Chapter 28 #3
She stared at him. All her life, people had made decisions for her. Not anymore. “I am the one that gets to decide that.”
Elena didn’t give him time to respond. She pushed him back against the couch, her palms flat against his chest, feeling his heart beating hard beneath her fingers.
She sank to her knees in front of him.
Something shifted in his expression, a mixture of relief and lust. Her hands found his belt. She watched his face as she worked, savoring the anticipation building in him as he tried to stay still. This was hers. Her moment, her man, her choice.
When she freed him and took him in her mouth, the sound he made was worth everything. It was raw and unguarded, his restraint falling apart.
She set a rhythm, paying attention to what made his breathing change, what made his fingers tighten in her hair. He wasn’t directing her, he was just trying to hold on. “I’ve wanted this for so long.” The words came out rough.
Elena pulled back just enough to look up at him. “How long?”
He was breathing hard, struggling to focus. “Months.”
“Tell me when.” Her hand kept moving. “The specific moment.”
Finn’s head fell back into the couch. “The first day.”
She waited.
“When you looked up at me.”
“The elevator,” she whispered. The moment they met, when she bumped into him.
Finn nodded, barely managing to do even that.
Elena remembered that day. She had noticed him too—his height, his shoulders, the way he looked down at her. She had pushed away the thought almost immediately. He was off limits. Too young. Her employee. She tried to bury it and convince herself it wasn’t there.
She was done burying things. “You wanted me this whole time?
“Yes.” The word came out strained.
She slowed her pace, drawing him closer to the edge. “I don’t think I would have stopped you.”
Finn’s eyes snapped to hers.
“I would have let you fuck me in my office.”
The sound he made almost undid her. His whole body tensed, hands gripping the couch cushions, fighting for control. She felt how close he was to the edge. She slowed even more, savoring it. This. Him. The way she could take him apart.
“Elena—” His voice was barely there. “You need to stop, or this is going to be over.”
She pulled back, looking up at him. His chest was heaving, his expression wrecked.
“Come here,” he managed, reaching for her. He pulled her up from the floor and onto his lap in one fluid motion, his mouth finding hers before she could catch her breath. The kiss was different now. It was hungrier, more desperate. His hands moved to her waist, fingers pressing into her skin.
Then he was standing, lifting her with him like she weighed nothing.
Elena's legs wrapped around him instinctively, arms looped around his neck.
The ease with which he carried her sent a shiver through her.
She'd spent so long being strong, being capable, being entirely self-sufficient.
There was something freeing about surrendering to his strength, just for this moment.
His bedroom was dimly lit by the glow from the hallway. Finn laid her on the bed, then stood back, looking down at her with an expression that made her breath catch. She was still wearing his sweatpants. His clothes on her body, in his bed. Something possessive flickered in his eyes.
He reached for the waistband of the sweatpants. Slow. Deliberate. Watching her face as he pulled them down her legs and tossed them aside.
Then he knelt at the edge of the bed.
Elena's heart was pounding. She'd imagined this late at night when she was alone and hated herself for it. But imagination was nothing compared to the reality.
The first touch of his mouth made her gasp. Her hand flew to his hair, gripping without meaning to. He didn't tease, didn't make her wait.
Her back arched off the mattress. Small sounds escaped her throat that she couldn't control. Finn's hands gripped her hips, holding her steady, and she could feel him making sounds too. Low, satisfied hums against her skin. He was enjoying this. Getting off on her pleasure.
"Tell me what you want." His voice was rough against her.
"You." The word came out breathless. "God, I want you."
"How much?"
She was trembling now, so close to the edge she could barely think. "I never wanted my ex the way I want you."
Finn stopped.
Oh God. Elena squeezed her eyes shut. Why am I bringing up my ex-husband right now? What is wrong with me?
"Elena."
She couldn't look at him. Her face was burning.
"Look at me."
Slowly, she opened her eyes. He was watching her with an intensity that stole her breath.
"Say that again."
Her throat tightened. She was saying it out loud now, and the relief was overwhelming.
"I've never wanted anyone the way I want you, Finn."
His jaw tightened. "Good." His voice was deeper now. "Because you're mine now."
He lowered his mouth to her again, and the rest of the world disappeared.
Elena stopped thinking. Stopped worrying. There was only the sensation of his tongue, his hands, the sounds he made against her. She felt herself climbing, climbing, every nerve ending lit up.
Why the fuck did I wait this long?
The thought broke through the haze. All those months of holding back, of being responsible, of pretending she didn't want exactly this.
