I Never Let You Go (I Never 3)

I grab the tray of burger patties out of the fridge and hand them to Finn. “Here, go make yourself useful before you and my sister start bickering like schoolgirls.”

“Yes, ma’am, only because I love you shall I throw in the white flag.”

Kate throws her hands up the in victory, followed by waving fingers guns at him. ”One point for me, zero points for Reynolds.”

“You won by default.” Finn rolls his eyes before pressing a kiss to the top of my head and makes his way out of the kitchen.

“A win is still a win,” she shouts over her shoulder.

Finn pops his head back in. “You’ve only won until everyone leaves, and I take your sister right there on the counter. That’s Lawson – 1, Reynolds – 1.” He quickly exits, joining the rest of our guests in the backyard.

My face heats in embarrassment, and I yell, “Finn!” the same time my sister puts her fingers in her ears and goes, “Ah la la la la.”

I shake my head at these two and go back to preparing the pasta salad that I was working on before Finn had interrupted me.

Kate hops up on the counter where I had just been sitting and reaches over, snagging a piece of ranch-covered pasta out of the bowl, and I swat at her hand. And she has the nerve to talk about health code violations. “So, how’s married life, sis?” she asks, shoving the food in her mouth.

My lips turn upward. “Married life is good. No, it’s great. It’s about time good things started to happen for us. Things are going well with the company; construction on the new outdoor learning facilities at Central is about to begin. Finn’s friend from Seattle finally moved out here to help him out. He’s actually supposed to swing by today. You know, he just moved to a new place and doesn’t know anyone, so be nice to him.”

“Can you carry this?” I hand Kate the pasta salad bowl and reach into the fridge, grabbing the plate full of burger fixings. Kate and I make our way out to the rest of the gathering.

“Yeah, fine, whatever, I’ll be on my best behavior. Hopefully, he’s nicer than my asshole of a new neighbor. God, I can’t stand him. He’s such a jerk. I just tried to be nice, and he totally bit my head off.” I watch the way she talks about her new neighbor. There is an unexplained hunger that fills her eyes. She might say that she doesn’t like him, but I can see right through her facade. I might just need to go over there and check him out for myself. I know I’m a married woman and have no interest in anyone else besides Finn, but this way I can see who this man is that has my sister all in a frenzy.

I set the plate down on the table where Kelsey and Dani sit with Haylee across from them with Emme sitting on her lap.

“Emme, you need to try to sit still, sweetheart. Mommy is running out of room on her lap.” Both Dani and Haylee are in full bloom as Zach says with their stomachs. Haylee sweetly tucks a curly lock of Emme’s hair behind her ear while attempting to readjust her. Emme doesn’t stop squirming, so Haylee sets her down on the ground.

“Go run and get Daddy, Em.” Emme’s cute little smile beams at the mention of Zach. I watch Emme run over to where Zach, Kyler, and Finn stand. Zach scoops Emme up into his arms, and she wraps her little arms around his neck. I notice an additional guest. Oh, I didn’t even know Jaxon had arrived. He must have snuck in the back.

Finn’s gaze meets mine, and he smiles. Leaning over to Jaxon, he points in our direction, and they make their way over.

“You,” my sister spits out as they approach. Umm, how does she know him? I’m confused since this would be my first time officially meeting him. The backyard goes silent as Kate’s raised voice breaks everyone from their side conversations, turning their attention to the commotion.

“You.” His voice is gruff, the type of deep voice that is enough to turn any woman’s insides to liquid.

“What the hell are you doing here?” My sister crosses her arms, the little spitfire she is. She looks like she’s ready to fight. Finn steps out of the way between the two of them and pulls my back to his front.

“What is happening right now?” he whispers.

I lean into him as we both don’t take our eyes off the scene in front of us. “Umm, I’m not sure, but I think things just got a whole lot more interesting.”

I Never Planned On You