Page 17 of Off-Limits Love
He lifted her up and off, taking in her impish grin. Once Emi was safely on shore, he noticed Mak struggled to stand in the gently rocking boat. And, even though he still questioned her choice of words, he extended a hand to help her off as well.
“Thanks. I think I have sea legs now,” she quipped.
“Mommy, make him come with us!”
Mak moved off the dock to dry land and turned to face him, looking a bit irritated at her daughter but wary as well.
“You are welcome to join us,” she said, shifting her gaze toward the vendor area. “We brought plenty of food.”
“Please, please, please?”
“Emi, don’t pressure him,” Mak said in a firm tone. “He’s here to work and might have other things to do, especially now we’ve taken up so much of his time today.”
Yeah, hint taken. He got it. Loud and crystal clear.
“Will you?” Emi asked determinedly.
Finn waited for Mak to make eye contact and then fought the pull of her beautiful blues. Emi waited expectantly, but he focused entirely on her mother and fought the punch of disappointment that she was proving to be like all the others. “I h-have w-work,” he said, biting back a curse when he stumbled worse than before due to his upset. And because Mak looked relieved by his excuse.
Yeah, she was definitely one of them.
Why wasn’t he surprised?
ChapterSix
By the time Finn loaded up and made it back to the farm, frustration had tightened his shoulders to his ears and he felt a headache coming on.
They’d walked back to Harriet’s setup and joined the others, but by then, Sam had already invited Hudson to join them for lunch which prompted Emi to ask Finn to join them yet again.
Uncle and grandniece had both insisted while Mak had remained silent and watched it all play out. But in the end, they’d gathered under the shade near Harriet and taken a short lunch there on the oversized blanket Mak had brought for them, and the chairs he and Hudson had brought for the day.
All the while, Finn had been forced to watch while Hudson did his thing and flirted nonstop with Mak.
He’d wanted to smack his brother upside the head to get him to back off, but at the same time, he envied his kid brother’s ability to bring a blush to Mak’s cheeks and giggles out of Emi, who appeared taken in by Hud’s charms as well.
It wasn’t so much Hud’s flirting that shredded Finn’s nerves but his inability to do the same. To be vocal. To say all the things Hudson had said and carry a conversation without sounding like an idiot. To tease those blushes and that soft, husky laughter from Mak and leave her looking relaxed instead of uncomfortable around him.
“What’s got you looking like ol’ Sam sucking on a lemon?”
Finn closed the gate behind Harriet’s stall after one last scratch of the cow’s head. Harriet had more than earned her extra helping of chow today, and while her growing size and horns meant the animal would be sticking to the farm more in the future, she’d had a profitable day as the center of attention at the market, and they’d booked a lot of private cuddle and photo sessions for the next week and beyond from tourists and locals alike.
“Wouldn’t have anything to do with a certain pretty mama now, would it?”
Finn’s hand shot out and punched Hud on his shoulder before he even knew what was happening. Hudson’s howling laughter filled the barn as he danced back out of reach.
“I knew it. Hit a nerve, huh? So how was boating? Did you at leasttryto talk to her? Did you ask her about baking me a birthday cake?”
Finn glared at Hudson and moved to the next stall to feed Dash. The miniature donkey head-butted Finn’s hand in an effort to get more attention.
The outside enclosures were as predator-proof as they could make them, but he still brought all the animals in at night for their safety. They were high price tags in small bodies, and it meant being extra cautious when it came to protecting and providing for them.
Harriet was the biggest animal on the farm other than the horses, and even full-grown Harriet wouldn’t be the size of a standard cow.
The mini Highland had a gentle disposition and was a good one to cuddle because she loved the attention. But the plan for next year’s market was to start showcasing more of the critters. The crazy looking chickens and ducks, more miniature cows, Dash, Pixie the miniature horse, and the babydoll sheep and goats. On a farm like his, there was no lack of options. “No— And you and Sam should’ve kept quiet and minded your own business.”
“Why? You and Mak looked awfully cute out on that boat. Did her feet even touch the pedals?”
Finn huffed out a breath at the memory of her trying to do her part to pedal the boat around the lake. Paddleboating had been fun. Pretending for a moment that they were a couple, a family, spending time together doing something fun had been…nice. Until reality had come back like a smack in the face. “Barely.”
