The Player's Club: Finn Read Free

chair next to the hospital bed. “And how are we feeling?”
    “Peachy, although would you check my wallet? ’Cause I swear, I think I was mugged,” Finn said, laughing. He noticed immediately that Lincoln didn’t join in. “Okay, not one of my better jokes…”
    “Not one of your smarter moves,” Lincoln interrupted.
    Finn frowned. “This isn’t going to be one of your Big Papa Lincoln lectures, is it? Because my head hurts enough as it is.”
    Lincoln shook his head. “I’m concerned, Finn. For you, and for your pledge, Ben.”
    Now that had Finn sitting up, even though his body yelped in response. “I would never do anything to endanger anyone, and you damned well know it.”
    “Not stopping someone is a kind of endangerment,” Lincoln returned.
    “Ben’s a strong surfer and a solid swimmer. Besides, I had EMTs on the beach just in case.”
    “How very forward thinking of you,” Lincoln said. “Were they really for him, though? Because you know you could’ve just stayed with them on the beach and fulfilled your duties as a mentor.”
    Finn scowled. “Where’s the fun in that ?”
    “I do understand. But…” Lincoln paused. “You scared us, man. And this kid, Ben—where the hell did you find him?”
    Finn shrugged. “BASE jumping off Hoover dam. For being only twenty-two, the kid’s got skills and he’s only going to keep—”
    “So why does he need us?”
    The question stopped him. “I don’t know. He thought we sounded cool. He’d heard of us. He’d made the connection.”
    “A lot of people are beginning to make the connection between you and the Club,” Lincoln pointed out, then held up his hands at Finn’s murderous glare. “Just saying.”
    “I haven’t told anybody who I didn’t make a pledge,” Finn said, then ignored Lincoln’s head-shaking. “I haven’t invited that many pledges. And I haven’t broken any rules. You know I’m not in this for the glory, Lincoln.”
    “I know,” Lincoln said. “But Ben’s challenges sound reckless.”
    “Oh, come on, Linc. We haven’t lost anybody yet.”
    “There’s always a first time.” Lincoln sighed. “And I hate the idea that it’s going to be you.”
    Finn gritted his teeth. He wasn’t quite sure what to say. Fortunately, he didn’t have to. Juliana, Lincoln’s stunning girlfriend and one of his fellow Players, popped into the room.
    “Parents headed this way.” She walked over and kissed Finn on the cheek. Then punched him on the shoulder. “You’re an asshole.”
    “Ow! What the hell?”
    “Bad enough you’re a thrill-seeker, but that kid you tagged has a death wish,” she said darkly. “Come on, Linc. I do not want to have a conversation with the Macalisters.”
    Lincoln nodded, standing beside her and studying Finn. “We’ll talk about this when you get back to San Francisco. I’ll have somebody pick you up, bring you over to Tucker’s condo on Turtle Bay.”
    “All right.” Finn watched as they slipped out like shadows. He didn’t really have time to brace himself before his parents showed up.
    His father was wearing a blue polo shirt and a pair of slacks, looking oddly rumpled—they probably came over straight from their flight, Finn thought with a twinge of guilt. His mother’s face was totally pale. He wondered if they’d gotten any sleep.
    “How did you hear?” he asked, instead of saying hello.
    His father’s expression was dark and ominous. “Did you really think you could keep it from me?”
    “I thought we’d agreed—no more private investigators tailing me, after I lost the last five.” Why had he even trusted that agreement with his father, let his guard down? If he’d lost the tail they’d put on him this time, he could’ve avoided this whole scene.
    “I thought you’d finally stopped pulling stupid stunts like this,” his father shot back. “Guess we were both wrong.”
    Finn didn’t want this to devolve into one of their usual arguments. Sitting naked in a thin