His heart crashed. Finn stumbled back a step, then another, bumping into someone on the dance floor. Maurice reached out, maybe to steady him, maybe to explain, but Finn flinched away before he could think.
And then Finn ran.
He pushed through the crowd, through the flashing lights and the heat of bodies and the thrum of music that no longer sounded like music at all. He didn’t look back. He couldn’t. His vision blurred, and the hallway outside the Dance Car was too bright, too cold, too empty.
He didn’t stop moving. Didn’t breathe properly. Didn’t let himself think. Because if he did, he’d have to face the possibility Maurice hadn’t meant the dance… He’d meant them.
Chapter Nineteen
Maurice
Maurice stood frozen inthe middle of the dance floor, lights flashing across his face, music thumping around him as if nothing had happened except everything had. Finn had just bolted. One second he was in Maurice’s arms, and the next he was gone, slipping through the crowd as if he couldn’t get away fast enough.
All Maurice had said was this isn’t working.
Meaning the mingling. The stupid forced mingling.
But Finn hadn’t stayed long enough to hear the rest.Did Finn think I meant us?Did he really believe I would end things in the middle of a dance floor with a whisper and no explanation?
A chill swept through him so fast his fingers went numb, and the Dance Car’s lights smeared into streaks he couldn’t track. He pushed forward, trying to follow Finn, but swaying bodies packed the dance floor and blocked every path. The train swayed, making it even harder to move. He muttered apologies, squeezed between shoulders, and ducked under someone’s arm, but Finn was nowhere.
Then the train lurched to a stop.
Mr. Santos’s voice crackled over the speakers. “The train is stopping for thirty minutes in Lincoln, Nebraska. Don’t forget to welcome the new men joining us.”
Perfect timing. Just what Maurice needed—more people, more chaos, and more chances to lose Finn completely.
He finally broke through the crowd and reached the hallway, but he had no idea which direction Finn had gone. The train was narrow, loud, and suddenly full of new passengers boarding. Maurice got swept into the flow of bodies, shoulder to shoulder with strangers, all of them talking and laughing while he was trying to remain calm.
He passed the Welcome Car and stopped dead.
Finn was there.
He stood at the bar, drink in hand, surrounded by men who kept inching closer every time the train rocked. The lights flickered with each shift in the tracks, casting Finn in flashes of gold and shadow. Finn wasn’t smiling. He wasn’t even pretending. He just drank, shoulders tense, as if the alcohol was the only thing keeping him upright.
A cold weight settled low in Maurice’s gut, heavy enough to steal his breath. He rushed toward the bar, stopping at the outer edge of the circle forming around Finn. The guys were talking over each other, offering drinks, trying to get Finn’s attention like he was the only person in the room worth noticing.
“Finn!” Maurice shouted.
Finn turned. His expression was unreadable—flat, guarded, nothing like the warm, open look he’d given Maurice earlier.
Maurice pushed through the crowd. “I need to talk to you.”
“Why?” Finn asked, voice sharp. “You said enough, didn’t you?”
Maurice didn’t bother arguing in front of an audience. He grabbed Finn’s arm, not hard, just enough to pull him away from the bar, and Finn didn’t fight him, but he didn’t help either. The hallway was too crowded, too slow, so Maurice did the only thing he could think of. He lifted Finn over his shoulder.
Finn yelped at first, but Maurice didn’t stop. He carried him down the hallway, ignoring the surprised looks from the new passengers, and pushed into his cabin. Finn’s yelping turned into laughter. He set Finn on the bed, breath tight, heart pounding.
“What is wrong with you?” Maurice asked, voice low, frustrated, scared.
Finn’s eyes flashed. “You’re the one who said this isn’t working.”
“Did you stay long enough for me to explain it?”
Finn looked away. “What else is there to say?”
Maurice sat beside Finn on the narrow bed, the soft rumble of the train vibrating through the floor. The small cabin light cast a warm glow over Finn’s face, highlighting the tensionin his jaw. Maurice ran a hand through his own hair, trying to steady himself before he spoke.
