Everyone was already seated around the dining table by thetime we arrived—the smell of Mom’s pot roast filling the air and mixing with potatoes, fresh baked rolls, and steamed vegetables. Lucas and Jack were up to their usual antics while Belle filled her parents in on her day’s activities. Móraí looked up when we walked in, her wise eyes taking in everything about us together.
“There’s our genius and her lucky guy,” Dad grinned, gesturing for us to take the empty seats. “Alex, you’ve got to tell everyone what you’ve built at your company and what you’re sharing with us.”
“Now that sounds like a story worth hearing,”Móraíleaned forward with obvious interest. “Nolan’s been singing your praises, but I want to hear it from the source.”
I pushed Alex’s chair in for her as she smiled at my grandmother. “Well, it started with my boss, Oliver, and me deciding we were over corporate drama and office politics...”
What followed was a story that had the whole table captivated—Alex walking through the early days of Catalyst, the risks they’d taken, the late nights spent building something from nothing. She talked about finding their first employees, creating a culture that felt like family, the award-winning projects that had put them on the map and on the radar of larger companies. I hadn’t realized I could be even prouder of her, but here I was.
“Is it scary running your own company?” Belle asked, looking up from pushing peas around her plate.
“Scary and amazing,” Alex admitted. “You’re responsible for a lot of people, but you also get to build some really amazing things. We’ve been lucky… until recently, anyway.”
Móraí raised an eyebrow. “Recently?”
“Just had our first real corporate threat,” Alex’s eyes dropped, her voice taking on an edge. “Big company tried to acquire us for our tech and probably would have put everyone out of a job.”
Móraí nodded slowly, smiling. “It takes grit to build what you’ve built. And backbone to protect it. You must know what you want in life, and who you’re meant to be no matter what others say.”
“This ranch was always too small for Finn,” she continued, glancing at me with knowing eyes. “That’s why he was always up in the sky. Why he had to spread his wings for bigger horizons before he could figure out who he was meant to be.”
Móraí’s observation hit exactly right—and wrong. Because sitting here, watching Alex charm my family while her hand found mine under the table, those bigger horizons I’d thought I needed felt less important than the person sitting next to me.
“Your grandfather would’ve been proud,” Móraí added, her voice softening. “Teaching you to fly was one of his greatest joys. Said you had natural instincts for reading the sky.”
Warmth settled in my chest at the memory. “He was a good teacher,” I smiled. “Patient with a kid who wanted to touch every control in the cockpit and needed a good lesson in consequences more than once.”
Alex squeezed my hand as her eyes met mine. I leaned over and pressed a light kiss to her lips.
“Speaking of teachers,” Mom chimed in, “Lucas has been asking when someone’s gonna teach him to fly.”
“That’d be your department, Mom,” I winked, taking a sip of water. “You’ve got your license and can actually provide proper instruction.”
“But Uncle Finn, you make stuff sound more fun when you explain it,” Lucas pouted slightly.
“If I’m around, I can show you the basics on the ground,” I offered. “Pre-flight checks, how the controls work. But for actual flying lessons, you need someone who can legally sign off on your training.”
“What do you mean if you’re around?” Jack interjected. “Penny and Lucas said you moved back here. That’s why you’ve been around so much.”
I glanced at Alex as her hand moved to my knee and squeezed.
“We’re just here for the month, buddy,” I offered an apologetic look. “Alex has to get back to her company and I need to…” I trailed off. The truth was I had nowhere else to go other than LA. I just knew I didn’t want to be here if Alex wasn’t with me.
“Billy might be a good option for lessons,” Elowyn redirected everyone back to the subject of flight. “He takes the plane up the most these days—save for you two,” she winked at us.
“When?” Lucas looked hopeful.
“You’ve still got a few years to go, kiddo, but time’ll go faster than you think,” I smiled at my nephew, pleased that he wanted to try.
Thankfully the conversation moved on, but I felt Alex’s hand move up my thigh, pressing gently, and I had to swallow a groan before it could escape my throat. Dinner was beginning to feel like the longest meal of my life. And from the way she kept glancing at me during conversations, I was guessing she felt the same way.
I hazarded a warning look in her direction and saw the playful challenge in her eyes. Lucky, or unlucky, for her I gave as good as I got. My fingers moved across her lap, curving over her generous thigh to the inside of her knee where I traced slow, deliberate circles. Her breath caught as I wound higher, until she bit back a yelp, legs clamping my hand in place as her cheeks darkened. I leaned closer under the pretense of reaching for my water glass.
“Careful, darlin’,” I murmured low enough that only she could hear. “Don’t start what you can’t finish.”
Alex pressed her thighs tighter together, trapping my fingers exactly where they were as she continued with her meal. The audacity of it sent heat straight through me.
Two could play at that game.
