“Huh?” mumbled Finn dazedly, his breath hot on the nape of her neck. “Did you just say something? Sorry, all I can hear is the ringing in my ears.”
Knowing it would get his attention, Delilah sunk her teeth into his bicep this time, eliciting the yelp she had expected. “You’re crushing me, you big oaf.”
“Shit.” Finn hastily rolled off to one side, hooking an arm around her waist and pulling her in close. “Sorry about that. You okay?”
She winced. “I think so. For a minute or two, though, I thought I might have cracked a rib.”
He stroked her back soothingly. “Poor baby. I need to remember that you’re more than a foot shorter than I am, and that I’ve got almost a hundred pounds on you.” He grimaced as he rubbed his abused bicep. “And that you’ve got really sharp teeth.”
Delilah blew him a kiss, then couldn’t suppress a yawn. “Don’t ever forget that last part,” she told him sleepily. “And since you just wore me out, you insatiable beast, I need my beauty sleep now. Are you staying?”
He nodded, brushing her tumbled curls off her forehead. “If that’s okay with you.”
“Mmm, hmm,” she mumbled, burrowing her head against his chest. “Though this must be some sort of a record for you - two nights in a row in the same bed.”
Finn’s chest rumbled with laughter. “Pretty damned close, at least in recent times.” His next words were more serious, almost somber, as he caressed her bare hip. “I totally get why you don’t want to spend the night at my place, the whole “if this bed could talk” scenario.”
Delilah nodded drowsily. “Yup, you got it. Already told you I didn’t want to be occupant number three thousand and something.”
“Hey,” he replied defensively, “It is nowhere near that many. Especially not in this particular bed. I just bought the thing less than three years ago, not long after I moved in here.”
She burrowed her face into her pillow, too weary to lift her head. “Tell you what. If you’re really serious about re-decorating your condo, we start with the bedroom. Complete overhaul, new furniture, drapes, lighting. And especially that damned bed. Now, I get grouchy if I don’t get enough sleep, so shush.”
She was asleep within seconds, and completely missed the look of tenderness on Finn’s face as he gave her a good night kiss on the forehead.
***
“I can’t thank you enough for going over all of this for me, Max. Finn told me you were some sort of financial mega-brain, but I thought he was exaggerating. Because, well, you know,” Delilah finished with a shrug.
Max merely nodded, though a slight smile tugged at the outer corners of his mouth. “Far better than you do at this point, Delilah,” he agreed. “Finn and I have known each other for more than twenty years, after all, and he has certainly been known to exaggerate at times. And that is one of his lesser evils.”
Finn scowled at his friend. “Hey, way to help me out here, Max. You’re supposed to be singing my praises to Delilah, not pointing out all of my faults.”
From across her desk, Delilah smirked. “You’ve already told me about the time you got arrested and Max had to bail you out. What else could possibly be worse than that?”
Finn exchanged a look with Max, waggling his finger at his friend warningly. “Don’t you dare, Maxwell Wainwright. I brought you here to give Delilah business advice, not share twenty years of gossip with her.”
Max did smile this time, but there was an underlying menace to his expression that left Finn unsettled. “Fortunately for you, Finley, I’ve never been much for gossip. And you can count yourself extra fortunate that I really must dash off now for my next appointment. Delilah, it was lovely to meet you, and please call me after you’ve met with Gray. I’m very confident that he’s the right choice to handle the negotiations with Bloomingdale’s.”
Delilah stood when Max did, placing her hand in his. “From what you’ve told me about him, I totally agree. I just hope he’ll be available to take over from my current attorney.”
Max gave her hand a light squeeze. “Trust me, he will. Gray and I have worked together on a number of projects, and once he hears that I sent you his way he won’t dare to turn you down. He’ll also make sure that you get the absolute best deal possible, Delilah, that you won’t run the risk of being taken advantage of. And from what I was able to uncover about your previous attorney, I can’t guarantee that I would have been able to say the same thing.”
