his arms.
The irony of this situation was not lost on Finn. The one
woman whom he betrayed was the only woman who made his heart race like it was
now. Alli was the only woman who made him think of things like marriage and
children and spending late mornings making love. Damn, he sounded like some bad
greeting card. His brothers would get a big laugh at his expense if they could
hear his thoughts right now.
They pulled into the little Italian place near his family
home. After jumping out of the car, he went around to the other side and helped
her out. Holding her hand while they made their way inside.
The restaurant was dim and they were seated at a back booth
that afforded them a great deal of privacy.
The waiter handed them each a menu and offered to get them
their drinks.
“Do you know what you want?” He was impatient to get the
orders out of the way and spend some time just talking with her without
interruption.
The server returned with two glasses of red wine. Alli
thanked him and ordered baked mostaccioli. Finn had the same.
“How long have you owned the store?” What a fucking lame
question, but then she smiled and he relaxed.
“I opened it about seven years ago. After I got out of
college I worked for a few companies but decided I didn’t really enjoy taking
orders from managers worried about the bottom line. I was always a big reader
and when the ice-cream parlor went out of business, I decided to give it a go.”
“That’s a pretty gusty move to start a business from
scratch.” He admired her ability to fulfill her dreams.
She shrugged. “It took awhile to build up the inventory. I
must have scoured every yard and estate sale I could find. Every time the
library held their annual sale, I cleared them out. Before long the store had
enough books to open and it took off from there.”
“I think it’s great to be your own boss.”
“What about you? How was living in the big C?”
“It’s a different world out west. Perpetual sunshine, great
surf. You can hang in downtown L.A. and experience the nightlife or you can go
to the beach and sit under the stars.”
“You miss it, don’t you?”
He noticed the corners of her mouth tip down and reached
across the table, squeezing her fingers gently.
“Not really. I plan to bring my custom bike shop here. I
take orders from all over the world so it doesn’t really matter where I set up
shop. There is nothing for me in California. Everything I want is here.” He
lifted her fingers to his mouth, kissing the tips of each one. “I’m home to
stay, Alli. I’m a grown man and not afraid of what may come.”
She opened her mouth but the food arrived before she pushed
him further about staying home.
Instead he steered their conversation to less controversial
subjects. They exchanged stories of their lives over the last fifteen years.
She’d certainly led a much more social life than he had. She was involved in
the local theater, she helped out with the literacy program at the schools. She
was an amazing person, compassionate and sweet just as he remembered. Even though
she had every right to be bitter, especially after her humiliation, she wasn’t.
Her personality was too strong, she was so sure of herself.
He felt like a kid compared to who she’d become.
After she emptied her second glass of wine, she waved off
his next question. “Enough about me, tell me about you.”
He really hated talking about himself. “Not much to tell
other than the bike shop. I’m not exactly the social type.”
“That’s a surprise. In school you were the life of the
party.”
He swallowed hard. “A lot of things changed after I had to
leave town.”
“Can you tell me what happened?”
Finn didn’t want to bombard her with what he endured on
Avalon so he decided instead to give her an abridged version. “Alli, you have
to remember that as far as my family was concerned, I did a terrible injustice
to you. I broke your trust.”
He picked up her hand
The irony of this situation was not lost on Finn. The one
woman whom he betrayed was the only woman who made his heart race like it was
now. Alli was the only woman who made him think of things like marriage and
children and spending late mornings making love. Damn, he sounded like some bad
greeting card. His brothers would get a big laugh at his expense if they could
hear his thoughts right now.
They pulled into the little Italian place near his family
home. After jumping out of the car, he went around to the other side and helped
her out. Holding her hand while they made their way inside.
The restaurant was dim and they were seated at a back booth
that afforded them a great deal of privacy.
The waiter handed them each a menu and offered to get them
their drinks.
“Do you know what you want?” He was impatient to get the
orders out of the way and spend some time just talking with her without
interruption.
The server returned with two glasses of red wine. Alli
thanked him and ordered baked mostaccioli. Finn had the same.
“How long have you owned the store?” What a fucking lame
question, but then she smiled and he relaxed.
“I opened it about seven years ago. After I got out of
college I worked for a few companies but decided I didn’t really enjoy taking
orders from managers worried about the bottom line. I was always a big reader
and when the ice-cream parlor went out of business, I decided to give it a go.”
“That’s a pretty gusty move to start a business from
scratch.” He admired her ability to fulfill her dreams.
She shrugged. “It took awhile to build up the inventory. I
must have scoured every yard and estate sale I could find. Every time the
library held their annual sale, I cleared them out. Before long the store had
enough books to open and it took off from there.”
“I think it’s great to be your own boss.”
“What about you? How was living in the big C?”
“It’s a different world out west. Perpetual sunshine, great
surf. You can hang in downtown L.A. and experience the nightlife or you can go
to the beach and sit under the stars.”
“You miss it, don’t you?”
He noticed the corners of her mouth tip down and reached
across the table, squeezing her fingers gently.
“Not really. I plan to bring my custom bike shop here. I
take orders from all over the world so it doesn’t really matter where I set up
shop. There is nothing for me in California. Everything I want is here.” He
lifted her fingers to his mouth, kissing the tips of each one. “I’m home to
stay, Alli. I’m a grown man and not afraid of what may come.”
She opened her mouth but the food arrived before she pushed
him further about staying home.
Instead he steered their conversation to less controversial
subjects. They exchanged stories of their lives over the last fifteen years.
She’d certainly led a much more social life than he had. She was involved in
the local theater, she helped out with the literacy program at the schools. She
was an amazing person, compassionate and sweet just as he remembered. Even though
she had every right to be bitter, especially after her humiliation, she wasn’t.
Her personality was too strong, she was so sure of herself.
He felt like a kid compared to who she’d become.
After she emptied her second glass of wine, she waved off
his next question. “Enough about me, tell me about you.”
He really hated talking about himself. “Not much to tell
other than the bike shop. I’m not exactly the social type.”
“That’s a surprise. In school you were the life of the
party.”
He swallowed hard. “A lot of things changed after I had to
leave town.”
“Can you tell me what happened?”
Finn didn’t want to bombard her with what he endured on
Avalon so he decided instead to give her an abridged version. “Alli, you have
to remember that as far as my family was concerned, I did a terrible injustice
to you. I broke your trust.”
He picked up her hand
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