Page 35 of Break the Ice
We were meant to go shopping last weekend, but the messages haven't stopped, and I’m afraid to take her out of the apartment.
“I thought that maybe I could go for a walk while you and Jayden do your thing?”
“I don’t know, Fin,” I tell her, backing into the bathroom and bringing the door closed enough that I can hide behind it while I dress. “There were reporters out on the street when Jayden and I came home last night.”
It’s not a lie, but it’s also not the absolute truth that will terrify her.
“Ugh…” A frustrated chuff echoes through the gap in the door. “Maybe I should dye my hair or… I don’t know, cut it.”
Even though she’s laughing, I open the door to level her with a stern stare. “No.”
“Well, they might not recognize me and?—”
“Do you want to change your hair?”
Tugging on a couple tendrils, she twirls them around each of her index fingers and crosses them above her top lip into a mustache.
Her nose is scrunched into a grimace when she tells me, “Not really.”
“I like your hair like this.” The vice in my chest relaxes a tad when her face brightens at the compliment. “Why don’t we call Christina and meet her at the mall later?”
“Going to the mall with Tina doesn’t change the predicament.”
“It’s not the reporters that worry me, Fin. We don’t know what’s happening and brewing where we can’t see, and… I don’t want you out there on your own.”
“Okay.” Her lips roll together as she shifts to the edge of the bed, disappointment scrunching her brows.
I can’t have that. There’s no way I can walk out of here knowing she’s unhappy.
“D’you want to come workout with me and Jayden?”
Big eyes lock on mine as Finley lifts onto her knees. “Are you serious?”
I don’t know what perks her up the most. If it’s the prospect of leaving the apartment or seeing Jayden again. He’s stopped by a few times since the pancakes, and every time he’s here, things feel…normal.
He has a way of making her smile that I don’t. Her laughter is carefree and trills from so deep that her entire body vibrates with it.
“I can’t say you’ll love it, but it’s better than being trapped here…”
“Sold!” Leaping off the bed she starts for the bedroom door before she pauses and says, “Can I borrow something else to wear?”
Jayden’s going to badger me when he sees Finley in my clothes. It’s just as well that we’re working out, it means I can blow off some steam.
Picking out the tightest pair of compression shorts I own, I grab some socks and one of my team t-shirts.
“We’ve got to leave STAT,” I tell her, handing her the clothes. Before she runs out of my room, I take her hand in mine and lace our fingers together. “I promise I’ll fix this.”
Squeezing her hand around mine she gives me a broad grin.
I mean every word as I bring our hands up between us, focusing on the way her slender fingers dig into the back of my hand. “I’ll give you whatever you want, Finley. Anything. Always. Whatever you need, I’ll make sure you have it.”
“I’ve only ever wanted one thing,” she murmurs, stroking her thumb over the back of my hand.
Without warning, Finley reaches up on her tiptoes and presses a kiss to my cheek. It’s light and brusque, but as I watch her skip out of my room, everything feels brighter.
CHAPTER 11
FINLEY
