I know, i know. It's been ages since my last update, but don't think I forgot about this story (or my other one). I just needed to take a hiatus from all things Glee for a while and focus on other things. Last week i decided that my hiatus has gone on long enough and it was time to get back to writing and finish this chapter that I started over a year ago. I appreciate all the kind messages and reviews I've received and I encourage them as they really do wonders for my writer's block and motivation. :)

Enjoy!

Finn collapses into his large, leather arm chair completely exhausted. He can't believe it, he actually did something great. The past twenty four hours had been such a whirlwind, he could hardly believe he survived it and managed to not screw up royally, plus the board was incredibly impressed with it all. He remembers being so goddamn nervous standing in front of them, pretending like he had everything in control…

"So by making the magazine app based via subscription and printing a limited amount of copies for subscribers or for single copy sales that customers can order through the magazine site, your company will save approximately half a million dollars per quarter. That's two million dollars a year saved and the estimated profit using this projection is at least sixty percent per quarter."

He passes folders to every board member and executive seated at the table.

"I would ask for any other suggestions, but honestly this is the only viable plan. Considering the fact that your own finance department failed to notice this crucial issue, I don't trust your opinions. I'm proud of the plan my assistant and I came up with after brainstorming for the past twelve hours and I expect you all to sign off on the new publishing terms. What do you say, gentlemen?"

A long moment of silence fills the room which causes Finn's hands to get all sweaty as he begins to see his career as well as his father's legacy crumble before his very eyes until the man seated at the end of the table clears his throat.

"Well, looks like you saved a sinking ship Mr. Hudson. Let's sign on the dotted lines, everyone."

All the men in suits then proceeded to pick up their pens and sign the papers in front of them, getting up from their seats after they finished and filing out of the room.

At that very moment, Finn remembers feeling like he just about passed out. He couldn't believe it. No one protested even a little bit or asked any questions. They had just signed and accepted the plan he had proposed. A plan that would completely change the way an iconic magazine worked. Yeah, Rachel was definitely getting a raise or a Rolex or something. Maybe some designer animal sweater? She'd like that, right? He'll have to ask Kurt about it.

All of this is kind of the first big stepping stone in his career. A defining moment as he follows his father's footsteps. His mind suddenly flits to his encounter with GQ's editor in chief after their meeting that morning…

"By the way Mr. Hudson, I'll have nothing but good things to say about you when the press asks for my statement. Your father would be proud."

Finn is left speechless for a moment.

"Wait…the press? What does the press have anything to do with this?"

Mr. Nelson smiles and pats him on the back as they start to walk out of the conference room together.

"The press has everything to do with everything in this town, Mr. Hudson. You should know, you're part of it. I've already gotten a few emails saying that some journalists have already caught wind of GQ's pending bankruptcy; someone probably leaked the information this morning. I guarantee that The Post and The New York Times will be calling my office in about two hours trying to get a statement about it. I have no doubt your office will be getting its share of calls from reporters as well."

Finn's face quickly turns into one of slight panic.

"Don't worry. You did well, Mr. Hudson. Very well. I know you're more than half the age of all those men that were sitting in that meeting as well as myself, but you proved your worth today. I know it must not be easy taking over such a great company and continuing the legacy of such a great man. I'm sure you must feel the pressure, but you're starting to hit your stride. I have a feeling great things are in store for you."

He'll never forget those words and that feeling of immense joy knowing that people were starting to see his potential. First Rachel and now Mr. Nelson, a well accomplished and successful man. He wanted nothing more than to continue to prove them right.

But right now? Honestly, all he wants to do is go home and sleep for three days. However, that'd be impossible considering he has loads of paperwork to fill out in order to finalize this new publishing contract with GQ. Maybe a quick little nap at his desk to refresh himself would do the trick.

Right as he puts his feet on his desk and closes his eyes, the door to his office bursts open and a colorful blur of heightened energy and coffee passes through the room and stops at his desk.

"Oh. My. God. Finn! I come in thinking it's just a normal Tuesday, checking in on my brother but then Sugar tells me you had a huge crisis yesterday and worked through the night with Rachel, and THEN had a huge meeting with the board members and re-drafted a brand spanking new publishing contract with GQ to save their sorry irresponsible asses. That's fucking incredible!"

Finn just stares, trying to catch up with the long run-on sentence.

"Good morning to you too, Kurt. Do one of those coffees happen to belong to me?"

"But of course!"

Kurt hands him a hot cup of bitter liquid energy that he proceeds to gulp down as best he can without burning his throat.

"Easy there, big guy. The coffee's not going anywhere."

"I can't. I need the fuel. I haven't slept in more than 24 hours and I can already feel myself starting to shut down. I have too much to do before I can let that happen."

Kurt sets down his things on the desk then sits on one of the leather arm chairs across from Finn's desk, crossing his legs.

