“You look nice,” Finn said as he stood.
“Thank you.” I gave him a polite smile. I was proud of myself for not blushing or brushing off his compliment. Granted, it hadn't exactly given me the warm fuzzies like I would've gotten from one of Cade's compliments, but that was because he hadn't generally just said that I looked nice. Anyone would blush at some of the things he said. It had nothing to do with how the sound of his voice could turn me on, no matter what he was saying.
“I have to admit,” Finn spoke, drawing my attention. “I was surprised when you asked me for coffee.”
“Really?” I asked. “Why's that?”
“You backed off so quickly when I suggested you show me around. I figured you weren't interested.” He gave me a wry smile. “Unless I completely read this wrong and you're only trying to be neighborly.”
“And what would you do if I said that was the case?” I asked.
“I'd try to convince you otherwise.” Finn's eyes met mine.
They really were a pretty shade of gray...green. Finn's eyes were green. I didn't want to think about dark gray eyes.
The waitress came by and took our order, giving me a couple minutes to get myself focused again. It wasn't fair to Finn that I was thinking about Cade, comparing him to Cade. In all the ways he and Cade were different, there was one that was more important than the rest and the only one that matter. Finn chose to be here with me. Now, granted, with my luck in men so far, he probably had dates with half a dozen other women from our apartment building, but there was always the off chance that he really was a good guy. And it didn't matter if he was going out with other women. There were no expectations here, no commitments. Just coffee and conversation. If either of us wanted something more afterwards, we'd bring it up then. And if one thing led to another, then that'd be fine too. I wasn't looking for a relationship. Not after the back-to-back beatings my heart had taken. No matter how perfect Finn seemed to be.
“So, Bree Gamble of three E, are you a transplant like me or a native to the windy city?” Finn asked as the waitress walked away.
To his credit, he didn't even glance at her ass as she passed.
“Native,” I said. “Born and raised in the suburbs. Moved into the city when my parents decided they wanted to retire to Florida.”
“Your parents retired already?”
I nodded. “My mom always says that I wasn't an afterthought or late in life kid. I was the 'oh shit how did that happen' kid.” I laughed, remembering all the times my mom had said that to get a rise out of people. “My brother was the late in life kid and she was almost forty when she had him. She was forty-four when I was born. My dad was forty-eight.”
“Wow,” Finn said. “My parents were the exact opposite. They were high school sweethearts, married right after graduation because Mom was already pregnant with my oldest sister. Had the rest of us one after the other.”
“The rest of you? How many brothers and sisters do you have?”
He grinned. “I have one older sister, two older brothers, three younger brothers and two younger sisters. Lisa's a junior in high school.”
I stared at him. “Nine kids?”
He shrugged. “What can I say? Very devout Catholic upbringing.”
I really hoped he wasn't saying all this because he thought he was going to try to get into my pants and claim he couldn't use a condom for religious reasons. I'd been on the pill since Ronald and I had started sleeping together, but that had been because I knew the failure rate of condoms. Plus, there'd always been the off chance that we'd get caught up in the moment and forget. Neither one of us had wanted to risk an accidental pregnancy.
“Myself,” he continued. “I'm more of a C&E Catholic.”
“C and E?” I asked.
“Christmas and Easter.” He glanced over to where the waiter was bringing our drinks.
I blew on my coffee before testing it. Perfect.
“What about you?” Finn asked. “Were you raised religious?”
“Pretty much just Christmas and Easter Baptist,” I said. “More spiritual than religious.”
Finn nodded and took a sip of his coffee. “You said you have a brother?”
“Ian. He and his wife live in Texas.”
“Do you have any other family in the city?” Finn asked. He laughed. “I just realized how completely serial killer that sounded. Totally 'will anyone notice if you go missing?'” He shook his head. “Sorry.”
I laughed. As much as Cade's confidence had been attractive, I had to admit that it was a bit refreshing to see someone who wasn't the perfect conversationalist. “You said you were from Sacramento? Is your family still there?”
“I moved here from Sacramento,” he said. “But I was actually raised in Boston. Business took me to California and then brought me here. Most of my brothers and sisters are still in Boston, but my oldest brother works an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.”
“What business would that be?” I asked as I took another drink. At least I knew whatever Finn's answer was, there was no way it would be anything like Cade's.
“I'm a journalist,” he said. “Technically, the business meeting I told you about the other day was me meeting a source about a story.” He took a drink. “What about you?”
“I'm a teacher.”
I felt myself starting to relax as Finn and I fell into small talk, the typical getting to know each other kind of thing that came with a not-quite-but-maybe-it-is-kind-of-a-date moment like this. Halfway through, he reached out and brushed his fingers against mine. The gesture was deliberate, but definitely the kind that was meant to feel out how someone felt rather than a promise of things to come. My skin tingled from where it had touched his, but it was a mild sensation, not the sort of knee-jerk reaction that my body had every time Cade had touched me.
No. I wasn't going to think about him. Or the way it had felt when his hands had run over my body...
Dammit, Cade!
Finn was a great guy and I should've been enjoying myself more than I was. I wasn't disliking the conversation we were having or his company, but I should've been more attracted. He wasn't anything like Cade or Ronald, which should've been what I wanted. It was what I wanted.
But I couldn't stop my thoughts from wandering to Cade. Wondering what it would be like if it was him sitting across from me. What he would say and do.
I had to get him out of my head. Had to do something to make myself stop thinking about him.
“Which apartment did you say you were in?” I asked at the next break in conversation.
“Four C,” Finn answered as he drained the last of his coffee.
“I'd like to see it sometime.” I smiled when I saw Finn's breath catch. I wasn't interested in being subtle at the moment.
“Really?” he spoke slowly, as if his brain was racing to figure out if I meant what he thought I meant. “When would be good for you?”
I emptied my cup and then reached into my purse for a mint. I held another one out to Finn. “Now works for me.”
Finn popped the mint into his mouth, then reached into his pocket and took out his wallet. He tossed a couple bills on the table that would more than cover the drinks. He stood and held out his hand.
I didn't even hesitate as I took it. This was the perfect opportunity for me to get my mind off of Cade and show that I could do the whole casual sex thing. I'd make sure Finn knew there weren't any strings attached, but if I also wasn't going to say no if he wanted to try and make it more. That's what made him so perfect. He was physically attractive and nice, so perfect for a little fling, but I could also see us really having a lot in common and wanting to see where things went.
The two of us walked back to our apartment building hand-in-hand. The wind was brisk and I could smell a hint of snow in it. We usually didn't get snow until closer to the end of November, but it was definitely cold enough. This would probably be one of the last times I'd want to be walking much of anywhere and I enjoyed the chance to enjoy it with some easy conversation. Whatever was coming, we weren't talking about it, and I appreciated that. I wanted to see where things progressed naturally and it really felt like Finn was going to let me set the pace.