Page 21 of Just Do It
I shook my head. ‘He’s a really nice bloke. He deserves someone who can give their full attention to the relationship.’
‘Maybe that should be his choice? I mean, if you explain?’
‘No, Col. It’s not fair. Besides, like I said, he hasn’t even asked. One night stands and full-on relationships are two very different things.’
‘Are you going to be able to cope, staring over at that gorgeous face all day?’
‘Next week will be better. I’m used to him now.’
‘Is that so?’
‘Yep.’
‘Right.’ Colette looked at me without the slightest hint of belief.
‘Right,’ I repeated more forcefully, attempting to stuff as much surety as possible into my own word because the truth was, much to my annoyance, I wasn’t convinced I believed it myself.
4
As the next few weeks passed, I did my best to stick to the resolution I’d so adamantly defended to Colette. Bella’s tactics, however, were pretty much opposite to mine. With a sigh, she stood and wandered out of my office having managed to make a two minute question expand into a twenty minute loiter. As her direct boss, I had gently hinted that perhaps she ought to be getting on with some work but I’d never been very good at people management. From what I’d seen, Finn had no problem with it – and people still liked him. A classic example of firm but fair. Maybe I should take some tips from him. But that would mean spending even more time in each other’s company and I had a feeling that wasn’t top of either of our to-do lists.
I watched Bella exit the room and head back to the task she was supposed to be doing – and was currently at least a week behind on thanks to the latest exhibit in our museum – Finn Bryson.
‘Are you ever going to put her out of her misery?’ I asked.
Finn looked up from his laptop screen and glanced across at me. ‘Who?’
‘Bella.’
He took off the black framed glasses and I had a sudden flash of Clark Kent lust. Finn looked hot without glasses but when I’d looked up and noticed him wearing them the first time, I’d had to make a swift exit to one of the temperature-controlled store rooms to douse the flames that had burst into life deep within me. Now, several weeks in, I was used to it. Sort of.
A frown creased his forehead. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘Oh, come on, Finn. You can’t be that naïve.’
He put the glasses on the desk and crossed his arms over his chest. ‘Apparently I can.’
‘I find that hard to believe.’
‘I find it hard to believe you thought I wouldn’t remember the first time we met. Life is full of surprises.’
I waved my hands about at him and put my finger to my lips. ‘Don’t blurt stuff out like that. Anyone could have been passing! Not to mention we agreed never to speak about that again.’
‘I have a better view of the surrounding area from here, so I know there’s no one in the vicinity. And I don’t remember agreeing to that.’
‘Well, you did.’
He shrugged which only highlighted the broad, muscular shoulders encased within a pale sage-coloured shirt. ‘What did you mean about Bella? I wasn’t aware that I’d upset her. I’ve barely spoken to her.’
I rolled my eyes at him. ‘That’s rather the problem.’
He breathed out a sigh. ‘Elizabeth, could you stop talking in riddles and just tell me what I’ve done?’
‘It’s what you haven’t done.’
He shot me a look that told me he was losing patience although it was a good job Bella wasn’t here as the dark expression was unexpectedly, and annoyingly, sexy. ‘Elizabeth…’
Finn, true to his word the first time we met, continued to use my full name. Thankfully the rest of the team seemed to havemerely assumed that he was being polite and not taking liberties. Maybe he was. I certainly wasn’t about to ask.