Max had done his research well, informing Delilah rather regretfully that the attorney she’d hired on to oversee her upcoming negotiations with the retail chain had little to no practical experience with such cases. The other attorney was relatively young, and had been in practice for less than five years, with most of his experience thus far in contract law. He had never participated in the actual negotiation process, however, and had only been involved in drawing up the legal documents after the facts.
The new attorney that he had highly recommended to her - Grayson Ford - had far more experience in face to face negotiations, and Max had assured Delilah that he was a much better choice.
Max had also done an extensive review of the finances and business plan for Ma Belle Petite, and it had been his expert opinion that Delilah’s design firm was doing quite well for itself.
“You’ve been diligent about not expanding too fast, or adding on too many employees at one time,” he’d commended. “You also seem to have a product that’s in high demand, with not very much competition in such a specialized niche. And even though your talents are largely concentrated on the design side of the business, you’ve been wise enough to hire a good support team, particularly your finance and marketing managers. It’s my opinion that your company is going to do very, very well for itself, Delilah, especially if this agreement with Bloomingdale’s comes together.”
Delilah’s face had positively glowed with pleasure at Max’s words, and Finn realized that up until that moment he hadn’t fully realized just how much her business meant to her. Probably, thought Finn glumly, a whole lot more than I do.
“Just let me see Max out, and then I’ll be back to take you to lunch, okay?” he asked Delilah, squeezing her shoulder.
She nodded. “Of course. And take your time. I have a couple of phone calls I’m going to have to return before we go out. They shouldn’t take long, though.”
Max had a contemplative look on his face as he and Finn faced each other on the sidewalk outside of Delilah’s design studio.
“Hmm. If I had to wager a guess right now, I’d say that you’re wading in very, very unfamiliar waters, my friend,” mused Max. “And I’m not just referring to the budding relationship you seem to have with the lovely lady. I’m talking about the fact that you seem content to play second fiddle to her business, when you’ve always been one to crave all the attention for yourself.”
Finn shrugged, looking down at his feet uncertainly. “I won’t lie and say I’m thrilled with the fact that Delilah is so dedicated to her company,” he admitted reluctantly. “But she was pretty up front about the fact that her business is at a point where she needs to devote a lot of time to it. She actually told me that she’d quote unquote “make time to see me”. Did you ever think you’d see the day when a woman said something like that to me, Max?”
Max laughed heartily, something he hadn’t done in a very long time. “Actually, no,” he chuckled. “Not unless the apocalypse was upon us. And since the sky doesn’t appear to be falling just yet, I would say it’s simply karma, Finn. How many times over the years have you ended a relationship by telling the woman that you were just too busy with work right now, or that being on the road wasn’t good for a relationship? Or dozens of other bullshit excuses for why you didn’t want to see her again? Now you find yourself on the other end of the situation, and I can tell you aren’t very happy about it.”
“It’s worth it,” Finn replied defensively. “Delilah is worth it. Even if she could only squeeze
out an hour a week for me, I’d take it. She’s - well, now you’ve met her in person and seen for yourself, haven’t you? She’s a very special woman, Max. A rare one, too.”
Max nodded. “Beautiful, intelligent, cultured, talented.”
Finn glared at him. “And please don’t state the obvious, okay? I know you’ve got to be thinking what the hell does she see in me. I ask myself that question multiple times a day so I don’t need you chiming it as well.”
“I wasn’t thinking any such thing, actually,” said Max calmly. “I was thinking instead that you’ve met your match at last, Finn. The player - that would be you, of course - has finally met someone who might just be capable of coaching him into becoming the man Jordan and I have always suspected you could be. And while I realize that I’m nowhere near as experienced as you and Jordan are with women, let me give you this one bit of advice when it comes to Delilah Ferris, all right?”
Finn nodded, too startled by what Max had just told him to speak.
