“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.

He unlocked his door and stepped inside, motioning for me to follow. I stepped inside and looked around. The apartment was virtually identical to mine except backwards since it was on the other side of the hall. Well, that and the fact that this one still had unpacked boxes against the living room wall while mine was obviously very lived in.

“I haven't gotten around to settling in all the way.” He gave me a sheepish smile. “It's mostly kitchen stuff, so I can't offer you much more than a beer or leftovers from a box.”

I chuckled. “I understand. It took me weeks to get everything organized.”

He gestured towards the worn couch. It looked like he'd picked it up in a thrift store, which wasn't surprising. Most single people – especially men – weren't going to spend the money for brand-new furniture. I walked across the room and sat down. Finn followed and took a seat next to me. He was close enough that it wouldn't be awkward to reach over and touch him, but he was far enough that I didn't feel like he was crowding me.

“I have to ask.” The tone in his voice changed. It wasn't slick or anything like that, but there was a definite undercurrent of something else. “How is a woman like you still single?”

I paused, unsure about how much I wanted to tell him. I decided to keep it simple. “I wasn't up until a couple months ago.”

“His loss.” He smiled. He started to reach for me, then hesitated. When I didn't pull away, he tucked a curl behind my ear. “My gain.”

“What about you?” I asked. I might not have been looking for a relationship, but I definitely didn't want to get involved with something complicated. “You're good-looking, kind and,” I gestured around me, “you obviously don't live with your mother. How are you still single?”

“My job tends to send me on trips every couple weeks. I've found most women don't like it when their boyfriend has to leave at the drop of the hat and be gone for who knows how many days.”

I really hoped I wasn't reading too much into what he was saying. It sounded to me like he wanted to let me know that he wasn't looking for something serious and that was good. No matter how nice he was, I was getting more and more sure that I didn't want to get right into something that could be a relationship.

“I could see how that'd be difficult,” I said honestly. “I know my ex always got annoyed when I had school stuff that kept us from...” My voice trailed off and I shook my head. “You know what, I don't want to talk about him.”

Butterflies fluttered in my stomach. I didn't want to talk about Ronald and I sure as hell didn't want to think about Cade. I knew of one way I could make sure neither of those things happened.

I leaned across the distance between us and brushed my lips against his. The kiss was tentative because I wasn't entirely positive Finn wanted this to go any further, but when I saw his eyes light up, I knew he did. He put his hand on my cheek and I could see him gauging my reaction. I met him halfway and this kiss was anything but hesitant.

His lips moved with mine, opening my mouth. I ran the tip of my tongue along his bottom lip and he made a pleased sound. I tried not to frown. I was glad he liked what I did, but the moan hadn't sounded quite right to me. Finn's hand slid around my back, pulling me closer to him and I tried to put out of my head that the warm palm on the small of my back belonged to the wrong person.

No. Finn wasn't the wrong person. He was the right person. My tongue slid into his mouth, tangling with his. Finn was the one who was going to help me forget.

He leaned into me and I knew what he wanted. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled, letting him lay me down on the couch. The hand on my back slid down my hip and he pulled my legs up before stretching out on top of me. I ran my fingers along the short hairs at the base of his neck, trying not to think about how I preferred longer hair. Soft curls. Dark...

Finn's hand moved back up over my ribcage and he cupped my breast through my shirt. I sighed. It should've felt good. The pressure was just right, and his thumb made circles over my nipple in a way that started to make it get hard. But there was no electricity, no arousal making me wet, no heat spreading through me. Only a faint friction that was mildly pleasant.