Page 54 of Stirring Up Love
“Thanks for that gruesome vote of confidence.” She hunched her shoulders against the brisk air and watched Finn spin in a circle, taking in the view.
He’d promised her to be out of here in under ten minutes, but she could already tell she’d have to drag him back into the car. The fresh air was so clearly his natural element—something they had in common. If only that were the only thing.
She shut her eyes to block out the unwelcome—natural—beauty and smallfeelingstirring in her chest.Bleurgh.A moment later, something warm brushed up against her. A hand tightened on her waist, and she shrieked, eyes popping open. Finn.
He leaned into her, warmth radiating from under his plaid jacket, his hair a brush of shampoo fresh against her cheek. “Say cheese.” He clicked the camera button.
“Is that him?” On the other end of the line, Alisha was probably hopping up and down like an eager bunny. “Can I talk to him?”
“Why, so you can decide if he’s a serial killer by his voice?”
Finn bent his head to the phone and said, “Not a serial killer.”
She covered up the mouthpiece. “A little privacy?”
“No problem.” He dropped his arm from around her, leaving her cold, and gave a jaunty salute. “I’ll just be up the trail, then.”
Simone gave him a one-finger salute of her own and was rewarded by his laugh. She didn’t like making him laugh. Not at all. It was just easier than dealing with the aftermath of his pouty face.
“So are you going to at least tell me where you are?” The voice from her phone dragged her mind away from the way her body seemed determined to succumb to Finn’s charm.
Ugh, her worrywart sister. “If I don’t, are you going to report me to Pops?”
“No, but I sure as heck will if you don’t tell me where you are. Seriously, Simone, this is a crazy stunt, even for you.”
Simone sighed. “I’ve known Finn since spring, Alisha. He’s not exactly a stranger. Besides, what would his motive be to kill me?”
“The same motive you have to kill him? Two hundred thousand dollars spilt zero ways instead of two?”
“Okay, but there’d be a huge spotlight on him.”
“The very fact we’re even having a conversation about you being on the highway with a potential murderer is insane. You realize that, right?”
She squinted down the path. Finn was nowhere in sight. Dang it. He’d wandered off.
“I said—”
“Yes, sis. I heard you.” She opened the car door and reached in to grab her purse, then locked it. “And you don’t have to worry about me. I’ve got everything handled.” As in, she was busy racking her brain for a way out of the deal, with no solution in sight.
“Does that mean you’re taking the franchise deal? Is that really what you want?”
She didn’t know what she wanted at this point, but telling Alisha so would make her look wishy washy. Indecisive. Not up for the task of running a business all on her own. “It’s the smart choice.” Simone picked her way down the trail Finn had followed. “A way to secure Honey and Hickory’s legacy.” Pops’s legacy.Herlegacy. Was it wrong to want to forge a new path, one that might end in failure?
“And it will make you happy? Trying to re-create copies of Honey and Hickory across America?”
Not at all. That much she knew for certain. Everything she loved about the restaurant was tied to Hawksburg—delivering meals and catching up with locals, cooking with food grown in her neighbors’ backyards, feeding the crowd that gathered to celebrate after the basketball team won the state championship.
But happiness wasn’t everything. What mattered more was esteem, and with a successful franchise, no one would be able to deny her competence.
When the silence went on too long, Alisha said, “I’m sorry, Sim. You know I trust you. If you think this is the best decision, then I’m all for it.”
She could speak up, share her worries. But then Alisha would know she had doubts, might start to think maybe Simone wasn’t the right Blake to take over Honey and Hickory after all.
“That means a lot, sis. But I’ve gotta let you go because if I don’t find this man, we’re never going to make it home in time for your party.”
“About that—you really don’t need to worry about making it back in time for the bachelorette party. Matter of fact, let’s go ahead and call it off now.” Alisha letting her off the hook. But she didn’t need to be cut any slack. She could handle it all, all on her own.
“That kind of lame attitude is exactly why I need to be there,” Simone teased, refusing to take the out. “This is your last hurrah of freedom.”
