“The next morning Mom called William’s and Rachel’s parents to let them know what had gone down. I was mortified.”
“That’s rough. How did your friends react?”
“Rachel was okay. William broke up with me and said I snitched on him, which of course I didn’t.”
“And your other friends?”
“Oh, they were fine since they didn’t get in trouble, but I got grounded for a month. Like, home-from-school-and-straight-to-my-room grounded. With no phone or TV privileges.”
“Ouch.”
“Then I got banned from the winery for three months. That hurt more than getting grounded.”
“I’m sure it did. Lesson learned, though, huh?”
“Yeah. I learned not to skinny-dip during a full moon. And not to get my wine from the family winery.”
He tilted his head back and laughed, his full, sexy timbre vibrating all the way from his chest. Lord, she could listen to that laugh all night long.
“You’re a feisty one, Brenna. I never knew you had a wicked streak.”
“That was in my youth.”
“Oh, in your youth, huh? So, what? You’re old and wise, now?”
“Wiser. I learn from my mistakes.”
He tilted his head to study her. “Like your ex?”
She stared out over the pond. “I don’t want to talk about him.”
“Sometimes talkin’ about things helps you put them in the past.”
“Oh, trust me, he’s well in the past.”
“Right. That’s why I’m your pretend fiancé.”
She wagged her finger at him. “Not yet you aren’t. And only for four days.”
“I’m very hurt by you shutting me out, Brenna. After we get married we need to work on our communication skills.”
She laughed. “Yeah. I’ll put that high on my list.” She stood. “I’m going to walk.”
He got up. “I’ll go with you.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I don’t mind.”
The way he smiled at her could light up the sky. It made her heart flutter, threw her off balance, and she did not like being off balance.
“I’m just going to head back to the house. There’s no need.”
“You’re avoiding me.”
She patted his shoulder. “Now you’re getting the hint. Good night, Finn.”
He gave her a knowing grin. “Night, Brenna. When you fall asleep tonight, think of me.”
She rolled her eyes and walked away, taking the path that led toward the house. By the time she made it back she definitely felt better. She walked up the steps to the porch and went inside, up to her room, and closed the door.
After stripping off her clothes, she climbed into bed and grabbed a book to read, but damn if visuals of a sexy Irishman didn’t invade her thoughts.
Get out of my head, Finn. I don’t want you there.
She tried to focus again, but his easy smile was right there, his gray eyes studying her intently whenever she spoke. She couldn’t help but think about the way he walked with such predatory grace, his incredible mouth, all that silky hair just begging to be tugged on while he was inside her, thrusting deep—
Dammit. She tossed the book on her nightstand, slid down in her bed and stared up at the ceiling.
Now she was hot. So. Damn. Hot.
She blew out a breath and willed her body to cool down. Her body did not comply.
Finn had been living on the property for more than ten years. Why was he front and center in her mind now? Why was she completely and inexplicably in lust with him all of a sudden, out of nowhere?
She knew what she had to do to get him out of her head. Go on a few dates with some new guys. Maybe even get into a relationship, and then she could banish Finn from her thoughts. There was nothing like the focus of a new guy to get her attention off someone who was strongly on her mind. And Finn was most definitely in her thoughts lately. Like, all the time.
And she didn’t want him there.
After this farce of a fake engagement was over, that was exactly what she’d do. She’d go find some guys to have some fun with, and then Finn would be out of the picture for good.
Easy enough. Now she had a plan and she could get back to her book.
CHAPTER
• • • • • •
five
FINN HAD LOVED building things since he was old enough to hold a hammer, when his da had brought him into his shop to let him tinker and play with discarded pieces of wood. When he was six, he’d built his first birdhouse. When he was ten, Da had let him build a new house for the dogs by himself. He’d built all kinds of things, learning something new every time. His da had been a master woodworker. When he was fifteen, he’d helped carry Da’s coffin to the gravesite, knowing he’d never stand shoulder to shoulder with his father in the woodshop again.
Three years later he’d lost his mum, then left Ireland to live with Maureen and Johnny and their three daughters. Sure, he’d known Maureen Bellini. She’d often traveled to Ireland to visit with his ma, even when he’d been a small boy. Maureen and his mother had a close friendship—a lifelong one, according to Ma. It had helped that he at least knew who she was when she’d come to the funeral and offered to give him a home with her family when he’d had no one left.
But, still, a hell of a whirlwind for a kid consumed with grief and loss. But the one thing his da had taught him was never to feel sorry for himself, to pick himself up and carry on. A lesson he’d always held on to. Because he might have only had his parents for a short while, but he knew he’d been loved, so what the hell did he have to feel sorry about?
The best way to honor his parents was to do well in life, and he figured he’d done that. He had master carpentry skills, though he’d never be as good as his father. But he had also taught himself how to make a damn fine whiskey. His da would be proud.
Today he finished the last wall in the addition, then began to create the shelves that would line one of the walls.
“Do you like sweating or is this some form of self-torture?”
He turned and grinned at Jason, Erin’s fiancé and one of his best friends. “Sweat’s good for the soul.”
“That’s what I try to tell myself when I’m doing pregnancy checks on cattle in ninety-degree heat, like today.”