Page 66 of Exile and Embrace

“Have a safe ride home.”

She takes off into the night, leaving me to fight with my own mind about how tonight will go.

This dinner needs to be good.

Cillian and his wife are going to be sitting across the table and watching how Finn and I interact with each other. If we don’t seem like enough of a couple to them, are they going to say something about it?

I’m supposed to be his fiancée, though I still don’t know why. All I know is that it’s important to whatever he’s doing here, and whatever he’s doing here clearly has something to do with Cillian.

After exhaling slowly and trying to shake the nervous trembles from my hands, I head back inside.

Finn whistles as he walks into the kitchen, his hands in his pockets. “It smells good in here. What’s that?”

He wanders over to the stove and pulls open a drawer beside it, taking out a spoon.

“Sun-dried tomato pasta. It’s got some lemon, garlic, and white wine in the sauce. I’ve still got to chop the basil that goes in it too, but Brooklyn said it’s delicious.”

Finn grins and spoons up some of the sauce and tries it. “Brooklyn is right. That is delicious.”

He tosses the spoon in the sink while I grab the basil from the fridge and toss it onto the cutting board. Finn bumps me out of the way with his hip and grabs the basil, plucking off leaves and putting them into a neat little pile.

I stand to the side, stirring the sauce as he rolls the leaves and cuts them into thin ribbons.

I watch him for a couple of seconds. The serene smile on his face, the relaxed stance he doesn’t wear often. “You really enjoy cooking, don’t you?”

I glance at the clock, reaching up to toy with my necklace.

The little diamond heart twists in my fingers as I go through the mental list of all I need to have ready for tonight.

“I do.” He smiles. “Reminds me of the good times I had in the kitchen with my mom.”

Finn he puts the basil in the pot. “She would have liked you if she met you. She would have thought that you were good for the Byrne boys. Those would have been her exact words too.”

My cheeks warm as I roll my eyes. “I doubt I’m that good for you. I wanted to come out here and deceive people with you.”

He chuckles and leans a little closer to me, his mouth ghosting over mine. “That just proves you have what it takes to not get crushed by this life.”

The doorbell rings, cutting him off as I reach for the box of pasta.

He goes to answer the door while I dump the pasta into the pot of boiling water.

Voices come from the front hall, soft and growing louder as they get closer.

I wipe my sweaty palms on my slacks before smoothing down my sleeveless satin blouse.

Finn walks into the room with two people trailing behind him.

The man is tall and broad, with dark red hair and bright green eyes. His jaw could be cut from polished stone, if not for the scar marring it.

The woman offers me a soft smile, tucking her short chocolate-colored hair behind her ear. “Hello.”

I paste on my warmest smile and head over to greet them. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Finn smiles and loops his arm around my waist, pulling me against his side. “Aves, this is Cillian and Becca. Cillian, Becca, this is Ava.”

Cillian returns the smile. “It smells delicious in here, Ava.”

“Thank you.” I press a quick kiss to Finn’s jaw before heading back to the stove. I grab the pan with the chicken and pour it into the sauce before stirring the pasta. “Everything should be ready in just a few moments. There’s a couple bottles of wine on the table there and some beer and soda in the fridge. Feel free to help yourselves to whatever you like.”

---