"Oh God—" Her voice cracked. "I can't wait any longer." She reached for him, pulling at his shoulders. Finn rose over her, and when their eyes met, she saw her own need reflected back.
“I can’t either.”
He entered her slowly. Elena gasped, her body stretching to accommodate him.
He stilled, giving her a moment, his eyes searching her face.
She pulled him closer in answer. When he pushed fully inside, she saw him let go completely.
No more restraint, no more careful distance.
Just him, looking at her like she was everything. She had never been looked at like that.
He moved, and she moved with him. It wasn’t frantic or desperate.
It was deliberate and slow. Like they wanted this to last forever.
She was surprised at how perfectly they fit together.
How naturally his body wrapped around hers.
But maybe she shouldn’t have been surprised at all.
It was always like this with Finn. When they joked around in the diner.
When they worked together side by side in the lab.
When they held hands in the parking lot. When they—
“God—” Finn breathed against her ear. “How do you feel so right?”
She couldn't answer. She just pulled him deeper, her nails dragging down his back. He groaned at that, his hips pressing harder. His thumb traced her cheekbone. She turned her head, kissed his palm.
Then his hips snapped forward and she gasped, and the passion shifted into something more urgent.
His mouth found her neck. Her jaw. The sensitive spot below her ear that made her back arch off the mattress.
She wrapped her legs around him, changing the angle, and the low sound he made sent heat flooding through her.
"Finn—"
"I know."
His pace quickened. Elena felt herself building towards the edge. Her body tightened around him with every thrust as the pressure coiled within her.
Yes. There. Please.
She wasn't sure if she said any of it out loud. But somehow, Finn seemed to fully understand the assignment. His hand gripped her hip, holding her steady as he drove into her. Their eyes met.
"Elena." His voice was strained, barely holding on. "Let go."
And she did let go.
Of the worry about what people would think. Of all the stress that had been on her shoulders. Of the deadline. Of the impossible task to do everything perfectly.
She let all of it fall away until there was nothing left but the two of them.
They lay tangled together afterward, catching their breath.
Elena's head rested on Finn's chest, listening to his heartbeat slow.
His hand moved lazily up and down her arm.
She hadn't felt this relaxed in months. Maybe years.
Her mind was quiet. No spiraling thoughts, no mental to-do lists.
Just the warmth of his body against hers and the gentle rising and falling of his chest.
Finn shifted, turning toward her. Elena looked up and found him watching her with a serious expression. "No matter what happens," he said, "with the presentation, with David, with any of it. I need you to know I’m with you."
Elena lifted her head to look at him. "This isn’t going to be easy," she said. “Us, I mean. It’s… complicated.”
"I don’t care." he said, looking at her. "I'm not going anywhere."
She wanted to believe him. The certainty in his voice was making it easier.
"You understand I'm a single mom, right?" she asked after a moment. "Miguel and I are a package deal. He means everything to me."
Finn looked at her like she'd said something ridiculous. "So?"
"So... that's a lot to take on."
"Elena." He propped himself up on one elbow, looking down at her with genuine confusion. "Miguel's great. He's smart, he's funny, and he’s the only one that can get you to leave the lab. Why would he be a problem?"
The casual way he said it surprised Elena. She'd been bracing for hesitation, for the moment when reality set in and Finn realized what he was signing up for. Instead, he seemed almost confused by her concern.
"I just... I needed you to know what you're getting into," she said.
"I know exactly what I'm getting into," Finn replied. His hand moved to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "I’ve spent months working with you. There hasn’t been a single day where you haven’t impressed the hell out of me.”
Elena felt tears prick at her eyes before she could stop them.
Finn continued “And yeah, your son has a debilitating Mountain Dew addiction. But that is something we can work through. I’m sure there is some kind of rehab facility that specializes in—”
"I love you," she said, the words slipping out suddenly.
Finn went very still. "Yeah?" he asked, his voice quiet.
"Yeah," she confirmed, reaching up to touch his face. "I love you, Finn Cochrane."
"I love you too, Elena," he said, the words coming out in a rush like he'd been holding them back. "So much."
He kissed her then, his hand cradling her head. When they broke apart, Elena settled back against his chest, his arms wrapping securely around her.
For a moment, she let herself imagine it. A future where this wasn't complicated or risky or potentially career-ending. Where she could wake up next to Finn every morning. Where he just fit into her family seamlessly without fear of consequences.
But first, they had one thing to finish.
David Turner.