Chapter 28 #2
We walked back toward the main house as the afternoon light started to soften, Finn’s hand finding mine automatically as we crossed the gravel drive.
Before we’d made it halfway to the porch, a curly-coated dog that almost looked like a poodle bounded toward us, her entire body wiggling with excitement.
“Maggie!” Finn squatted down as she reached us, her compact body practically vibrating as she licked Finn’s cheek.
“Hey, girl,” he laughed, accepting the assault of affection while trying to keep his balance. “Did you miss me? I was barely gone for a day.”
She had the most expressive dark eyes I’d ever seen in an animal, intelligent and warm, constantly tracking between Finn and me.
When Finn stood up, she turned those eyes my direction with curiosity, head tilted at exactly the angle that made her look like she was genuinely interested in whatever I might have to say.
“Alex, meet Maggie,” Finn grinned, his voice carrying the same proud warmth he’d used for family introductions. “Maggie, this is Alex.”
I crouched down, holding out my hand for her to investigate.
She approached without hesitation, sniffing once before moving directly into my space and pressing against my legs.
Her curls felt perfect under my fingers; soft but with enough texture to be satisfying to touch, warm from the afternoon sun.
“Well, hello there, beautiful,” I whispered, and she let out a gentle huff of contentment.
“She likes you,” Finn observed, watching as Maggie leaned into my touch with pleasure.
“The feeling’s mutual,” I scratched behind her ears, noting how she relaxed into the contact, her steady and calm breathing making my own shoulders drop. “She’s not a poodle though,” I smoothed my hand down her back. “What are you, girl?”
“She’s a Pumi. Kinda rare, especially around these parts,” Finn smiled. “They’re normally herding dogs… but Maggie decided ‘beloved family pet’ was more her speed.”
“Smart career choice,” I decided, standing as Maggie positioned herself between us, clearly planning to supervise whatever came next.
Voices and laughter spilled through open windows as we climbed the steps, the warm scents of bread and roasting meat making me realize how hungry I was. Maggie trotted beside us, her paws clicking softly on the wooden porch.
As we entered the main house, my eyes were immediately drawn to the fireplace mantle covered with what looked like generations of family photos. Bridget disappeared toward the kitchen, and I found myself moving toward the display.
My gaze snagged on a formal photo: dress whites, officer’s cover, familiar features but younger, less scarred.
I looked closer.
United States Naval Academy. Class of 2016.
“Finn,” I whispered, my voice strangled as he appeared beside me with two glasses of water.
“Yeah?” He glanced at the photo I was staring at, then back at me.
“You went to Annapolis?!”
His eyebrows drew together slightly. “I told you I went to the Naval Academy.”
“No, you did not.” I kept my voice low but couldn’t keep the exasperation out. “You said you were in the Navy. Those are very different things, Finn Walker!”
“You went to UCLA,” he offered, clearly confused.
“That’s not the same thing!” I hissed. “UCLA is—it’s a great school, but Annapolis is—” I gestured helplessly at the photo. “You’re telling me you got into one of the most competitive institutions in the country and just... never mentioned it?”
A small smile tugged at his mouth. “Didn’t seem relevant.”
“Didn’t seem—” I stopped, pressing my fingers to my forehead. “We’re discussing this later.”
“Looking forward to it, darlin’,” the smile had grown into a lopsided grin.
“There you are,” Bridget entered from the kitchen, ending our conversation. “Perfect timing. We’re just getting everything on the table.”
The dining room buzzed with activity, the long table already set for dinner. Elowyn introduced me to her husband, Luke, who was carrying serving dishes from the kitchen. Belle set silverware at each plate while Jack and Lucas argued about seating arrangements.
“And this is Fiona Bannock, my grandmother,” Finn guided me toward a woman with white hair pulled into a bun, sitting at the far end of the table. “Móraí, meet Alex.”
Móraí studied me with sharp eyes, looking me over before nodding approvingly.