"So, are you going to tell me how it went?"

Finn gives Kurt a very confused look.

"How what went?"

"Working with Rachel in this room for fifteen hours straight?"

He rolls his eyes.

"It was work, Kurt. We worked."

"Come on! You two are like cats and dogs. When Sugar told me about last night, I half expected one of you to be dead in your office and the other arrested for murder."

"We are not that bad. We just have different opinions sometimes, that's all."

Kurt scoffs.

"That's putting it lightly."

Suddenly, Rachel walks through the door with brown paper bags walking straight to him.

"Hey, Finn. I brought you some breakfast since the only thing we've consumed since yesterday evening is coffee and a bagel so I figured you needed something to put in your stomach after this morning's big meeting." She hands him one of the bags which smells so good his mouth starts to water. "Two sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwiches. Just how you like it."

He rips open the bag and pulls out one of the sandwiches and stares at it like a starved man.

"Meat and greasy cheese?"

"Consider it a well-deserved treat after all your hard work last night." She says, smiling.

"Thanks, Rach. I appreciate it."

Kurt sits there observing them, clearly being ignored. So he decides to clear his throat and ruin their moment.

"So I take it last night went well?"

Rachel nearly jumps out of her skin.

"Oh! Hi, Kurt! I didn't see you there, I'm sorry. How are you today?"

"Fine and dandy. So, I hear you two are quite the dynamic duo now."

Her cheeks flush.

"I guess you could say we make a good team. Though Finn deserves most of the credit, really. I just helped a bit putting the ideas together a bit but he turned all of the ideas into an actual document and presentation ."

"Helped a bit?" Finn laughs. "You kicked ass! I honestly couldn't have done it without you, Rach."

She laughs along with him.

"A team effort then."

She looks at her watch then a look of panic washes over her face.

"Damnit! I have to go. I promised Blaine that I'd go to lunch with him today since I ditched him last night. Oh! By the way, how did it go, Kurt?"

Finn looks over at Kurt and notices that his ears are burning.

"Oh, umm, it was fine. You know, same ol' thing. Drinks, appetizers, meaningless chat. I had to get up early today so I only was able to stay for about an hour or so longer after you had left."

Rachel beams.

"I'm glad it went well! Maybe you can join us again sometime, a fun night out as a group!"

"Definitely! Text me when you have a date in mind. Bye!"

After Rachel walks out of the room and closes the door, Finn turns and faces Kurt with a big shit eating grin.

"You guys hooked up."

His brother's eyes widen and his face turns into a brighter shade of red.

"Wha-what? I did no- I don't know what you're talking about. How did- Why would you say that?"

"Are you kidding me? You are the worst at hiding it! It's all over your face and you're clearly flustered. She may have not noticed but you forget that we've been brothers for nearly eight years and I know you better than anyone. Also, you're wearing a scarf and it's like 70 degrees in this room."

Kurt doesn't even try to deny it anymore.

"Okay, fine! We hooked up and it was amazing! But I just don't want Rachel to know until we figure out where this is going. I don't want to jinx it or anything."

Satisfied with the confession, Finn leans back in his chair and takes a bite from his sandwich.

"It's cool, dude. Your mission has been accomplished. You got her to work here and you got a date with her roommate. Win-win situation."

It's Kurt's turn to wear the shit eating grin.

"You mean win-win-win situation. You got a great assistant, I got a date, and you get a potential date as well with said assistant."

Finn groans.

"Now you got that idea in your head? Kurt, seriously, you gotta stop with the meddling."

"What?" Kurt asks indignantly. "I don't meddle! I simply take interest in your life, Finn. You're my only sibling so obviously I care about any budding relationships that you may have."

Finn takes another sip from his coffee and glares at his brother.

"Take interest? That's the understatement of the century. Ever since we were sixteen, you have always either tried to set me up with girls, take control of my dates, or attempted to end my relationships if you didn't approve of them. Just admit it, say it loud and proud: You're a meddler."

Kurt gasps.

"I only tried to break up your relationship once and it was with that horrendous girl Suzy Pepper during junior year of high school. You were so oblivious to her crazy obsessive fixation on you, it was creepy. I swear she had a shrine of you in her closet or something. She was like one meltdown away from a trip to the psychiatric ward."

"Your imagination is insane. How about Kitty? You totally ran her off, I'm pretty sure you made her cry too even."

"Kitty? Your first college girlfriend? Are you serious? Finn, she was a total gold digger! Remember the first time you brought her home, all she talked about was how beautiful our penthouse was and that she's always wanted to live in one. She even asked Carol how much money you inherited after you turned 18."

"Everyone in the city wanted to know that. It was a common question."

"She asked if there was a family ring she could look at and try on."

