Chapter Ten

Like a gentleman, Finn let Maggie take his arm for the dark and rocky walk to the Jeep. The night air hit her like a wall because she shivered slightly against it. “Is Maine always this cold?”

“It’s that ocean air. Cuts right through you. Just wait until it snows.”

She lightly laughed, saying, “I hope to God I’m not still here when it’s snowing. I’ve never lived in a place with actual seasons. California has two seasons. Beach season, and heated pool season.”

“What, no winter house in Aspen?”

“No, my mother doesn’t like the cold.” It took her a moment to catch on to his teasing. She lightly punched his bicep. “Jerk.”

“Oh, come on, you walked right into that one.” Finn fished his keys from his pocket and tossed them at her.

She was surprised she actually caught them but not at all surprised the driving fell on her, as she hadn’t had a drink all evening. “Are you sure you want me driving this thing?”

“I asked if you minded so I could have a few drinks with the guys. You said it was okay on the way over here.”

“I couldn’t hear a word you were saying on the drive over here.” So that’s what he was babbling on about while she was smiling and nodding like a bobblehead figurine. “Oh, I don’t feel comfortable driving this without you sober.”

He faked a terrible British accent and gave her a grand sweeping bow. “Shall I have Charles bring round the Aston Martin?”

“Shut up.” She took a deep breath. “Screw it.”

She climbed up into the seat. California Maggie had been replaced with Maine Maggie, and Maine Maggie drove huge-ass Jeeps. She took off her heels, tossed them in the back seat, then buckled the seat belt, a bit unnerved the thin strap was the only thing keeping her from flying out of the missing doors. She slid the key into the ignition and turned it.

Nothing.

She tried again as Finn buckled in beside her. Still nothing. The engine didn’t even turn over. “Uh, Finn? It won’t start.” Great. She’d broken it.

He stared at her for a moment before asking, “Did you push the clutch?”

“The what? Oh crap.” The Jeep was a manual. She’d never driven one before, but she had seen it done in movies plenty of times. “You’re going to have to tell me what to do, because the only thing I know about driving a stick shift is from what I’ve seen in the Fast and the Furious movies. And I’m pretty sure this thing doesn’t have a nitrous switch.”

He chuckled loudly, ending in a snort. “Punch the clutch, push the brake, pop it in neutral, and fire this puppy up.”

She followed his instructions, turned the key, and the engine roared. Maggie gripped the steering wheel. The growl of the engine under her was exhilarating, she wasn’t going to lie. Having that much power in her control felt amazing. It wasn’t all that often she was able to drive herself—her personal driver made good money toting her butt around.

“All right, now we’re in business,” she said, shifting it into gear. She released the brake, pressed on the gas, and the engine screamed at her. She let up on the clutch, the tires spun in the dirt, and the Jeep sputtered to a stall. She banged her palms on the seat. “This would never happen to Vin Diesel.”

Finn unbuckled, then reached across the seat to unclick Maggie’s seat belt. “Move the seat back,” he told her as he began climbing over the center console.

“Oh my God,” she laughed. “What are you doing?” She slid the seat back and Finn climbed in behind her, wedging her hips firmly between his thighs. “This isn’t illegal or anything…”

“Ehh.” He shrugged. “We did worse in Vegas.”

“We are so getting arrested.” Maggie went through the steps again, started the Jeep, then waited for further instruction from Finn.

“The trick to a stick is to treat it like you would a woman. You gotta make her purr.”

“This conversation is quickly moving out of my comfort zone.”

“Let your foot off the clutch nice and slow as you’re giving her the gas.”

Maggie eased up on the pedal.

“Yeah, just like that. And when you feel her starting to push back, that’s when you change it up and switch gears. You’ll be able to hear her, too. Just before she starts to scream.”

“That has got to be the most sexualized description of a vehicle I have ever heard. Congratulations. You’re officially creepy.” The Jeep bucked a little, but she got it into second gear down the drive. As she reached the intersection to the main road, she slowed.

Finn quickly stepped on the clutch before she stalled out again.

“I guess I’m not cut out to please a woman, because there’s no purring coming from this vehicle. I think it’s actually in pain.”

Finn’s breath was hot on her neck.

“Get your mind out of the gutter.” She looked both ways, then turned out onto the road. “And if you would kindly remove your package from my right butt cheek, it would be greatly appreciated.”

He let out a laugh and readjusted himself.

“Seriously. It’s a huge distraction,” she told him.

He burst into a belly laugh. “That’s what she said,” he replied in between breaths.

“You did not just she said me, Finnegan Garrity.” She swatted at him, hitting nothing but air.

“But you make it so easy.” Just like that, he’d broken another barrier between them, allowing her to fall into a natural place of comfort. She couldn’t remember a time when she’d had such…fun.

There were no street lights, no busy traffic jams. Just the black of night littered with the distant glimmer of stars and the melodic thrum of wildlife as the background music. Having grown up in Los Angeles, trees and lush green grasses were a luxury. She remembered having new sod delivered to her childhood home and the gardeners planting fresh flowers and shrubs every spring. It was the only way to have a bit of nature when you lived in a desert climate. She never thought it out of the norm until now.

