Page 70 of The Boss I Can't Stand
“Have you mentioned that you like bowling?” he said, playing at surprise. “That totally slipped my mind.”
“Finn,” I said more pointedly.
We stopped walking and he cupped my face, pecking me on the lips. “Look, the movie is a departure from the norm for Hart of Gold, so I figured the wrap party should be, too.” He flashed me a tiny,realsmile, and my heart thumped at the thought of him arranging this whole event just so I’d enjoy myself. It was so sweet it made my head spin.
I felt like an actual princess as he escorted me inside. I was even dressed like it. That thought dawned on me that I was in completely wrong attire for bowling—a sparkly minidress wasnotideal.
I whacked him on the arm as we stood in line to collect our bowling shoes.
“Not the reaction I was expecting,” he said, laughing at my look of indignation.
“Why did you let me dress like this?” I demanded over the thumping pop music. I was dressed for mingling over cocktails, not for defending my long-standing high score.
“Because you look fantastic,” Finn rasped in my ear, his hands landing on my waist. He squeezed, and a warm wave rolled through me, settling in my belly. “And because you were so excited to get dolled up.”
“Yes, well, if I’d known we’d be bowling?—”
“What? Don’t tell me you have a lucky pair of bowling socks,” he said, smirking.
“As a matter of fact, I do.”
He threw his head back and laughed. Not one of his showy, people-pleasing laughs, but anactuallaugh. It burst from him so effortlessly I couldn’t help but grin.
“Now I’m short my lucky socksandI’m gonna end up flashing the sound techs,” I said, adjusting my dress. I was already doing mental gymnastics trying to figure out if bowling in this thing would be possible without my boobs jumping out.
“Well, we can’t have that,” Finn said, shrugging out of his suit jacket. He looped it over my shoulders. “I’m the only one allowed to seethose.”
I shifted in his jacket. The lining must have been silk. It was big on me, of course, but his hands pressed against me teasingly as he did upthe buttons very,veryslowly. “Is this going to impede your bowling prowess?”
I pursed my lips. “Just watch and learn, Mr. Bigshot. You’re about to get schooled.”
He rolled his eyes as we collected our shoes. I dragged him down past busy lanes until I spotted the one Ro had snagged with Brenna and the assistant costume designers.
“Hey,” I said as we greeted the group. Carter had brought his girlfriend, and I immediately asked her where she found all the punny costume-themed shirts he had. Trin was debating the likelihood of breaking her nails on the bowling ball. And to my surprise, Paisley and Brenna were squirreled away in the corner, deep in what looked to be a very flirty conversation.
I caught Finn’s eye, giving him an approving look.
“Don’t you look cute,” Ro said as I sat down next to her, helping her plug all of our names into the computer to be displayed on the overhead screen.
“Finn told me we were bowling after I’d already poured myself into my shortest, tightest dress. You could have given me an FYI.”
“He wanted it to be a surprise.”
“I know, but like…” I gestured to myself.
“You look?—”
“Gorgeous,” Finn cut in, leaning over the back of my seat.
I tipped my head back, looking up at him, his hazel eyes dancing in the flashing lights.Helooked gorgeous. And I guess I couldn’t complain that much about what I was wearing since most people turned up looking their best. “I look like I’m about to kick your ass,” I said.
His lips curled devilishly. “All right then, Cinderella. Time to put your money where your mouth is.”
I spent the next two hours dusting off my bowling skills—or, more accurately, leaving everyone else behind in my dust. My only real competition was Ro, but once I’d rolled up the sleeves of Finn’s jacket and put my game face on, it was over for everyone.
The copious amounts of alcohol probably didn’t help the number of gutter balls flying down the lanes, but there was truly something divine about eating greasy bowling alley pizza with a glass of champagne while listening to the Backstreet Boys.
I filled up on goodies and gossip while Finn made the rounds, thanking the cast and crew for their hard work before getting roped into a dance competition with the camera guys. He was good at this— the partying and the schmoozing—but I occasionally caught glimpses of the real him too, and it was like worlds were colliding.
