Page 36 of Capture The Moment
God, yes. I really want to. “Oh, yeah. I was just enjoying you enjoying the food.” What am I saying? I can’t even think straight.
Laughing, he said, “Dig in.”
She had to admit that she’d done well. The meal tasted fabulous, but she wasn’t sure how much was the food and how much was the company. While they ate, Finn told her about the jobs he’d done that day, inserting amusing quips about his brothers here and there.
“Connor’s been acting strange lately. Although he’s always been the strange one,” he said drily.
“What do you mean by strange?”
“Well, usually, he can’t wait to tell us about his latest escapades with the ladies, but lately, he’s been a closed book. I think he might be seeing someone, but he’s not saying who, and that’s not like him.”
Harper swallowed her heaping spoonful of mashed potatoes before saying, “That’s funny. Julia’s been acting the same way.”
And then their eyes widened as if they both realized it at the same time.
“You don’t think…” Harper began.
“Maybe…” Finn said.
“Why wouldn’t they tell us? It doesn’t make sense,” she continued.
“Who knows. People keep all kinds of secrets.”
She nodded, thinking, I’m keeping one right now. “I guess they’ll tell us when they’re ready.”
“Or it’ll slip out, as secrets have a way of doing.”
I hope mine doesn’t slip out. She changed the subject after that, telling him about her walk in the woods and about how she’d spent the rest of the afternoon.
After they’d finished dinner, Finn insisted on helping her clean up, and they continued talking as they moved around the kitchen. It felt a lot bigger in here earlier, she thought as they bumped into each other for the second time in two minutes.
“I’m not used to sharing the kitchen with someone,” Finn remarked as he put the last dish into the dishwasher.
“It’s been a long time for me too,” she said wistfully.
“Hey. Do you want to watch a movie or something? I may live in the country, but I have Netflix!”
Netflix and chill? Oh God. I did NOT just think that. “Yeah, sure.”
She followed him into the living room, but instead of turning on the television, he squatted down by the fireplace and started tossing logs inside.
“What are you doing?”
He chuckled but didn’t turn around. “What does it look like? I’m starting a fire.”
“Is that really necessary?”
“You got something against fires?”
“No. It’s just that…I’m not that cold.”
Finn glanced over his shoulder at her. “Maybe I’m doing it for a little ambiance.”
Ambiance? Oh no. No ambiance.
Seeing the stricken look on her face, he corrected himself. “What I mean is, sometimes, a fire is just nice to look at. Don’t you think?”
An image of Finn standing naked in front of the fire leapt to mind, and she shook her head to clear it. But he mistook her head shake for a no answer.