Driving down these back roads, lined by enormous pine trees instead of towering walls of glass, was a scene from a movie. No copious amounts of exhaust or complete strangers screaming at one another over a foot of parking space or an extra five minutes on a meter downtown. Just space and sky. Room to breathe. Dirt, and lots of it. Its pungency billowed intermittently between the open cavities of the Jeep. She inhaled a deep breath, filling her lungs with the salty sea air.

“At the stop sign, turn right.”

Finn broke her thoughts, and she struggled to remember what gear she was in. The road was at a steady incline, and a large red stop sign beaconed from atop the hill. If she slowed down now, there was no way she was going to make it up there. Was she in third? Fourth? Dammit, what was the speed limit? Before she had time to react, Maggie was cresting the top of the hill.

“That’s a stop sign,” he warned her.

She squealed and blew through it, jerking the steering wheel to the right while attempting to shift and step on the brake at the same time, and failing.

“Oh, they’re optional? Shit.” Finn cursed, grabbing the wheel and the gear shifter to keep all four tires on the ground. “The next time I ask you to drive, remind me of that time we almost died, okay?” He slowed the Jeep, then allowed her to take over again.

Headlights in the distance grew closer. “Is that a cop? I think that’s a cop. Oh, we’re going to jail. I know it.” Her palms began to sweat. “I am so going to prison. A butch girl named Melinda will make me her bitch and I’ll be forced to wear orange. Orange is not my color, Finn. Don’t make me wear orange.” The car zoomed past. Her heart pounded in her throat.

“We’re fine. Just keep going. We’re almost there.” He played with a curl next to her neck, using it to tickle the skin just behind her ear.

“Thank God, because by the time we get there I’m going to need a Xanax. Especially if you keep doing that.”

He dragged a finger along her nape, pushing her hair to one side. “What, this?”

She swallowed hard against the dry lump taking up permanent residence in her throat. “Yep. That would be it.”

“What if I do this?” His lips lightly grazed her earlobe. “Does that turn you on?” He wriggled behind her, adjusting himself in the seat. And she felt every inch of it.

Maggie concentrated on the road instead of the bulging package against her backside. “You need to stop, Finn,” she warned. They weren’t going to make it back to the house if he continued. They’d end up dead in a ditch or pulled over on the side of the road going at it, and neither was the optimal choice. She was doing her best to keep a level head, but the man certainly knew how to melt her with his mouth. He was dangerous with a capital D. Maggie forced herself to think of anything other than Finn, because unfortunately for her, she knew exactly what that D could do.

“Aww, I’m sorry, Mags. I let the whiskey go to my head.” He backed off the touchy-feely nonsense and stayed silent, speaking only when she needed directions or help with the driving.

At the familiar sight of his house, she barreled down the rocky drive, pulling up next to her rental. She quickly shifted gears, came to a hard stop, and cut the engine, not caring that it stalled before she turned the key. She crawled out of the seat over Finn and gasped in a breath as if she’d been held underwater. Wrapping her arms around her middle, she headed for the house. Rocks and bits of dirt bit at the tender arches of her feet.

“Hey!” Finn called out after her. “Your shoes!” She turned to see him stumble from the Jeep holding her shoes upright above his chest. He yelled, “I saved ’em!”

Maggie bit the inside of her cheek in a feeble attempt to not show him just how much she appreciated his act of heroism. Although the sweet gesture softened her sexually frustrated exterior, she needed to remember why she was here. Despite how good Finn made her feel, they were grown adults now. She had a life.

She turned back toward the house, carefully choosing her steps.

“Maggie, stop.” Finn breathed, catching up to her and cradling her heels as if he carried a precious newborn baby. “Let me get the door.” He passed her the shoes and ran up the stairs.

As soon as the door was open, she headed for her room. Hot tears dangled on her eyelids, threatening to spill down her cheeks.

Finn caught her by the hand, spinning her around to face him. “Please let me apologize. I went too far with the whole PDA thing, and I’m sorry.”

“This whole fiancée thing isn’t going to work out.” The words were forced from her mouth.

“I’m sorry I upset you. I… I thought we were on the same page here. The porch and the hand-holding stuff… Did I misread that? That felt…real. What did I do wrong?”

God, those eyes. Those beautiful, deep, soul-gutting eyes were staring at her, waiting for her to speak. He didn’t get it. She blinked away a tear. A sob caught in her throat, and her voice cracked when she spoke. “That, Finn. That is what’s wrong.” She waved her arms toward the Jeep outside.

“Illegal driving?”

She pursed her lips, trying like hell to keep a smile at bay. She wanted to tell him just what he did to her. How, after all this time, falling for him again could be so easy, if only she’d let herself.

What was happening to her? She wasn’t like this. She wasn’t this person anymore.

Conflicted. Confused.

Her head swirled.

Because of Finn.

Butterflies flitted in her belly when she was simply near him. He was the culprit for her lack of common sense and levelheaded thinking. Call it voodoo, or witchcraft, or lethal attraction… Whatever it was, it stopped now. They would be friends. Nothing more. The past was the past. She’d moved on. She had a career now. Prospects. A promising future in California. Plans.

That didn’t include him.