All the Way (Romancing Manhattan #1)(37)

“That’s helpful.” I smile and lean in to kiss her. “I’m not going to apologize for smacking your ass. You deserved it.”

“I can live with that.”

“I will apologize for not listening.”

“Thank you.”

“We’re learning each other, sweetheart. It’s just going to take time.”

“I know.” She turns back to lean against me. “And we have all the time in the world.”





Chapter Ten

~London~


It’s two weeks later, and we’re on our way to dinner. Finn is driving this evening, and I’m holding on to my new black leather Chanel bag.

That I bought myself, thank you very much.

“So, we’re going to dinner with Carter?” I ask, and watch in awe as Finn easily maneuvers his way through traffic. I’ve never been brave enough to drive in the city.

“Yes, and his date.”

“Who’s his date?”

“I have no idea,” he replies with a laugh. “He called me yesterday and said that he has a first date with a nice woman, but he’s not ready to go it alone yet, so I offered to double with him.”

“So no one really knows her.” I frown. “What if she’s horrible?”

“If he asked her out, she’s not horrible,” Finn says with a laugh.

“True. Okay, well, this should be fun. How much has he dated since your sister died?”

“I believe this is the first,” he says.

“Oh, wow.” I swallow hard and watch the cars as they go by. “It must be hard to start all over.”

“Especially when you have a child,” Finn agrees. “I don’t think Gabby was ready either.”

“Do you think she is now?”

“I doubt it,” he says with a shrug. “But what’s he supposed to do? Be alone forever?”

“No. It’s a tough place to be in.”

Finn exits off the freeway and finds the restaurant, leaves his Mercedes with the valet, and escorts me inside.

Carter and his date are already waiting for us, and the look of sheer terror and relief when he sees us is slightly humorous.

“Hey,” he says as he stands and shakes Finn’s hand. “You must be London.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” I reply, and am surprised to be folded in a big hug. “The Cavanaugh family is a bunch of huggers.”

“Guilty,” Carter says, and smiles down at me. “Even if my last name is Shaw, the hugging has rubbed off on me.”

I turn to see a pretty, petite blonde smiling at us. Her makeup is impeccable, her nails recently done, and she is also carrying a Chanel handbag.

We’re going to have plenty to talk about.

“I’m London,” I say, holding out my hand.

“Zoe,” she replies with a smile, shaking both Finn’s hand and mine. We all sit, and I don’t give the awkward silence a chance to settle in.

“So, Carter, how did you and Zoe meet?”

“At a coffee shop,” she says before he can. “We go to the same one every morning, around the same time. I finally got the nerve up to talk to him about a week ago.”

“That’s so fun,” I reply with a smile. “I don’t think I know anyone who’s met that way.”

Zoe smiles warmly and rubs Carter’s arm, which seems to make him uncomfortable. He takes a sip of his water.

Carter is definitely not ready for this, the poor guy. And I feel badly for Zoe because she seems to be really into him.

Ugh.

Finn lays his hand on my thigh under the table and gives it a gentle squeeze. I’m not sure if he’s thanking me for spearheading the conversation, but I do my best to keep it going.

“And what do you do, Zoe?”

“I’m a financial adviser,” she says. “I do math all day long.”

“Well, bless you, because math makes me break out in hives.”

“Someone has to do it,” Finn says with a smile, and easily steers the conversation to investments and stocks, which I try to keep up with, but my experience with the subject is limited.

Carter also participates and starts to loosen up, and at one point, actually puts his hand on Zoe’s shoulder, which I take as a good sign.

“How do you and Finn know each other, Carter?” Zoe asks, and takes a bite of her salad.

“Oh,” Carter says, surprised. He’s blinking, looking to Finn for help.

“Carter and I are brothers-in-law,” Finn replies smoothly. “He was married to my late sister.”

“I see.”

And just like that, Zoe completely shuts down. I can almost see the brick walls being constructed around her, and her eyes have gone cool.

She sets her napkin on the table and stands. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to visit the restroom.”

She walks away, and the guys both look around, dumbfounded.

“What did I say?” Finn asks.

“It’s okay. I’ll go talk to her.” I pat Finn’s arm and then follow Zoe into the women’s restroom. We’re the only two in there when I arrive, and Zoe is standing at the sink, leaning on the countertop, her head bowed.