Page 50 of Stirring Up Love
“If you want me to believe these ridiculous scenarios you keep throwing out, at least have the decency to keep a straight face.” Smiling like a hypocrite, she held out her hand for a card.
The clerk’s eyes shifted between them. “We’re not together,” Simone said. “If that’s what you’re wondering.”
“But we did kiss, just now. In the car,” Finn added, unhelpfully.
“Not just now. Hours ago.”
He tapped his chin. “Has it been that long?”
“Wish it had been longer.”
The clerk cleared her throat. “Continental breakfast is from six to ten.”
“Great.” Simone took her bag from Finn and strode off toward the bank of elevators. He caught up in a few strides and stood by her as they waited.
“Which rooms?”
“Oh.” He rocked back on his heels. “307 and 308.”
The doors opened, and in they went. Bumped shoulders. Tried again. This time she all but ran toward the back of the elevator. Finn followed and stood next to her.
“Should probably hit the button,” she said.
“Oh, yeah.” He hit three. Returned to her side, when there was a whole elevator to stand in. She looked up. He looked away. The elevator dinged.
He let her go first this time, walking a step behind till they got to their rooms. They stuck their key cards in the slots at the same time. The lights beeped red. Wordlessly, they switched.
This time the light turned green, and Simone turned the handle.
“I really am sorry,” Finn said. She paused, listening. “About calling you entitled. You should know I have a major, giant, inferiority complex.”
“You’re just making it too easy at this point.”
“Simone.”
She smirked, unapologetic. But she couldn’t let herself off the hook so easy. How must it have felt to get muscled out of a market when you’d spent your life on the outskirts? No wonder he’d assumed the worst of her.
She wasn’t as bad as he made her out to be, but neither was he, not by a long shot.
“But Finn, you’ve gotta know you’re awesome.” She cleared her throat, feeling naked in the space after the admission. “An awesome cook. Your sauces are above and beyond”—she’d sneaked samples this summer—“and you don’t get sales like that as a fluke. If you think you’re not worthy of an investment, you really do have a bad case of imposter syndrome.”
“Says the restaurateur with a business degree.”
“That’s why you can trust me.” That and it wasn’t in her best interests to feed his ego, not with such high stakes. “If you won’t take my word for it, at least acknowledge the fact that Keith and Constance believe in you. You walked into that boardroom and owned it.”
“I kinda did, didn’t I?”
She shook her head with a grin. “Looks like your inferiority complex isn’t the only thing that’s oversize.”
“Another dick joke? Simone, I’m blushing.” He was, too. Flushed and bright eyed, and biting back a grin.
“What you are is ridiculous, Finn Rimes.”
Ridiculously cute, ridiculously fun, ridiculously charming his way into her heart. She shut the door on all that ridiculousness, but try as she might, she couldn’t quite shut him out of her heart.
CHAPTER 18
FINN
