He stabbed a piece of his pork chop and shook his head. “Some folks just suck.”
“I hope whoever did that to Murphy ends up miserable and alone.”
He lifted his glass. “I’ll drink to that.”
They clinked glasses.
“What breed is he?”
“Jason said probably a mix of golden retriever and Labrador, with maybe something else thrown in.”
“He sure is cute. He’ll be even cuter when he gets a little meat on his bones.”
“Jason recommended a good dog food that should help with that.”
Her lips curved. “Bring him around Louise—and my dad—and they’ll make sure he gets extra scraps.”
He laughed. “I don’t plan to leave him here at the house. He follows me pretty well so far. He can come to work with me.”
“On the days Agatha comes to work with Erin, she’ll love having a playmate.”
He got up and took his empty plate to the sink and washed it and the container, then put them in the dish drainer.
Brenna got up as well and brought her empty glass to the sink. Finn took it from her hands.
“Want a refill?”
“No, I should go. I have . . . things to do.”
He laid the glass in the sink and took her hand. “Yeah? What things?”
“Just . . . stuff.”
He was rubbing his fingers over her hand and her body instantly ignited, throbbing in all the wrong places. Or right places. Either way, being close to him like this had her wiring all messed up. She took a step back.
“Anyway, I’m glad you got a dog. Now I won’t worry about you being all alone down here.”
He walked her to the door. “You worry about me?”
“No.”
His lips curled into a smile. “Yeah, you do. That’s why you came to check on me.”
“That’s because you’re fa—”
He pressed his fingers to her lips. “Don’t call me family, Brenna. You and me, we’re not like that and you know it.”
She had been leaning against the door and he moved in closer. He was right. He had never been family. It had always been a convenient excuse to avoid him, because when he’d first shown up she’d been a riot of emotions around him and didn’t know how to act. It had made her mad that this hot boy was coming to live with her.
She hadn’t understood her feelings back then. Now she did. But all those years ago, her only recourse had been to steer clear of him.
She couldn’t ignore him now, no matter how hard she tried.
“I have to go, Finn.”
He stepped back and opened the door. “See you tomorrow, Brenna.”
She left and walked down the path toward the house, her whole body feeling as if it were on fire.
Why, of all the men she knew, had she asked Finn to act as her fake fiancé? Especially now, when her body had come to some sort of fiery awakening whenever she was around him.
It was going to be a long four days.
CHAPTER
• • • • • •
seven
BRENNA NEVER SPENT time staring into her closet. She went in, chose her outfit for the day and was done with it. She wasn’t a clothes kind of woman. She went for comfort. Of course bracelets were another thing entirely, because she loved bangles of all kinds. Beads and silver and threaded bracelets, she could spend a long time staring at her bracelet drawer, trying to decide which ones to wear that day. But clothes? Eh. Just grab something comfortable and put it on.
Today, however, was different. Esther and the members of the wedding party and immediate families were going to be here this afternoon for the official kickoff to the four-day wedding extravaganza, and on today’s agenda was the wine tasting. They’d already set up the tasting area earlier in the day, and Brenna had chosen several wines for them to sample. There’d be snacks to go along with the tasting.
Which meant as a member of the wedding party, Brenna was required to be in attendance. Along with her surprise fiancé.
She hadn’t yet mustered up the courage to break the news of her fake fiancé to her parents. She didn’t think they’d be participating in today’s events, but she supposed she should clue them in nonetheless.
Dad was busy in the vineyard, and Mom had been in her office all day.
Since she hadn’t yet figured out what to wear, she left her room and went out to the vineyard, her blood pressure instantly dropping as she strolled the walkway among the grapes.
Being in the vineyard always calmed her. She knew herself here. This was where she grew up, where she belonged. She felt a part of this land where tiny vines grew into ripe, beautiful grapes that they turned into delicious wine.
Dad was talking to Ricardo, one of the men who worked in the vineyard, so she waited until they finished their conversation. When Ricardo walked away, she approached, reaching up to study one of the cabernet vines.
“They look so good, Dad.”
He looked up at her and grinned. “Si. This is an excellent crop. The yield this year will be bellissima.”
“Yes, it will. Anyway, there’s something I need to tell you.”
He continued to walk along the grapes. “Go ahead.”
“I’m in the wedding this weekend for my friend Esther, and Allison is in the wedding, too, which means Mitchell will be here.”
He frowned. “Mitchell your ex?”
“Si.”
He straightened and looked at her. “How do we feel about this?”
“Not great. Especially about Allison. We have a bad history.”
“Would you like me to talk to him?”
“To Mitchell? No. But I have a plan to deal with Allison. She’s smug about marrying Mitchell and I know she’ll throw it in my face and give me a hard time about being single.”
He made a pfft sound. “Who cares? You’re perfect, and much better without that bastardo.”
Her dad was right about that. “Anyway, Finn is going to pretend to be my fiancé for four days.”
“Okay. What?” His frown furrowed the lines on his forehead. “What?”
“I know it sounds crazy, but it’s just for four days so I don’t have to deal with Allison.”
“And Finn agreed to this.”
“Si.”