“No you’re not.” Her eyes sharpened now, finger jabbing at his chest. “You’re staying in this, Dashwood. All the way.”
He raised a brow.
“I don’t want a pity win, Finn.” She leaned forward slightly, her voice fierce. “If I win or lose, I want it to be fair and square. That Iwasbetter.”
He searched her face—flushed cheeks, fire in her eyes, fingers curled against the counter. She looked absolutely stunning!
“You are,” he said softly. “Better, I mean.”
The words hung in the space between them. Her expression faltered for half a breath before she looked away, busying herself with stacking napkins that didn’t need stacking.
“I meant what I said,” she added. “Your savory dishes are phenomenal.”
“But not very pretty.”
She chuckled, the tension in her shoulders easing. “That’s an easy fix, and you know it.”
His heart tugged.
There it was again—that ache to cross the distance between them and taste that smile. To see if the spark still hummed between them like it had the first time... only deeper now. Sharper. His heart had finally gotten the memo, and it was all pointing in one direction.
Straight toward her.
But he didn’t move.
Because attraction was easy. But wooing her heart? Much more difficult, especially after his beginning. But he wouldn’t give up. This was much more than attraction. He liked her. Admired her. And the combination held an allure he hadn’t realized he’d been missing with his ex-wife.
It scared the daylights out of him.
Because he wasn’t sure how to do this right. Not when he knew her heart had been broken by the one man who should have kept her heart the safest. Not when Finn had been so careless and scared himself that he’d blundered things.
A chime above the door rang, signaling Lindsay and Travis’s arrival, both looking much too pleased with themselves to offer any bad tidings.
“Thanks so much for meeting with us today,” Travis said, gesturing for Lindsay to sit before claiming the spot beside her.
“We really need to make a decision,” Lindsay added, her gaze bouncing between Finn and Daphne with barely contained excitement. “The wedding’s in a little over two weeks.”
“Of course.” Daphne nodded, her smile tight.
“You must decide,” Finn echoed, leaning on the counter beside her.
“Exactly.” Travis dipped his chin toward Lindsay, as if to cue her. “And we have an idea.”
Lindsay sat straighter, clearly delighted to be the one with the reveal. “I’d forgotten how much I love Wisteria. The charm. The community.” She shook her head as if in wonder. “So many of the people here hold a special place in my heart, and watching the two of you compete for this wedding gave me...” She looked to Travis. “Gaveusan idea not only to get a caterer but to celebrate Wisteria.”
A knot twisted low in Finn’s stomach.
“You know, with the whole town taking sides,” she went on, “#TeamTea vs. #TeamPub is becoming a full-on local obsession. And... we think it’s time to make it official.”
Finn exchanged a wary glance with Daphne, who looked like she was preparing to bolt through the kitchen.
He turned to Travis. “What do you mean by ‘official’?”
A hint of mischief lit Travis’s eyes. “A cook-off. A town-wide tasting event during the Harvest Festival. People vote on their favorite dishes—savory and sweet. Settle it once and for all.”
Finn blinked. “A live showdown?”
“It fits with Lindsay’s whole ‘celebrating community through food and story’ thing,” Travis added, shrugging like it was no big deal.
