Page 119 of Finn Rhodes Forever

“What?” I prompted.

“Just thinking about how I’m going to challenge you again.”

“You could find the flower before me.” I ate another fry.

He shook his head, eyes dancing. “I’d never do that to you.”

We watched each other. “I know.”

Something popped into my head, and my stomach twisted with worry. His expression turned serious, like he could see my emotions painted all over my face. I used to be good at hiding my emotions. I used to have the best resting bitch face in town, but over the summer, I seemed to have misplaced it. Or maybe Finn stole it. He could always read me like a book.

“I started job hunting,” I admitted. “For October.”

“Oh.” He picked up a fry but didn’t eat it. “Find anything?”

“The research center in Port Alberni has nothing, which is no surprise. They’re underfunded and because they’re underfunded, they’re becoming obsolete, which means they’re getting fewer grants.”

“Which means they’re becoming more underfunded,” Finn supplied, and I nodded.

The next words caught in my throat. “There are a few jobs in Port Hardy.”

Finn blinked before nodding. “Hmm.”

Port Hardy was on the northwest end of the island, a six-hour drive from Queen’s Cove. I wouldn’t be commuting back to town every night with that drive.

“And they have a few jobs that don’t require PhDs,” I continued, staring at the ocean. “Although they seem boring. Just lab work. Stuff I did in undergrad.”

He hummed again, understanding the underlying message. I didn’t want those jobs, and I didn’t want to move to Port Hardy.

“I’d move with you.” His careful gaze met mine.

“Your job.”

He watched me, still smiling. “I’m sure they have fires there.”

I chewed my lip to keep from smiling back at him before I let it go, let the smile lift on my face. “We’ll see.”

“Yep.” He nodded.

A twist of frustration hit me and I blinked. Queen’s Cove was my home, and I didn’t want to leave. Everyoneelsegot their happy ending. Even if Finn came with me, I didn’t want to leave.

I thought about Finn’s brothers and my friends. Except for Emmett, they all owned their own businesses and made their own destiny. My forehead creased. It didn’t work like that for me. I couldn’t start my own research lab here in Queen’s Cove; half the field thought I was a quack on the hunt for something that went extinct. No one in their right mind would give me hundreds of thousands of dollars to lead studies. Not if I didn’t find the flower.

A slow, sinking feeling hit my stomach.

“Hey.” Finn’s hand brushed my arm. “We’re going to figure it out, okay?”

I nodded, not believing him. My gaze swung out to the water, reflecting the sun dipping lower in the sky. I didn’t want to feel like this, not here. Not on the date Finn had planned for us.

“We should move to the forest,” I said with a snort. “We could build our own cabin, drill a well for water, and pedal our bikes to keep the lights on.”

He cocked a grin at me. “Boil water for baths?”

“Too much work. We’d swim in the creek.”

“What about in the winter?”

“You’ll keep me warm.”

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