Page 29 of Strictly Business

“If you think he’s bad, meet Oliver.”

Oliver Sheffield — Finn’s father — his very wealthy, very obnoxious father. I’ve only had the displeasure of meeting him a handful of times, but I’ve heard plenty of stories. Every one proves the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, but I’d still take Finn over his dad any day.

“The only person I know who didn’t hate him was Daddy,” Nina says. “Even Brina hated him, that should tell you something.”

“That’s because he was afraid of your dad.” I roll my eyes. “Your dad was what Mr. Sheffield wants to be and more, so of course, he’s gonna be nice to him. Even if he talks shit later.”

Nina shrugs, “Daddy always called him an ass, but said he wasn’t as bad as everyone said. Then again, when you’re married to Brina Villa, everyone probably seems like a saint.”

“Dee,” Nick sighs.

“Well, am I wrong?”

No, she’s not. Her mother is even more of an acquired taste than Finn. Not only was she cheating on Ric with Nina’s ex-boyfriend (yeah, you heard me), but she was just an overall bad person. Brina would have been happy if they had stopped having kids after Kai and made sure Nina knew it. Don’t even get me started on how she treated people who worked for the family… But, now she lives a modest life somewhere in SoHo. She got knocked down a few pegs when Ric left her nothing in his will, not to mention he was about to divorce her before his accident…

“Look, Mic, all I’m saying is Finn isn’t that bad,” Nick says, trying to steer the conversation away from Brina. “He’s rough around the edges, and a little bit of a prick, but overall he’s a good guy. You guys have had this feud since we were all kids, don’t you think it’s time to put it aside and grow up?”

“I already told Nina I’d put my differences aside for two weeks to help her with this project, but I refuse to promise anything more.”

“I don’t think you have to do anything,” Nina snickers.

“Seems like he’s making the effort for you,” Nick adds. “If David doesn’t start coming home, he might have some competition.”

“For the love of God, it was just breakfast!” I huff and fall back onto the couch.

“From Brooklyn.”

Chapter Thirteen

MICHAELA

“THIS IS ALL YOUR fault, you know.” I walk through the door Finn holds open to Birch Coffee. This morning has been anything but normal since the moment I woke up. The first thing I thought of was whether or not I should return the favor and bring breakfast for the two of us. After mulling it over as I got ready for work, I decided yesterday was a one-off and not to expect anything to come of it. I’d probably walk into the office to find your typical grumpy, uptight Sheffield waiting for me. The second I walked in, he was surprisingly pleasant. He suggested we head out of the office to work, and get some fresh air and coffee to get the creative juices flowing. All I could think was that Hell had frozen over or the world was ending or both.

“And, how is that?” Finn laughs. I feel the warmth of his hand on the small of my back guiding me towards the small line at the register.

“You’re the one who said we could pull money together for something on such short notice!”

“Well, we can.”

“That doesn’t mean we should. The company isn’t even up and running yet.”

“And I think Kai is right. Something like this will show investors why it’s important.” He smiles at the barista stepping up to the counter and when I try to hang back to wait and order, he demands I let him pay for me. Either he thinks I’m poor, or he’s being extremely nice, and it’s starting to worry me. Maybe he’s dying. Is he dying? He doesn’t look like he’s dying. He still looks normal…

“Stop staring at me like that,” he hands over my latte.

“I’m not staring.”

“Yes, you were. Now stop it.”

“Finn, I have to say this. You’re going to take it the wrong way, but I have to say it.”

His brow quirks as he holds open the door again, letting me walk out first. Has he always been such a gentleman? “I don’t like the sound of that.”

“What in the hell is wrong with you the last two days?”

“What do you mean?” He sips the black coffee with cream, no sugar…just coffee. That’s disgusting.

“You brought me breakfast yesterday and today—”

---