17. Finn
Finn
The last month with Kate and Noah had flown by. Link was still looking into her background, but so far, everything she had said had panned out.
I’d convinced her to take Noah to the park a few times with me, for them both to get some fresh air and normalcy, and it had been so much fun. Seeing her smile light up her face as she pushed Noah on the baby swing made my day.
We’d gone to the clubhouse for breakfast and Lucy caught me outside the bar first thing in the morning, her voice full of happiness.
“Reaper and I will be with Kate and Noah today. You can take a breath.”
A breath. Right. Only when they disappeared out the door, it felt like the air went with them. I’d spent the last month glued to their side, and without them, I was a knot of restless energy and edgy.
All I’d wanted since the moment she had run into our lives was for them to be gone so I could go back to my life. Now that they were, I didn’t know what to do with myself.
I tried shooting pool, but the balls clattered and rolled without any clear path. I tried a beer, but it tasted flat. Finally, I dropped into a booth in the bar, slumping back against the vinyl.
That’s when Riley slid in.
The newest club girl, blonde hair spilled over her shoulders, and her perfume was thick enough to coat the air. She smirked, bold as brass, and swung one leg over, planting herself right on my lap.
I didn’t stop her or tell her to move because having her on my lap was easy. There were no consequences or questions. She was just a girl who knew exactly what she was doing and didn’t expect anything after.
Riley shifted against me, slow and deliberate, her breasts pressed against my chest. My hands landed on her hips automatically.
“Yeah,” she murmured when she felt it, “thought so.”
I dragged her closer, my hand in her hair, grip tightening to force her lips closer to mine.
That was what I did, that was normal for me—fuck and forget.
Not watching her sleep. Not building cots.
Not Kate.
“Mm,” she breathed against my ear. “Knew you were wound tight. Let me ease some of that tension for you.”
Her hands slid over my chest, her mouth brushing my jaw. I should’ve pushed her off. Should’ve said something, anything, but instead, my mouth found her neck and I sucked at the soft skin there.
“Will you fuck me, Finn?” Riley murmured in my ear, her teeth grazing the soft skin.
I closed my eyes and slipped my hand up her skirt, pressing my fingers against her clit through the fabric of her panties. She was right, I needed the release and with Kate and Noah out for the day, I finally had some time to do what I wanted.
I was just about to take her to my room in the clubhouse, when the door opened.
Lucy walked in first with Noah, laughing at something Reaper muttered. Kate followed, arms full of shopping bags, a tired smile lighting her face until she saw me. Saw Riley straddling my lap, her lips at my throat, my hands holding her.
The smile shattered and Kate’s whole expression closed off in an instant, her steps faltering before she dropped her bags, grabbed Noah out of Lucy’s arms, turned and hurried out of the front door, her shoulders stiff and shaking.
Lucy blinked after her, confused, then turned to me. Her eyes narrowed, and heat crawled up my neck.
“I’ll go check on her,” Maria called, picking up the bags and heading out behind Kate.
Riley giggled, still pressed against me, but I shoved her gently aside. “Not now.”
She pouted but slid off, muttering something under her breath as she stalked away.
I slumped back against the booth, running a hand over my face. Maybe it was better this way. Kate was off-limits, always would be. Caleb’s girl. Caleb’s baby.
I barely made it halfway across the bar to get another drink before Lucy stepped out, blocking my way. Arms crossed, eyes glaring at me.
“Lucy—” I started, but she cut me off.
“Don’t bother. I saw her face.”
I scrubbed a hand over the back of my neck, heat crawling up my skin. “There’s nothing going on between us. She’s Caleb’s girl.”
Lucy’s gaze didn’t waver. If anything, it sharpened. “She was never my brother’s girl.”
That stopped me cold. “What?”
“They hooked up once,” Lucy went on. “Caleb cared about her, sure, but he wasn’t in love with her.
He came back because of Noah. Because he wasn’t the kind of man to walk away from his responsibility.
” Her eyes softened just a fraction. “He wanted to make sure she was taken care of. That the baby was safe and cared for.”
I’d built a wall around myself, telling myself she was off-limits, that wanting her was betrayal, and Lucy was kicking that wall down, brick by brick.
“She needs someone like you, Finn,” Lucy said. “I’ve seen the way you look at her. At Noah, too. The way you protect them both.”
I shook my head, throat tight. “I did that because it’s my job. She’s been through hell. She doesn’t need me complicating things.”
“No,” Lucy said, her eyes fierce. “What she doesn’t need is to think she’s alone. Caleb’s gone. But you? You’re still here, and maybe that’s what she needs most. Admit it, Finn, she’s no longer just a job.”
Her words hit deep, a weight I didn’t know how to carry settled on my shoulder. I looked past her down the bar, at the front door, I needed to find Kate and explain.