Max patted his friend on the shoulder. “Don’t screw this up. Because with a woman like Delilah you’re only ever going to get one chance. She doesn’t strike me as the forgiving sort, so just make sure not to put yourself in that position.”
“Yeah, I figured that out the first time I met her,” sighed Finn. “Problem is, “screw up” might as well be my middle name, so how the hell do I stop myself from living up to the title?”
Max arched a brow. “Asking me for financial advice is one thing, Finn. But as far as relationship advice is concerned, I’m the very last person you should ask.”
Chapter Fourteen
April
“You do realize, Jordan, that we only have four more days until I collect my hundred dollars from you?”
Jordan scowled at Max, then returned his attention to the salad vegetables he was chopping. “It can’t possibly be an entire month yet,” he grumbled in disbelief. “You’ve got to have your dates wrong, Max.”
Max shook his dark head confidently. “I never get dates wrong, Jordan. Or any sort of numbers. Haven’t you learned that after all these years? And in four more days Finn will have been dating the same woman exclusively for an entire month. Which means that I win our little bet, since you were convinced he wouldn’t last a week, much less a month.”
“The bastard’s playing with us, is all,” muttered Jordan. “Somehow he learned about our bet, and decided to teach us both a lesson. Watch - he’ll stick it out with Delilah until one month and one day, and then he’ll break things off with her.”
“That’s assuming she doesn’t decide to give him the heave-ho before then,” chimed in Aubrey as she stirred one of the simmering pots on the five-burner stove. “Max, you’re the only one of us who’s met this woman so far. Give us some insight, hmm? Is she desperate or just plain dumb? I can’t think of any other logical explanation why she would have stayed with Finn this long.”
Max gave her a mysterious little smile. “She’s actually stunning, and probably one of the most intelligent and driven woman I’ve ever met. I’d wager a guess that she’s capable of getting most any man she wants. As to why she wants Finn, well - there’s some definite chemistry between them, but she’s certainly not one of his usual groupies or brainless bimbos. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons he’s so enthralled by her - he had to actually make an effort to get her to go out with him.”
“Yeah, I get that,” replied Aubrey as she handed Jordan a big wooden bowl to place the vegetables in. “And I can totally see Finn laying on the charm thick enough to get a date with her. But unless he’s turned over a whole new leaf during the past month, I can’t think of a single reason why any woman with half a brain would keep dating him unless she was a big old loser. Or maybe some sort of psycho stalker who hasn’t revealed her dark side to him just yet. Finn should have her checked out, make sure this Delilah hasn’t been slapped with any restraining orders in the past.”
Jordan gave his brand-new fiancée - he’d popped the question barely two weeks earlier - an exasperated look. “You’ve been reading too many suspense novels lately, darlin’. And I know you’ve watched The Girl on The Train at least five times. You’re acting a little paranoid, don’t you think? I really doubt this woman is a stalker, especially since Finn had to really work hard to snag a date. Wouldn’t she have been the one to pursue him if she had those sort of issues?”
“I guess so,” agreed Aubrey reluctantly. “But if she’s as smart and successful as Max makes her out to be, then what the hell does she see in a player like Finn?”
“I think what’s really happening here,” offered Max, “is that Delilah is bringing out a side of Finn that he doesn’t often let the rest of the world see. Believe it or not, you two, there’s more to Finn than meets the eye.”
Aubrey snorted. “Seriously, Max? You really believe that? I mean, you and Jordan have definitely known him a lot longer than I have, but he’s such a - a doofus most of the time. I can’t recall a single occasion when he talked about anything besides the chick he shagged the night before, how hungover he was, or this weekend’s football games. Am I wrong?”
Jordan grinned as he slipped an arm around her waist and kissed her cheek. “Don’t be so hard on him, Aubrey. Finn is also very knowledgeable about baseball, basketball, and hockey. And he can probably guess a woman’s bra size from halfway across a crowded room. That’s a real gift, you know. Ouch!”
