Chapter 12 #3
my intent to head to bed. Unfortunately, Finn decided to come with me. Not that I can fault him for it. We are sharing a room and it is late.
Now I dither yet again in the little en suite bathroom, rubbing coconut oil over my dry elbows and brushing my teeth twice. But a girl can only stall for so long without
making it obvious.
I find Finn tucked up in bed reading on his iPad, and thankfully wearing a T-shirt and whatever he has on under the covers.
The bed looks dainty beneath his big frame and broad shoulders. The space left for me to lie beside him is a tiny sliver of
bed real estate that promises prolonged bodily contact.
Well, fuck.
Finn looks up and studies me with a passive expression on his face. I can tell he’s examining all angles of this, trying to
figure out how to put me at ease, wondering if I’m about to bolt. The idea calms me, and I lean against the bathroom doorway.
“I expected your room to be covered in plaid and gleaming with school trophies,” I tell him.
“Plaid?” He snorts. “I’m of Irish stock. We call them tartans, and you won’t be finding them on me walls.”
“That is the worst Irish accent ever.”
Finn grins, his eyes impossibly blue against the sky-colored sheets. “My parents remodeled the house three years ago. It’s
double the size now and every room has been redone. Glenn and I took what we wanted out of our rooms and packed up the rest
to stuff in the garage.”
“Ah, the end of childhood,” I say with an expansive sigh. “It’s always so wonderfully brutal.”
“I’m guessing your parents did the same when they bought the tiny house?”
“Pretty much. Only they sent me a box of what they thought I’d want and gave the rest away.”
“Jesus. They didn’t warn you?” Finn scowls, which somehow causes his biceps to bunch. It’s a good look for him.
“We are talking about people who named their daughter Chester because they thought it was a good meet-cute story.” I shrug,
hugging my chest tight. “My parents are loving, generous, and flighty as fuck. I was the one who remembered to take out the
trash, buy groceries, and do the laundry. They taught me to dance the waltz and finger paint on walls.”
Finn’s blue gaze rests on me, and I shift my weight onto my other foot. “They aren’t horrible,” I ramble on, aware that my
voice is far too shaky. “But reliable, they ain’t.”
When he speaks, it’s in a gentle, even tone. “Are you going to get in this bed, Chess?”
I stand a bit straighter and huff out a breath. “That’s all you have to say?”
His lips part as if he’ll speak, but then he closes his mouth before opening it again. “In the spirit of friendship, I feel
I should point out that your nightshirt is transparent when backlit by the bathroom light.”
I jump out of the bathroom doorway, flicking off the light as I go. With a glare, I hustle my ass into the bed, sliding under the cool covers as Finn laughs low in his belly.
“Asshole.” I pull the comforter up to my chest. “You could have told me sooner.”
“The struggle was real,” he admits, turning to face me. His impish smile fades.
“How else was I going to get you in bed?”
With a sigh, I snuggle in, trying to get comfortable amidst the pillows. Finn turns off the bedside lamp and then settles
down as well. We’re so close, shoulder to shoulder, his knees bumping mine, my cold toes wiggling over his, that there is
no escape.
I should be panicked, but it feels nice. Safe. At least in this moment.
Finn’s voice is a murmur in the near darkness. “I’m sorry you had to go through that, Chess. It couldn’t have been easy. I’ve
always wondered . . .”
“What?” I whisper thickly.
Finn rests his head on his hand. “You’re so strong.”
“Hardly.”
“You weren’t intimidated at all by us when we showed up at your place, hollering and acting like a bunch of rowdy boys.”
“You’re a bunch of overgrown puppies.”
His teeth flash in a quick smile. “True. But I think you’re used to dealing with shit. Having a name like Chester must have
been a nightmare in grade school.”
I tuck a pillow under my cheek and stare up at him. “Kids learn fast. Word gets out that taunting me will earn a punch on
the lip, and they’re not so quick to tease.”
“But they still did it.” He sounds so protective, it hurts my heart and makes my skin twitchy.
We’re both fully aware that Finn calls me Chester. But, when he says it, somehow my name becomes simply me, something that I don’t need to hide from or cringe over. After a lifetime of feeling as though an essential part of me is nothing more than a sad joke, it is a gift I never knew I needed.
My fingertips sink into the down pillow as I try to get ahold of my emotions. “We’ve all had shit to deal with in childhood.
Frankly, I think most of us deserve a freaking medal for surviving it.” I lift my head slightly and narrow my gaze. “Or did
you coast through wound-free?”
Finn worries his bottom lip with the edge of his teeth. “My ears grew bigger before my head could catch up. And I had acne.”
“Get out of town. Pretty Boy Mannus?”
“Back then they called me Pimple Boy Mannus.” He husks out a laugh. “At least when I wasn’t throwing TDs.”
“I bet the girls liked you anyway.”
We’re speaking in hushed tones now, and the words have a weight between us. “I was the quarterback. Of course they liked me.”
“That’s not the only reason why.”
“What’s the other reason?” Somehow, he’s gotten closer. I never saw him move, but we’re almost nose to nose now, his forearm
pressed against mine where they rest on the mattress.
I smile, the barest curve of my lips. “Like I said before, you’re one of the good guys, Finn. People can’t help but like you.”
His eyes search mine. In the dim, they glint like dark skies. “I want to hold you.”
My breath hitches, catching in my throat.
Finn presses on, his voice a rumble against my skin. “Just that, Chess. Let me hold you while we sleep.”
I’m not aware of making a conscious decision, but in the next breath, my cheek is pressed against the firm swell of his chest,
and my body is tucked securely along his lean length. His arm wraps around my waist and he clasps my nape.
He’s so blissfully warm that I close my eyes on a quiet sigh.
“Thank you,” he whispers into my hair.
It shouldn’t be so easy to melt into his hold and fall asleep. But it is.