“So, you’re the one,” she smiled, her voice carrying a slight Irish accent. “Finn’s told us you’re quite something.”
“Thank you for having me,” I couldn’t help smiling in return. “Your ranch is beautiful.”
“It’s been in the family for generations. Good to see it’s still bringing the right people together.”
“Alex!” Belle spotted me and immediately abandoned her task. “Did you see the lodge? Isn’t it pretty? Mom and Grandma designed most of the guest rooms themselves.”
“It’s gorgeous,” I meant it completely. “You have incredible taste.”
“Belle, let them get settled,” Elowyn chided gently, though she looked pleased by the compliment. She gestured to two chairs midway down the table. “Alex, we’ve got you here next to Finn, if that works.”
Finn helped me with my chair before sitting beside me, his hand briefly touching my shoulder. Maggie circled twice before settling herself on the floor between our chairs.
Nolan appeared with a platter full of grilled chicken and steak kabobs layered with sliced vegetables. “Hope everyone’s hungry,” he took his place at the head of the table.
Everyone passed dishes and filled plates as the conversation flowed between ranch and lodge business, observations about the day, and the easy teasing of family affection.
“So Alex,” Luke said, carefully sliding chicken and peppers off his skewer, “do you have any kids?”
“Luke, darling,” Elowyn said quietly.
Finn’s hand settled gently on my knee under the table. “No kids,” I smiled, keeping my voice warm despite the familiar tightness the question always brought. “Just me and my very demanding job.”
“What kind of job?” Lucas bit into his corn on the cob.
“Animation, remember?” Belle practically bounced in her chair as she answered for me. “And games! Legends of Heliox means she knows Uncle Dom!”
“Wait, really?” Jack turned to stare at me with new respect. “You know Uncle Dom?”
“Alex is Uncle Enzo’s sister,” Finn grinned, amusement clear in his voice. “She introduced him and Uncle Dom.”
“Woah…” Jack’s eyes grew large as his fork paused halfway to his mouth.
“Uncle Enzo said that’s how Uncle Finn met Alex,” Belle added. “At their engagement party.”
“Is that so?” Móraí’s eyes twinkled with interest.
“It is,” Finn glanced at me with a soft expression. “Best introduction I ever got.”
The way he said it made my cheeks warm. I reached for my water glass, needing something to do with my hands.
“She really is pretty, Uncle Finn,” Lucas announced suddenly. “Just like you said she was.”
The table went quiet for a beat and I felt my ears grow hot. Finn had talked about me, called me pretty to his family.
Finn’s cheeks darkened slightly, but he didn’t look embarrassed.
“Lucas Harrison,” Elowyn was trying not to smile.
“What?” Lucas looked around the table in confusion. “He did! He said she was pretty and smart and made him laugh.”
“You did?” I whispered, meeting Finn’s eyes across the small space between our chairs.
“I did,” he smiled, the warmth in his voice making my heart skip.
“Well,” Móraí interrupted, “it’s always good when a man has excellent taste in women.”
The conversation moved on to safer topics, summer operations, guest stories, plans for Dom and Enzo’s wedding. But I found myself sneaking glances at Finn throughout dinner, curious about what else he’d told them about me.
Maggie shifted slightly, her warm weight settling more firmly against my legs as I listened to Belle explain her latest art project, Bridget and Elowyn discussing plans for the North Star Ranch Annual July Fourth celebration, and Jack trying to convince Lucas that he could totally eat three pieces of pie.
Dinner wound down naturally as the kids started yawning and Bridget began clearing plates. Belle tried to negotiate staying up later to show me her paintings, but Elowyn redirected her with a reminder that guests needed settling-in time.
“Thank you for dinner,” I stood to help carry dishes before Bridget waved me off.
“You’re a guest tonight,” she insisted, stacking dinnerware. “Tomorrow you can help if you want, but tonight you relax.”
