“Here,” he said as he brought down some plates. “You can set the table and pour the wine—don’t tell Pix.”
“I won’t.”
It wasn’t that she’d never had alcohol. Uncle Pix had been giving her and Holly beer in a shot glass since they were in grade school, but if he ever found out that Fin fed her wine, he’d probably kill him.
“Do you come here a lot?” If she had a cabin like his, she’d never leave.
“I used to come here…” he said as he lit a lantern on the table, “all the time.”
“Alone?”
Fin became very busy at the stove, stirring and studying his secret trout glaze as if he hadn’t heard her.
“You bring a lot of girls up here?” she said smiling and pleased to see him squirm for a change.
“Um…no,” he answered, still stirring and turning down the flame.
“Just me?” she pressed.
He cut the fire completely. “Time to eat,” he said without looking at her.
Hailey watched him shovel a fish onto her plate, and then he pulled her chair out, waiting as Hailey took her seat. Fin sat, too, and picked up his fork but then dropped it loudly.
“Alright, long story short? I brought one girl out here one time—and then she hanged herself, pass the wine?”
Holy shit.
She grabbed the bottle, lifted it to her lips, and downed three giant gulps before passing it to Fin. What else could she do?
He stared at her stark-faced for several seconds until finally she wiggled the bottle, and he grabbed it.
“Sláinte.” He didn’t bother with the glass, either.
“I’m sorry I kept prodding you,” she said. “It’s not your fault.”
“What?”
“When someone kills themself, it’s never somebody else’s fault.”
Fin looked up at her with what Hailey thought was a glimmer of hope in his eyes.
“Don’t get me wrong, Fin,” Hailey said with a chuckle, “you’re very handsome and pretty easy to love, but…” her voice trailed off, and Fin searched her eyes from across the table as she continued. “But, you’re not all that,” she said, chasing her nervousness away, and Fin smiled. “You’re not a puppeteer, and you can’t know what’s going on inside someone’s head.”
“What’s going on inside your head, Hailey Hartley?”
“I’m still glad you don’t think I’m disgusting,” she laughed. “And I really wish you’d kiss me with your tongue again.”
Hailey pressed her lips together and picked up the wine bottle.
“Whoa,” she chuckled with wide eyes. “What’s in this stuff?”
Fin’s shoulders shook. “Sodium Pentothal?” he laughed.
“Well, it’s working. Anything else you’d like to know?”
“Yeah,” he said, his smile vanishing. “How do I win your heart?”
Hailey gazed at him from across the table, her heart thumping in her ears. His eyes were so bright, so honest. She looked at her plate, and as she did so, a gigantic grin grew across her face.