"Yeah…maybe she was kind of a gold digger. Okay, fine. Thank you for running off Kitty, but you always have to stick your nose in my business and this is literally my business. Rachel is my assistant who is amazing at her job and I enjoy working with her. There's nothing else to it. Any romantic feelings you speak of are completely fabricated in your mind. So please, butt out."

Kurt finishes off his coffee and starts to gather his things.

"Fine, even though I think you are deliberately ignoring the blazing chemistry between you two and that I will be saying 'I told you so' in about six months, I will drop it."

At that, a knock interrupts the two brothers.

A young blonde woman stands at the door wearing a much too short pencil skirt and a button up blouse that she did not bother to actually button all the way up.

"Excuse me Mr. Hudson, I need some assistance in the printer room. There are some things I can't reach; can you come help me please?"

"Sorry, I'm really busy right now. There's a step stool under the counter if you need it."

The girl lets out a huff and walks away, clearly miffed at him blowing her off. As he goes back to typing on his computer Kurt gives him a bewildered look.

"Oh my god."

Finn looks up, completely oblivious to what just happened.

"What?"

"You just said no to that bimbo."

"I'm busy, you know that."

"No, no, no. you didn't pass on helping her you passed on hooking up with her in the printer room. You said no to a beautiful girl who actively just propositioned you! Oh my god, did you have a stroke? Quick, raise both of your arms and smile!" Kurt launches towards him and tries to grab his arms.

"What the hell? No! Kurt, stop it! I'm not having a stroke! Why is that the first thing you and Rachel think when I do something I don't usually do?"

"Because it's completely out of character!"

"I'll have you know that I haven't hooked up with any of my employees for 4 months and I don't plan to anymore. I'm trying to be more professional."

"So what you're saying is that you haven't hooked up with anyone here since Rachel started?"

"Pretty much, yeah. WAIT! No! I know what you're trying to say. No, Kurt."

"I knew it!"

"No! What I'm trying to say is: yes, ever since Rachel started here I haven't been with any of the girls here because she's helped me learn how to act more professional. I'm trying to take my job more seriously and I can't do that if I'm sleeping with all the women in my building."

Kurt rolls his eyes.

"I've been trying to tell you that ever since you started with this job. Now that Rachel tells you, you choose to listen?"

"That's because she isn't my overprotective mom or my overbearing brother. People tend to listen to others who aren't part of their own immediate circle. Plus she actively helps me in making these changes, not just nags me about it."

"Whatever, be in denial. I gotta go, I have a meeting in 20 minutes. I'll see you tonight at dinner, and remember: six months, Finn. Six months and I'll be saying 'I told you so'."

"You can leave now, Kurt. Oh, and tell mom I might be running about 10 minutes late because I want to drop by Puck's really quick and pick up a couple bottles of wine for dinner. He just got a really good shipment in from France."

"Will do." At that, Kurt starts to walk out the door, but not before popping his head back in and yelling one more time, "SIX MONTHS!"

Finn chucks a pen towards the doorway.

"GO AWAY."

He looks up at the clock and notices that it's only 11:30am and he has a stack of papers to sign off on plus more paperwork to finalize the new GQ contract. He kind of regrets letting Rachel go home early, he could really use her help. He takes a long drink from his coffee mug and picks up his pen. It's gonna be a long day.

The last 6 hours went by at a snail's pace but Finn managed to get all his work done and everything signed. He steps inside the town car waiting for him outside then asks Frank, his driver, to take him to Puck's apartment on the Upper East Side.

Being so busy with the company he hasn't had any time to spare to hang out with any of his friends. Who knew taking over a company was so time consuming? When Puck texted him that morning asking if he wanted a case of top of the line wine he had shipped in from overseas Finn had jumped at the chance of seeing his childhood friend again.

He arrives at the grand apartment building right across from his own on the other side of Central Park and he gets let in by the doorman and quickly makes his way up on the elevator to the 20th floor, the elevator doors opening directly into Puck's apartment.

"Yo, douchebag!"

"In the living room, ass wipe!"

Finn makes his way through the apartment, glancing at the family pictures hanging on the wall, the large paintings adorning the hallways, all the mementos he remembers from when he was a kid. The Puckerman's apartment was like a second home to him growing up after meeting Puck at prep school but he hadn't been here in so long it seems like a lifetime ago.

Upon seeing his best friend on the couch watching Sports Center he plops down right next to him and puts his feet up on the coffee table.

"Sup, man."

"Sup, dude. How's the C.E.O. life treating ya?"

"Alright. Kind of been a kick in the ass but I'm dealing. How about you? You working for your dad already or are you on a post college break?"

"Yeah, I'm taking a break for a year or so. Don't want to jump right into work after spending 4 years at school, ya know? Gotta give this brain time to heal."

Finn rolls his eyes.

