skin. Because Veronica worked her own ass off to contribute, too. And Mark seemed to be forgetting that small detail.

“Do you think I
like
being away from my family, from everything I know? But I do my part. I send money.”

Money?
That’s
what he thought was important? “Very pimpish of you.”

“
Pimpish?
” Mark fisted his hands at his sides. “You’ve got some pretty big balls there, O’Reilly.”

“Yeah? Well, some people
like
that about me.”

Mark cursed under his breath and lunged forward, grabbing the bottle of coulis from the island. Before Finn even had the time to flinch, Mark squeezed. Sweet red liquid covered Finn’s face. Once he was over the shock, he licked his lips and wiped at his eyes. When he was finally able to see through the thick, sticky red mess, he zeroed in on Mark. His friend’s shoulders were a little less rigid, his hands not quite as stiff and close to his body. The fury darkening his face had softened. But it hadn’t retreated completely.

“What the hell is going on?” Cal rushed over from the tent entrance and stepped between them.

“Nothing we can’t handle ourselves,” Finn gritted out.

“You can thank Cal for outing your dirty little secret,” Mark said. “It seems that anger makes him tell the truth.”

Finn wiped his face with his hand and flicked the red coulis onto the grass.

Cal blanched, then raced to the back of the tent, grabbed a towel, and jogged back with it. “Here you go, Chef.”

Mark made a disgusted face. “You’ve even got Cal calling you Chef. How do you do it? After all these years, I never realized how manipulative you are.”

“It’s a sign of respect,” Cal blurted out, offended. “He’s not manipulating anyone.”

Finn placed his hand on Cal’s shoulder. He appreciated the defense. It proved that Finn had broken through, if only a tiny bit. The trust he had been trying to build was catching, and it was only a matter of time before Cal let him behind that wall and asked for help. But this wasn’t Cal’s fight. Finn had his own demons he needed to work out with Mark.

“And I sure as hell didn’t force Veronica into doing anything she didn’t want to do. She’s an adult, more than capable of making her own decisions. And so is Cal. Your family has grown up, Mark. You just haven’t been here to see it.”

Mark lunged again but Cal held out his arm and stopped him from getting any closer. “Not here. You do
not
want to be the one responsible for ruining Jack and Sterling’s wedding.”

Mark shot Cal a scowl. No doubt unhappy Cal was playing the role of responsible adult while Mark practically had smoke coming out of his ears.

“Stay the fuck away from my sister.” Mark pointed at him over Cal’s shoulder. “I mean it.” He stalked out of the tent and down the dirt path toward the parking lot.

“I’m sorry, Finn.” Cal’s shoulders slumped as they watched him storm away. “I was mad and…it just slipped out. I didn’t mean to tell him. Honest.”

“It’s all right. It was bound to come out sooner or later. And let this be a lesson to you—lying is never worth it.”

The kid gave him a wry look. “Are you always trying to teach a lesson, even at your own expense?”

“I guess so.” He laughed. “And you can expect many more, the longer you work for me.”

Cal smiled. “I saw an extra jacket near the towels. Go change.” He straightened. “I can squirt straight lines.”

Damn. The kid had come a long way from the snarky smart-ass who’d shown up at his restaurant only a few weeks ago refusing to have anything to do with it.

Despite his first instinct to say no, Finn figured Cal deserved a shot at putting the finishing touches on the dessert. He had just defended him, after all. And he trusted his growing skills.

Finn nodded, and made his way to the towels and the sink. “Go ahead.”

He cleaned his face and neck, and removed the soiled jacket, replacing it with a crisp white one. Although this one didn’t have his name embroidered on it.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Veronica pass the entrance to the barn and walk around toward the back. She was escaping.

Cal was hard at work finishing the dessert plates. The rest of his staff members were working just as diligently. The chef wasn’t supposed to leave the ship. But Mark had most likely flown off the handle with Veronica, too. Finn needed to check on her. He threw down the towel and jogged out to the side of the barn.

He clasped his hand around her bare arm, and she flailed. “Finn. You scared the crap out of me. It’s dark in these woods.”

He didn’t know what to say to her. He’d deserted his job, scared the wits out of her, and he still didn’t know what he wanted to say. But seeing the plunging neckline of her dress, all rational thought deserted him, and he definitely knew what his body was telling him to do.

“Finn?”

“Come with me.”

He put his hand at the small of her back and propelled her around the barn toward the guesthouse—the one building on the property that hadn’t been renovated.

When they reached the front door, he bent and found the key Neil left for emergencies under a flowerpot.

He smiled and held it up. “Our cabin awaits.”

He held open the door and she stepped over the threshold. They had only taken two strides inside before she whirled around to face him. He crushed his lips down on hers.

She met his kiss with equal ferocity. He clamped his hands at the side of her face. Her hungry kisses ignited a firestorm inside him. Her shy, innocent demeanor was in stark contrast to the dark and dirty way her tongue played with his.

She kissed his cheek and moved down to nuzzle his neck. “
Mmm
. You taste sweet.”

He pulled away and kicked the door closed behind them. “I had a little accident in the kitchen.”

Her eyes darkened, and not with desire. “Mark?”

This was not the conversation he wanted to have at this moment. Couldn’t they at least have sex first, and talk about unnecessary drama afterward?