Kennedy drops her voice, but everyone at this table can hear. I suppose it doesn’t matter when the person we need to hide our relationship from already knows. “She was smoothing back your hair with this look on her face… I figured it was only a matter of time.”
Finley’s been falling for me as long as I’ve been falling for her. My gaze drifts back to her table and snags with hers, and her smile widens. Matt snaps his fingers in front of her face when he notices.
“Does she know?” Kennedy asks.
I don’t need her to clarify the question.Does she know I love her?“Yep.”
“And she feels the same?”
“Yeah,” I say, remembering how she couldn’t find the words to adequately describe the depth of her feelings.
Volk shakes his head. “She better be fucking worth it.”
“Like Kennedy is fucking worth it?” I challenge.
He curses under his breath. “It’s like that?”
“Yeah,” I answer immediately. “It is.”
“Volkov’s been sticking it to the owner’s daughter for years,” Halo remarks casually before throwing back a shot of brown liquid. “Briggs nailing the captain’s sister isn’t any worse.”
A cacophony of noise bursts from our table. Volk demands Halo fight him outside while I shout for Halo never to talk about Finley like that. Kennedy quips, “And you wonder why you’re single.”
Halo remains unfazed, continuing to lean back in his chair with that stupid smirk on his face. “I’m single because Iwantto be, sweetheart. These two whipped fools are reminding me exactly why I want to stay that way.”
“Everything all right over there?” Matt calls to us, his razor-sharp gaze fixed on me. Does he expect me to answer after he’s chosen to ignore me?On Christmas.
Kennedy serves as voice for our entire table. “All good.”
The rest of dinner I keep my gaze away from Finley, determined not to make this situation even more uncomfortable. It isn’t until I’m leaving hours later that I chance a look her way. She glows beneath the lights of the Christmas tree, talking animatedly with Kennedy. I like that they get along so well, and I hope one day, Matt will accept our relationship and not put our friends in the middle of us.
Kennedy nudges Finley in the arm.I love you, I mouth when she looks over at me.
I love you too, she mouths back.
I commit this moment to memory, knowing it’ll need to last me until she’s back in three weeks.
31
Finley
My parents lecture mefor the duration of our drive to Maine. Yes, wedrive. Matthew Harris, Sr. has never been a fan of airports, which would be fine, except his reluctance forces other people into a car for sixteen hours.
Their lecture follows a predictable pattern—an airing of anger and frustration, layering on a healthy dose of guilt before wrapping up with how I need to change.
We’ve hit Virginia when they finally finish venting their frustration, repeating everything I already know.
“We reluctantly agreed to let you attend college out of state because you promised to follow our agreement,” my dad goes on from the driver’s seat. “You said you understood the importance and you would make smart choices.”
I try to remember they have good intentions, but resentment still simmers. A text from Zach fuels those flames, stoking them higher until they threaten to consume me.
Zach
I miss you already.
“Finley, are you listening to me?”
I drop my phone into my lap and meet my father’s gaze in the rearview mirror. My dad grew up with a mother who had undiagnosed and untreated bipolar disorder. She was labeled a bad mother and alcoholic instead. I try to be forgiving with my dad, knowing he experienced the challenges firsthand, along with the consequences when an individual with my condition doesn’t receive and follow medical care.