Aubrey smiled sweetly as her wiseass fiancé rubbed the shoulder she’d just slugged. “Yeah, Finn’s a gift all right. A real prize. I hope to God he wears shoes when he takes Delilah out on a date. Underwear, too, for that matter. Though I have zero idea why I’d actually want to know the answer to that question.”
Max took a measured sip of the vodka martini he’d mixed for himself upon arriving a few minutes ago, then tapped a finger against his chin reflectively. “You only see one side of Finn, Aubrey. The fun-loving, party-going - ah, doofus - as you so charmingly put it. That’s the Finn McManus that most of the world knows, because that’s exactly how he wants to be seen. But I think both of you will be pleasantly surprised to see a different side of him this evening. Because he is definitely different around Delilah. Difficult as it is to believe - and I doubt that Finn himself even realizes it yet - but I think our boy might be falling in love for the first time in his life.”
Jordan and Aubrey stared at Max, then at each other, in total disbelief. Jordan reached for the glass of Cabernet he’d poured himself and took a healthy swig, while Aubrey, who hadn’t imbibed as yet this evening, snatched up Max’s martini and drank half of it down.
“Sorry,” she offered up apologetically at Max’s frown. “I’ll have Jordan fix you another since I wouldn’t know where to begin. I don’t think I’ve ever had a martini before.” She turned up her nose in distaste. “And I don’t think I’ll ever have another one. How do you drink those things anyway? Blech!”
“Never mind,” sighed Max. “I doubt that Jordan would get it right, either. I’ll mix up a fresh one in a few minutes. Though if I had realized my speculation about Finn would drive both of you to drink, I would have moved my glass out of the way.”
Jordan shuddered. “You’ve got to be overreacting, Max. I mean, I don’t doubt that Finn is infatuated with this woman - probably because she isn’t fawning over him like all the others have always done. But love? This is Finn we’re talking about, after all. I’m not sure he’d know what being in love felt like even if it clobbered him on the head.”
Aubrey gave him a smack on the butt, grinning cheekily as she did so. “You mean like you did, Doctor Dreamboat?” she teased. “From all the wild stories I’ve heard, you were just as big of a player as Finn in your heyday.”
“Not quite,” retorted Jordan defensively. “And that was all before I met you, darlin’. Once I set eyes on this gorgeous face and body of yours, every other woman in the world ceased to exist for me.”
Aubrey snorted. “And now he
re comes all that Southern charm of yours, which is really a more polite way of saying bullshit. You know darned well you were a big time player, and that you had a huge crush on my sister at the time you met me. Fortunately for you, everything is different now, but don’t try and tell me you weren’t just as bad as Finn.”
“Well, I doubt that anyone could be quite as bad as Finn in regards to - let’s call it playing the field,” remarked Max diplomatically. “Though Jordan has certainly given him a run for his money over the years.”
“Thanks a lot, Max,” Jordan told him sarcastically. “Good to know I can count on my friends for support when I need them.”
“Oh, leave Max alone,” scolded Aubrey as she wrapped her arms around Jordan’s waist. “Especially since he’s not telling me anything I didn’t realize the moment I met you. Now, what say we not mention your past escapades - and definitely not Finn’s, either - for the rest of the evening? We promised Finn that tonight was about meeting Delilah and welcoming her into our little circle. And without knowing much of anything about her, I guarantee she won’t want to hear about your wild frat boy experiences.”
“I agree wholeheartedly. Though of course Max has already met the lady in question, haven’t you?” inquired Jordan.
Max was carefully measuring out the correct quantities of vodka and dry vermouth for his replacement martini. “Just the one time,” he confirmed. “When Finn asked me to look over her business finances, and also recommend a suitable attorney to handle a particular matter for her. I was in her office for probably less than half an hour. But it was certainly long enough to determine that she’s very, very different from Finn’s usual choice of female companion. She’s actually the sort of woman I might have considered dating myself if he hadn’t seen her first. Though she might be a tad too independent for my taste.”
The Player Gets Coached Page 20
