All the Way (Romancing Manhattan #1)(22)

“I just wrapped up a big case that I’d been working on for about eighteen months. I was exhausted. The great thing about corporate law is, it’s mostly a Monday-through-Friday gig, unlike criminal law, which I’m sure you know because your dad was also in the corporate law world.”

I nod, and he keeps going.

“But there are still some intense cases, and I just finished one. I was going to head back to the office tomorrow to help my brothers with a couple of their cases, but I have a few months before I have to start the heavy work on my next case, so I’ve been able to do a lot of work from here, especially since I’m not taking any new clients at this time.”

“That’s great,” I reply. “And it’s nice to have a place to get away to, to take you out of the city and away from the root of the stress.”

“Is that why you came here?” he asks.

“Part of it,” I confirm. “My parents have had this property since before I was born. From what I’ve heard, Dad got it for a steal and did a ton of remodeling to spruce it all up. So we were here every single summer my entire life. I have a lot of happy memories here, and it’s true that I needed to get out of the city. My apartment in Manhattan is convenient to everything that I love, and also a constant reminder that I don’t get to live that life right now. I couldn’t go to the house in the mountains of North Carolina because that’s the house that burned down, and the house in Connecticut is my parents’ house. It’s where I grew up, my childhood home, and it’s theirs. Does that make sense?”

“It does.” He reaches over and takes my hand in his, holding on tightly.

“So I had my doctor in the city refer me to one here along with a physical therapist, and made the decision to recover here. I still think it was the best decision.”

“I am exceedingly thankful that you made that decision,” he says, and kisses the back of my hand before turning it over and placing a kiss on my palm. “I was immediately attracted to you that day, and I apologize, because it wasn’t really the time or place to hit on you.”

“You asked me to dinner,” I remind him, earning a sheepish smile. “I was both pissed and flattered.”

“Well, I didn’t try very hard. You looked so sad. Haunted. And I want to punch the fuck out of Kyle.”

“That makes two of us.”

“Do you know where he is?”

“No.” I shake my head and take my hand back so I can cut my steak. “He’s all over the place. I’ve had calls from L.A., Texas, Florida. I’ve been told he’s spent time in Seattle. He just roams about, he doesn’t have a home. And every time he texts or calls it’s from a different number.

“I don’t even know how the police found him after the fire.”

“I’d feel better if we knew where he was,” Finn says.

“Why?”

“Because I’d rather know than be surprised.”

“Trust me, he won’t surprise anyone. I go years without hearing from him.” I take a sip of water and another bite of my potato. “It’s nice that you’re close to your family.”

“They’re a pain in my ass most days, but yes.”

“What are they like?”

“You’ll get to see for yourself, I’m sure. Quinn usually comes out here for a week in the summer. He’s also pretty much a workaholic, smart. Younger than me by only a year, and swears he’s never going to settle down.”

“Famous last words.” I grin. “And Carter?”

“He’s starting to come back around,” he replies. “Carter used to be the class clown. Funnier than anyone else I knew. He went to school with Quinn, and started dating Darcy, my sister, in high school. They got married just out of college.”

“What happened to her?”

“Cancer,” he says with a sigh. “Who would have thought that a thirty-year-old woman could die of breast cancer?”

“I’m so sorry. That’s tragic.”

“It really was. Carter was completely wiped out. Mom lived with him for about a year so she could take care of Gabby. Not that he was incompetent, he was just so lost.”

“That’s horrible,” I murmur.

“This has been a pretty heavy conversation,” Finn says as he pushes his empty plate away. “Maybe we should lighten it up a bit.”

“What do you have in mind?”

“Follow me.”





Chapter Six

~Finn~


I hold my hand out for London’s and smile when she reaches for me and follows me through the kitchen to a room that’s tucked behind it.

“I didn’t know this was back here,” she says. “You have a playroom.”

I cross my arms over my chest and watch as London wanders through the room, running her fingers over the pool table, the Ping-Pong table, checking everything out.

“You want to play pool?” she asks.

“I was thinking pinball,” I reply, and walk to the vintage machine in the corner of the room. “I can pull a stool up for you if you like.”

“I’m feeling pretty good,” she says. “And I have to warn you; I’m very, very good at pinball.”