Page 78 of Finn Rhodes Forever

Everything I wanted was happening for Liv and me. We were spending more time together, she was trusting me, and we were getting closer. Soon enough, we wouldn’t be where we were before, we’d be moreus, deeper in this friendship, woven tighter together. Inseparable. Like we were meant to be.

A nervous, ugly chill slithered through my consciousness.

What if she changed her mind? I lay there in the dark, staring at the ceiling as Liv slept on my chest. What if she woke up and realized I was exactly who I was trying not to be?

I let a long breath out, pushing the thoughts out of my head and replacing them with memories of tonight, of Liv and me in the shower, of her embarrassed face at dinner, of the way her eyes glazed over with trust and pleasure as I made her come.

It was working, this plan of mine. Now I had to stop myself from fucking it up.

31

Olivia

One morning the following week,I zipped my pack up and stood in my kitchen, staring off into space.

We were just hiking. No big deal. We went hiking before and nothing happened.

That was before the shower. Before Finn made my brain disintegrate while he touched me. He had made me come so hard I couldn’t think. Every night this week, I’d crawled into bed and slipped my hand between my legs thinking about Finn in the shower, towering over me with that smug expression, like heknewI was going to come.

Years ago, I thought my first time with Finn was a fluke. Losing your virginity was supposed to be awkward, fumbly and uncomfortable. With Finn, though? It had been hot and fun, and the second he touched me, it felt like he knew me. He knew exactlyhowandwhatandwhere. None of my later hookups had compared, and even when I dated that guy for a few months in school, the sex never got to that level. It always felt unsatisfying, like eating a bowl of popcorn and still feeling hungry.

But in the shower with Finn… holy shit. Maybe it was the buildup, his height over me, or him being in control. Maybe it was him telling me I was his girl.

In my kitchen, I shivered and shook it off.

I’d been avoiding him all week and he knew it. The morning after, he had been sowarmagainst my cheek when my head was on his chest, and his fingers played with my hair, light and gentle. I’d made an awkward excuse about needing to use the washroom before kicking him out. When he sat at the bar in the evenings, I had the other staff wait on him while his eyes followed me, heated and intense.

He was giving me space on purpose, and that irritated me even more, like he was being careful with me or something. Like I’d snap on him.

I already felt like I’d snapped. His gaze lit my skin on fire, his smirks and smug, knowing looks made me squirm, and the slow, cocky way he saidhi, Livin passing made me shiver. He was still leaving me cartoon doodles of the bird. The bird reading a textbook, with anA+in the corner and a graduation hat on its head. The bird eating Cheezies by a campfire. The bird throwing wine in another bird’s face, which made me chuckle.

I really wanted to fuck Finn Rhodes.

Today, though, we were just hiking.

I hauled my pack on and stepped into the hallway. Usually, Finn was at my door a few minutes early. He liked watching me move around my apartment, getting ready, tugging my boots on and checking my pack to make sure I had everything. I knocked on his door and listened to the slow footsteps on the other side. I frowned. Something was off.

The door opened and Death himself stared back at me.

“Oh my god.” I grimaced. “You look like garbage.”

Finn gave me a half-hearted, wry smile. His skin was pale but shiny, like he was sweating. A dull, tired glaze replaced the usual spark in his eyes.

“Sorry, running behind today.” He turned and gestured for me to come inside before he sat down at the table.

“Are you hungover?” I asked.

He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Just tired. Long night at the fire hall.” He took a deep breath like he was steeling himself and began to lace up his boots.

I frowned. A warning twinge, like something was wrong, lodged between my ribs. “I forgot you were on shift last night.” He would have gotten home early this morning. “We should go tomorrow instead so you can get some sleep.”

He shook his head and gave me a weak smile. “It’s okay. I’ll be fine once we’re outside.” I chewed my lip, hesitating, but he stood and hauled his pack on. “Let’s hit the road.”

I followed him downstairs and out of the bar to my car in the alley.

“You want me to drive this time?” he asked.

Drive? The guy was about to keel over. “I’ll drive.”

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