Finn offered his elbow, and she accepted, trying not to stumble as she relived the kiss that had fried her entire nervous system.
“Thanks,” she said when she gained control of herself. “I didn’t really want to walk around alone wearing these diamonds.”
His eyes went to the necklace on her chest and slid up to her dangling earrings, her skin sizzling where his gaze touched, heat spreading all the way up to her forehead.
“You make those diamonds look beautiful.”
“Ha. Don’t you mean that the other way around?”
“No.” He stared straight ahead as he guided her around the border of the room. “I meant it as I said it. The diamonds are lovely… almost worthy of you.”
“Yeah, right.” She let out a nervous laugh, twisting the ring on her finger, and cleared her throat. “Listen, Finn. We need to talk.”
“I agree.”
She almost melted with relief. “Great. Should we talk now? Go somewhere alone?”
“I can say what I need to say while we’re walking.”
“Go ahead. I’m listening,” she responded through the side of her mouth, around a fake smile, nodding at Janice McFarland, investment guru of the stars.
He spoke without moving his lips, an equally false smile plastered on his face. “It’s about Jerome—I don’t believe you’re thinking clearly.”
“Why is that?” Dropping her façade, she stared daggers at him. Not that it did any good. He refused to meet her eyes. “What do you have against Jerome?”
He smiled and nodded toward a group of older men who, from their unbridled laughter appeared to be slightly inebriated.
“I don’t know how to say this without offending you, but it has to be done.” His jaw hardened. “I’ve been paying close attention to everything you’ve said in the past month or so, and I think I can deduce a few things. One of them is that your last boyfriend was probably abusive. Perhaps that was only a verbal thing, but it doesn’t matter. Abuse is abuse.”
“And you think that was Jerome?”
“Do you deny it?”
She managed to keep a straight face… barely. Her last real boyfriend had been in eleventh grade. His name was Bernie, and he’d been wearing braces for five years. Tall and skinny, he was president of the chess club and probably only dated her because he liked her laptop. After that, she only had a couple of dates during her four years of college, certainly none that would qualify as boyfriends. She hadn’t found a guy with enough depth to hold her attention. And for some reason, every guy she met seemed too intimidated to stick around, anyway.
“What if I assured you that Jerome has always treated me with complete respect?”
“I’d ask, if he’s such a great guy, why aren’t you together now?” He waved at Candy and Sam Marshall, whom Laurie only recognized from their pictures.
“And I’d answer that our lives took us different directions.”
His mouth stretched in a grimace. “In that case… if he’s truly good to you and not abusive… you have my blessing.”
She stopped in her tracks. “I have your blessing? Your blessing? I don’t want your blessing. I want—”
“Shhh!” With panicky eyes, he put his fingers to her lips. Curious gazes burned her skin, and she felt like she was in her recurring nightmare where she went to school in her underwear.
How had her plan gone so far off base? He was supposed to be jealous of Jerome, not marrying her off to him. Then a horrifying thought occurred. The only feeling Finn actually admitted to was a connection during that kiss. What if, for him, it was only physical? Maybe the reason he didn’t want to talk about it was to avoid hurting her feelings. What if Finn wanted her to be with Jerome because he truly didn’t want her for himself?
Her eyes stung with threatening tears. How could I be so stupid?
She lifted her chin, blinking rapidly. “As I was saying, I don’t need your blessing or your permission to be with Jerome. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I think I’ll let the Davenports have a look at this jewelry.”
Chapter 17
Jerome Shields was a hit at the head table. The wildly popular quarterback kept everyone entertained during dinner, which meant Finn didn’t have to be his normal witty and jovial self. It was a good thing, because he couldn’t have been witty and jovial if his life had depended on it. Nodding and laughing on cue, he listened to Jerome with one ear while watching Laurie from the corner of his eye. With dull eyes and an empty smile, she sat on the opposite side of the table from Jerome and Finn, nibbling at her dinner. Finn wasn’t sure exactly what he’d done wrong, but he assumed the count was rather high.
As dessert was served, Finn took the stage to welcome all the guests and give a verbal thanks to all the donors. Next came a five-minute film—Jarrett’s creative endeavor—highlighting the work of Limitless, particularly with disabled children. By the end, with no dry eyes to be found, the audience was primed and ready to empty their pockets. Finn announced that the silent auction would be closing in ten minutes, prompting a surge toward the long row of auction items on the side of the room.