SWNOVELS Finn Rhodes Forever: Chapter 44
THE NIGHT OF OUR DATE, I stood in front of my bathroom mirror, squirming with nerves.
This was so stupid. So unlike me to be nervous. For what, even? We were probably getting food and a drink and maybe we’d make out for a bit. Maybe we’d go see another movie in the park. I had no reason to be nervous, I told myself while I applied winged liner and mascara.
It was just a date, I thought while I pulled on a pair of high-waisted shorts that made my ass look good. The top I had selected showed off a bit of cleavage, and I could already picture Finn’s gaze snagging on the neckline.
A shudder of anticipation rolled through me.
It was just a date. It wasn’t a big deal.
My gaze strayed to the new door Finn had installed the other morning. He had tossed me two sets of keys and pocketed a third with a rakish grin.
“So I don’t have to break it down next time,” he said with a wink.
Another shiver rolled down my spine as I pictured him storming into my room. The dark, hot look in his eyes.
On my bedside table, my phone lit up with a text.
Sadie Waters: Are you working tonight?
Olivia Morgan: Not tonight. Date with Finn.
Sadie Waters: Ooooooooooooooh.
Olivia Morgan: Stop it.
Sadie Waters: 🙂
I grinned and rolled my eyes at the phone before pulling a necklace off my dresser. Behind me, the phone lit up again.
Sadie Waters: Should I be on the lookout for a vintage Porsche?
My stomach wobbled, dipping and swaying, as I stared at her text.
The car meant something. What did it mean, though, that my heart lifted at the idea of Finn showing up in that car?
Olivia Morgan: I hope not.
When Finn knocked on the door, I opened it to him holding a bouquet—a mix of plum, pink, and orange flowers. He wore a white t-shirt. So simple and yet so, so fucking hot. His eyes burned bright as his gaze raked down my form and the corner of his mouth turned up in a pleased, smug smile.
My stomach dipped again. I rolled my eyes, failing to hide my own grin. “Hi.”
“Hi, baby.” His voice was soft as he leaned in and brushed a kiss onto my cheek. My eyes fluttered closed and his smell whooshed at me.
He stepped inside while I placed the flowers in a jar with water. If the green car was outside, would I get in? My blood thrilled at the idea of getting in the car. When his back was turned, I inhaled the bouquet, filling my lungs with the sweet, sharp scent.
“Like them?”
I whipped around. He was leaning on the kitchen counter, watching me with a funny expression. Not smug this time. More like… proud.
I nodded. “Thank you. Where are we going tonight?”
“We’re going on a little adventure.”
My eyebrows lifted, half amused, half concerned, and he laughed.
“Ready to go?”
I nodded again, speechless. My gaze strayed to him in his t-shirt, fabric pulling gently across his broad shoulders, ink crawling down his corded arms. His forearms were tanned and I had the urge to lick them.
Like he could read my thoughts, his eyebrow arched and he grinned, holding the door open for me.
“Lots of time for that later, Morgan,” he murmured as we headed downstairs, and another shiver shot through me.
I turned to head to the back door leading to the alley, but Finn cocked his head toward the bar.
“This way.”
My heart pounded. If the green car was out there waiting for me, everyone would see me get inside. Everyone would know what it meant. They’d tell my mom. She’d have to hear about it from Miri Yang or someone instead of me. And once I got in the car, there was no going back. If falling for Finn was like being on a rollercoaster, getting in the green car was like boarding the ride.
Would that be so bad? I thought about the flowers upstairs, the sweet way he kissed me on the cheek, the softness I caught in his eyes sometimes. How he was helping me find the flower, hiking tough terrain with bugs and thorns and shitty camping food so I could find something that might not exist.
He had organized a town hiking event. My heart squeezed. He did it for me.
Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad, getting in that car.
As we approached the front door, he winked at me over his shoulder and my stomach lodged in my throat. I followed him outside, scanning the street in front of the bar.
No green car.
I let the air out of my lungs. My stomach sank a fraction. It was just a dumb car. I wasn’t disappointed.
I wasn’t.
“Are we walking?” I asked.
“Nope.” He stepped over to where two bikes leaned against the wall of the bar.
A surprised laugh ripped out of me. It was my old bike from when we were teenagers. I used to store it in Finn’s parents’ shed in their backyard beside Finn’s bike, and when Finn left, I didn’t bother taking it out. I hadn’t ridden it since. After over a decade in a dirty old shed, it should have been rusty and grimy, but it looked preserved in a time capsule. My gaze roamed the midnight-blue frame, speckled with stars, and I reached out to trace one of the brake lines, smooth and untouched by age. The seat was different. There was a new basket on the front.
“How…?” I frowned.
Finn crossed his arms, watching with a tentative grin. “I replaced the brakes and got you a new seat. And I fixed a few other things.”
His bike stood beside mine, cleaned up just as nicely.
“And you added a basket.”
His head dipped, pleased and a little embarrassed. His bashful, boyish expression made my heart stammer.
“I couldn’t resist. Almost added a few sparkly streamers on the side to piss you off.”
I chuckled, reaching out to run the pad of my finger over the wicker basket. Butterflies whipped around in my stomach and chest as I scraped my teeth over my bottom lip.
“Do you like it?” he asked in a low voice.
I shot him a silent nod, smiling.
His eyes turned soft like velvet, and my stomach flopped. “Good.”
Before I could overthink it, Finn was on his bike, slowly meandering down the sidewalk while I scrambled to catch up. The first push of the peddle woke something up in me, a sparking energy in my stomach that made me smile as we rode through the streets of Queen’s Cove to the marina. We leaned our bikes at the top of the marina and headed down to the tiny fish and chips shack, busy with summer tourists.
After we ordered and received our food, we carried it up to the bikes.
“Let’s eat at the beach,” Finn suggested.
“Which one?”
His gaze lifted and behind his eyes, I saw something hesitant and hoping. “Castle.”
A beat passed between us. Castle Beach wasn’t known to tourists. It wasn’t on a map, it wasn’t on Google, and locals didn’t post it on Instagram. Even Miri knew better than to spill the beans about it. Boaters couldn’t access the beach due to signage about underwater rocks. The highway access was nearly impossible to find unless you knew what to search for, but Finn and I knew another way via a back road.
As kids and teenagers, we used to go there all the time. We used to watch the sunset and build bonfires. I remembered sitting there wondering if he liked me like that.
“Race you.” I held his gaze while the challenge lingered in the air. The corner of his mouth turned up and he lifted one eyebrow.
“Oh, yeah?”
“Mhm.” I rolled my lips to hide my smile. My stomach danced with excitement. That thing that woke up in me earlier? It sat up, yawned, and stretched. Blinked the sleep out of its eyes. I smiled wider, wiggling my eyebrows. “Unless you’re worried I’ll kick your ass, like when we hike.”
He let out a bark of laughter. “Morgan, you’re trying to rile me up.”
“What if I am?” I tried to take the food from him to place in the basket but he tucked it in the backpack he had brought, waving me off.
“I’ll carry it.” He did the zip up before straightening and regarding me. “Alright, you’re on. Get ready to dry your tears.”
I smiled so hard my face hurt. “Never.”
We agreed to ride at a casual pace until Main Street and the traffic were behind us. We picked up speed, passing houses, the elementary school, the mechanic, our parents’ houses.
We reached the back road to Castle Beach, slipping through a short path, bumping over the gravel until we reached the pavement.
I sent a delighted, daring grin at Finn before I was off.