Page 30 of Falling for Finn

I’ve successfully captured the hill of trees above Finn’s grandparents’ red ranch house. Mixing the dark and light colors for the two large barns wasn’t easy, but it’s nearly an exact match to the pictures I took. Though I won’t have enough space to incorporate the large pond, I’ve decided to add some of it at the bottom.

I want this painting to fully represent the family behind the farm and where it started.

It’s kind of sweet how they live so close to one another and work together every day.

I wish I had that family dynamic.

With my sister being sixteen years older, we weren’t close until I was a teenager. Even then, she was married to her ex and living her own life. It was mostly my mom, dad, and me until I moved to California for college.

Then I was on my own.

Needing a shower, I decide to take a break and relax under the hot stream. I’m impatiently waiting for Tiernan to check in since her and Everett’s surrogate is supposed to announce the gender of the baby.

Finding out I was going to be an aunt was an exciting time. My sister has wanted kids for years, though once she left her abusive ex, I wasn’t sure she still did. But once things got serious with Everett, starting a family was all she thought about. He’s her perfect half, and I couldn’t have asked for a better man for her. Even if he’s closer to my age.

Their romance sounds like one of the books I’d listen to while painting a romantic setting. I already plan to paint something for the baby’s nursery as soon as they settle on a name.

Once I’ve shaved and exfoliated every inch of my body, I wrap a towel around myself and head upstairs to get dressed. I look at the bed and wonder if sleeping next to Finn is as bad as he makes it sound. When my head hits the pillow, I’m dead to the world for hours. Where my body rolls to is not always something I can help. He’s the one who curls his arms and wraps his legs around me.

If he weren’t such a damn grumpy asshole ninety-five percent of the time, we could explore the undeniable attraction lingering between us. Still, he’d rather act like I’m the biggest inconvenience of his life.

For someone in his early thirties—notthatmuch older than me—he sure likes to make me feel like a little kid who gets on his nerves.

Ugh. The more I think about it, the angrier I get.

When my phone rings and I see Tiernan’s name, I quickly answer the FaceTime call.

“Hey!” I smile, and my mood immediately shifts to excitement. “Do we have the news?”

“Let me tell her,” Everett blurts out before Tiernan can respond, then adds, “You told Payton!”

Payton is Everett’s sister-in-law who lives in New York with his brother, Theo.

“But Oakley’s my sister! I wanna tell her.”

“How come I didn’t get to tell my brother then?” Everett counters, and my patience wavers as they bicker back and forth.

“Oh my God!” I snap. “Will one of you freaking tell me? Is it a taco or a frank and beans?”

“Ew! Don’t be inappropriate about your niece.”

Everett gasps loudly. “You little cheater!”

Tiernan giggles, and Everett tries to tackle her, but she quickly pushes him away.

“Yay, it’s a girl! Now let’s discuss my niece’s name.”

“You’re not picking it,” Everett blurts out.

“Oh, come on. I’m not having kids for like thirty years. Let me choose.”

“Then get a puppy, and you can name it whatever you want,” Everett says firmly, and I frown.

“You owe me,brother-in-law,” I remind him, emphasizing every word.

“How so?”

“If it weren’t for me, you would’ve never asked my sister to marry you that day. You probably wouldn’t even be engaged right now.”

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