paid for the soda and as he turned away from the counter, Keira approached the table. She took her seat and wrapped her hands around her probably lukewarm coffee. He set his soda on the table. “You want me to get you a fresher one?” he asked.
She shook her head. “No, this is fine.” She took a sip. “I like it cold.”
“Okay.” Finn sat down and stretched his legs out beneath the table. “So, you’re fine with all of this?”
She frowned. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
He shifted in his seat, looping his arm over the back of his chair. “I thought you had gotten out of this kind of life. I thought you’d changed.”
A muscle twitched in her jaw. He’d scored a hit. She took a sip of coffee and didn’t meet his eyes. “Sometimes we can’t have what we want.”
“Really?” He leaned forward and braced his elbows on the table. “All you have to do is say no, Keira. Say no and walk away.”
“Didn’t they give you the same warning I got? There’s no saying no, there’s no walking away.” She lifted her eyes to his. “I’m in this now. My choice.”
“But why?” Dissatisfied with her explanation, and remembering that she had never really answered this question when he’d asked it before, he asked again, “Why in the hell did you get involved with this group?”
“Finn, look,” Keira said with a shake of her head, “we’ve been over this before. I have my reasons, and I’m sorry but they’re none of your business.”
“Is it Liuz?” he asked.
“What do you mean?” Another frown furled her brows.
“Do you have feelings for him?” Finn asked. When she didn’t respond right away, he decided to be more direct. “Do you want him, Keira? Is that it? You want to be with him, have sex with him.”
Something flared in her eyes, but had gone too fast for him to decipher. Annoyance wafted off her with a slight aroma of burned toast. “If I do, again, it’s none of your business. It’s not like we agreed to be exclusive.”
“Didn’t we?” Finn narrowed his eyes. “I seem to recall some talk of caring about each other. But, hey, maybe it’s that you want Stefan more than me. Is that it? You want him?” Before she could respond, he said, “You know what? It doesn’t matter. It doesn’t. Because he can’t have you.” For all his intensity, he kept his voice low so that the people around them couldn’t overhear their conversation, but he had to get this out. “You belong with me, even if you don’t want to admit it.”
“Finn—”
“You have no idea how dangerous he is, Keira.” He had to be careful how he phrased this. She couldn’t know how it was he knew exactly how dangerous Stefan Liuz was. “I know you know how crazy it makes me when he touches you. And not only because I’m jealous.” There. He’d admitted it. “But also because the closer you get to him, the deeper into his world you’ll get. I only want to protect you.”
“Finn.” She paused and stared out the window. Her tongue swept out to moisten her bottom lip, and she met his eyes. “I do care about you, and I’m glad you feel the same way about me. I want to explain, but I can’t. As there are times when you can’t tell me everything, this is one of those times for me. I hope you understand.” She reached out and placed her hand over his where it rested on the table. “Please be careful. It’s obvious Stefan is interested in me, and if he thinks you’re in his way, he might try to eliminate the obstacle.” Her eyes went dark with worry. “I don’t want anything to happen to you because of me. I couldn’t live with myself.”
He turned his hand over and lightly clasped hers, feeling the coolness of her skin against his. “Nothing’s gonna happen to me.”
“I hope not.” She stared at their hands a moment and then drew away. “We need to do what Stefan wants. Let’s just go to the bank and get this done.” Without waiting for his response, she walked toward the door.
Finn heaved a sigh and hauled himself to his feet. Damn it. She was so intent on following Liuz she might get them both killed. He caught up to her a few steps outside the coffee shop and took her arm. “What’s the plan?”
“I don’t suppose you have an account at this bank?” she