“She means it,” Finn grinned beside me. “Fightin’ Mom on hospitality rules is a losing battle.”
We said our goodnights to the family, Móraí squeezing my hand and telling me she was glad I’d come, the kids extracting promises to see more of me tomorrow before they were herded upstairs by their parents.
Even Maggie seemed reluctant to let us leave, following us to the front door before Nolan called her back.
The evening air felt cool against my skin as we walked back toward the lodge, crickets singing in the grass around us, the Tetons rising like dark silhouettes against a sky scattered with more stars than I’d seen in a long time.
Finn’s fingers slipped between mine, our hands swinging gently between us as we crossed toward the lodge.
“That went well,” I beamed.
“They like you already,” Finn glanced at me with a soft smile. “Belle’s probably planning to corner you tomorrow morning with her entire portfolio.”
“I’m looking forward to it.” And I was, excited about encouraging a thirteen-year-old’s creative passion. “Your family is wonderful, Finn. Really wonderful.”
“Even when Lucas announced to everyone that I think you’re pretty?”
I laughed, heat creeping up my neck. “Especially then.”
The lodge felt quiet around us as we climbed the stairs to our room, other guests either settled for the evening or enjoying the fire pits dotted around the lodge.
Finn unlocked our door and stepped aside to let me enter first, the room feeling more intimate in the lamplight than it had during the afternoon.
I moved to the window, looking out at the lights twinkling in the distance. Behind me, I heard Finn closing the door, followed by the soft sounds of him moving around the room. When I turned he was sitting on the edge of the bed closest to the window, watching me.
“So…” I began, suddenly aware of the two beds, the choice we’d talked about earlier, the fact that we were officially real now instead of just pretending. “About the sleeping arrangements.”
“Your choice,” he shrugged, echoing what he’d said earlier. “Every night.”
“What if I choose you?” I moved closer to where he sat.
“Then you choose me,” he smiled.
I stepped between his knees, my hands settling on his shoulders, feeling the solid warmth of him through his shirt. “And what if I choose you every night we’re here?”
His hands came up to rest on my waist, thumbs brushing gentle circles against my sides. “Then I’d be the luckiest man in Wyoming.”
“Just Wyoming?” I teased, leaning closer.
“The whole damn country,” he murmured, and then he was kissing me, soft and sweet and unhurried, like we had all the time in the world to figure out how this worked between us.
I slipped my arms around his neck as the kiss deepened, pulling gently at the hair at his nape as I tasted the remnants of dessert and something essentially Finn underneath. His hands mapped the curve of my back before sliding down over my backside.
When we finally broke apart, both breathing harder, I rested my forehead against his.
“I’m still mad at you,” I whispered against his lips.
“For what?” his voice was rough.
“Annapolis. Aerospace engineering. Just casually being a genius and never mentioning it.”
He huffed a quiet laugh. “I’m not a genius.”
“You went to one of the most competitive schools in the country. For engineering. That’s—” I kissed him again, harder this time. “That’s really hot, actually.”
“Is it?” His smile pressed against my mouth.
“Devastatingly.” I pulled back just enough to look at him. “I’m recalculating everything I thought I knew about you.”
“And?”
“And I’m apparently even more attracted to you than I realized, which seems unfair.”
“Unfair how?” He chuckled.
“You’re already—” I gestured vaguely at all of him, then at the space between us. “You’re already everything. And now you’re telling me you’re also brilliant? It’s excessive.”
“Excessive,” he repeated, clearly amused.
“Completely. But I’ll allow it.” I brushed my lips against his. “And in case it isn’t clear, I choose you.”
“Good,” his voice went rough with emotion and desire. “Because I’ve been choosing you for months now, even when I was too scared to admit it.”
I kissed him again, pouring all my gratitude for his patience and gentleness into the soft press of my lips against his. Tomorrow we’d figure out everything else. Tonight, we were just Alex and Finn, officially real, choosing each other and the promise of whatever came next.