Finn sat on the overstuffed chair her brother Ethan had talked her into buying. At the time, she’d thought it was too big for the room. Now, seeing Finn in it, she knew her brother had been right.
“This is nice,” Finn said, glancing around the room.
“Thank you.”
They stared at each other, then looked away. Dakota felt disaster looming. She knew she wasn’t much of a dater, and, based on what Finn had told her, he didn’t date much, either. This could be bad.
“I hope you’re okay not eating meat,” she said quickly. “I’m a vegetarian.”
He looked slightly trapped, but nodded bravely and said, “Vegetarian is fine.”
“Oh, great. So you like tofu. A lot of guys refuse to eat it.”
He swallowed visibly. “Tofu?”
“Uh-huh. It’s one of my favorite casseroles. Tofu, a special sauce mostly based on green vegetables. Soy ice cream for dessert.”
“Sounds delicious.”
She could see the panic in his eyes and couldn’t help laughing softly. “I’m kidding. I made chicken.”
His gaze narrowed. “Seriously? That’s your idea of fun? Torturing me?”
“Everyone needs a hobby.”
He leaned back in his chair and studied her. “You’re not predictable, are you?”
“I try not to be. Besides, you’re easy.”
“It was the sauce made with green vegetables that pushed me over the edge.”
“Not the soy ice cream?”
“I figured I’d leave early.”
“Coward.”
They smiled at each other. She felt the bad tension bleed away and a nice, new boy-girl tension take its place.
“You grew up with brothers, didn’t you?” he asked.
“How can you tell?”
“You’re not worried about my ego.”
“Interesting observation,” she said, then sipped her wine. “I hadn’t thought about that, but you’re right. I have three older brothers.”
He raised his eyebrows. “Six kids?”
“Yes. I think my mom really wanted a girl. Instead she got three for the price of one.”
“That had to have been a shock.”
“I’m sure it was. Apparently having triplets is really hard on the woman’s body. She was in the hospital after we were born. For a while, the doctors were concerned she wasn’t going to make it. My dad had to have been freaked out, and my brothers were really young and missing their mom. Complicating everything was the fact that it was Christmas. To distract them, he told them they could name us, but that all three of them had to agree on the names.”
She paused and wrinkled her nose. “Which is why we’re Dakota, Nevada and Montana.”
“Very patriotic.”
She laughed. “When I used to get frustrated at their choice, my mom would point out that it could have been a lot worse. Apparently Oceania was in the running.”
“Sounds like a fun family.”
“It is.” She shifted on the sofa. “What was it like for you? Before you lost your family?”
“Good. Fun. We were close.” He shrugged. “My brothers are a lot younger than me, which influenced the relationship.”
“You must have been devastated when your parents died.”
He nodded. “I was. I didn’t know how I was going to do it. Raise the boys and not screw up.”
“Be proud of what you’ve accomplished. I don’t think I could have done it. We lost my dad ten years ago. My sisters and I were just out of high school, ready to start college. My brothers were either in college or done. There was nothing for me to do but get through the mourning. And it was hard every day. I can’t imagine having to deal with the emotional loss and raise two younger brothers.”
Finn looked uncomfortable with the praise. “I did what had to be done. Some days I think I did okay. Others, like when I’m in my hotel room here in Fool’s Gold, I think I screwed up completely.”
“You didn’t. What they’re doing now has nothing to do with you.”
He looked at her. “I want to believe you.”
“Then you should.”
“You’re bossy. Has anyone ever told you that?”
“Are you kidding? With three brothers? I have a crown. I’m the queen of bossy.”
Finn laughed. The warm sound filled the room and made her smile. They continued talking until, in the kitchen, the timer dinged.
“Come on,” she said, rising to her feet. “Our tofu surprise awaits.”
FINN ENJOYED HIS DINNER. Not just the chicken and mashed potatoes, which were the best he’d had in months. Maybe years. But also the conversation. Dakota told funny stories about growing up in Fool’s Gold. He knew what small towns were like, but South Salmon made Fool’s Gold look like New York City. Where he lived, people tended to keep to themselves. Sure, you could count on a neighbor to help, but everyone minded their own business. From what Dakota said, Fool’s Gold was the town that meddled.
“If you’d come here under other circumstances,” she said, “I’m sure you would’ve liked it a lot more.”
“I like Fool’s Gold just fine,” he told her.
“This is always going to be the place your brothers ran off to.”
“Look at it this way,” he said. “When Sasha moves to L.A., I’ll hate it there, instead.”