"You barely studied in school."

"Hey, I woke up for a lot of those 10am classes. It's not easy, man. Though I'm thinking of starting work sooner than anticipated, I've kind of blown through most of the money in my trust already."

"How the hell did you do that?? Were you buying entire city blocks or something?"

"You know I've never been good with money."

"Your dad founded an international multi-billion dollar investment bank. You'd think you'd know how."

"Whatever, dude. Your dad owned a publishing company, when was the last time you read anything?"

He remains silent.

"That's right. Shut the hell up. Anyways, Kurt tells me you got a tight ass for an assistant. You hooked up with her yet?"

"What? He told you? Since when do you hang out with Kurt?"

"Hey! Hummel's like my little brother too, why can't I talk to him every now and then? And I saw him at this gallery showing a few weeks ago that my mom hosted. He kind of filled me in on the last few months."

"Yeah, well he tends to exaggerate. You know that."

"He didn't really seem to be exaggerating much this time. So you really got a hard-on for this chick? Has she been "assisting" you?"

Finn takes a throw pillow from the couch and launches it at Puck's head.

"Shut up, man. I have not and will not hook up with her. Ever. She's my assistant and a kick ass one at that. If it weren't for her I would've probably already lost control of the company. Hooking up would just ruin things. Plus she's batshit crazy. No joke."

"But you're into crazy. Need I bring up all the fucking insane girls you've been with? That's like, your MO."

"Fuck you. The point is: it's not happening. No matter how hot she looks in those skirts…or how cute she is when she gets all pissed off…or how passionate she gets about anything she puts her mind to…"

Puck stares at him for a minute as he trails off and ends up staring off into space, lost in his thoughts. He snaps his fingers to get his attention.

"Hey! Earth to moron!"

"Huh? Oh. Sorry, I was just thinking about…work stuff."

"Yeah, like the girl who helps you at work? God, you're so obvious. See, this is why I beat you at poker all the time. You suck at lying, man."

"Screw you, dude."

"No, screw her."

"You're an idiot. I can't and I'm not."

Puck grins at him.

"I give you a month, two months tops before you end up in bed with her. 5 thousand dollars if you lose?"

"Dude, I'm not betting on whether I'm gonna sleep with her or not."

"I'm just saying what's gonna happen. If you're really so set on turning over this new leaf or whatever the hell you're doing then just keep going and in two months you'll have a few extra grand sitting in your pocket. You can buy a painting for your mom or something since you owe her one."

"Dude! That was your entire fault you douchebag! If you hadn't shoved me nothing would've happened."

"Let bygones be bygones, is what I say. So, do we have a deal?"

Finn thinks about it for a moment then sticks his fist out towards Puck.

"Deal. You better start your job soon or you're going to have to ask your dad to transfer some more money into your account cause you're gonna be paying up."

"You keep thinking that, bro. 'Cause either one of two things are gonna happen: you're gonna sleep with her within the next two months and owe me five thousand dollars or you're gonna sleep with her within the next two months, owe me 5 thousand dollars, and you're gonna keep sleeping with her and actually be in a relationship."

Finn shakes his head and stands up, walking towards the wine cellar room.

"Not gonna let that happen. I'm not that weak willed."

He walks back out holding a couple bottles of wine.

"I'm going to prove you all wrong and I'm going to get those five thousand bucks."

"You keep telling yourself that, man."

"I will. I gotta get going though, my mom wants to have a family dinner today. See you later, dude."

"Alright, man. Take it easy. Let me know when you finally break and go for it."

Finn flips him off over his shoulder as he leaves the apartment.

He gets off the elevator at his family's penthouse and hears the laughter of several people coming from the living room, one voice sounding extremely familiar. Intrigued, he makes his way through the apartment, jaw dropping when he enters the room and sees his mother, brother, and Rachel sitting on the couch laughing like old friends.

"Rachel?"

All three heads turn towards him.

"Finn! Hi! I just came by to drop off something for you but then your mother was here and we lost track of time."

"Oh, Finny! I can't believe it took this long for me to meet Rachel. My sides hurt from laughing so much! You have to bring her around the apartment more often."

"Yes, Finn. You have to have her around more often." Kurt says mischievously.

"Uhh, yeah. Sorry. I guess the opportunity of you guys meeting hadn't presented itself yet, until now I guess. Which is because…"

"Oh! Right! Well, Mr. Finn Hudson," Rachel stands and hands him a newspaper, "I'd like to present to you the first page of the business section of the Wall Street Journal."

Confused as to why she came to his home to give him a newspaper, he grabs it from her and reads the headline out loud.

"Hudson Publishing Saves Sinking Ship From Bankruptcy. Wait…this article is from the Wall Street Journal?"

"And there's one in the New York Times, The Post, and USA Today! Isn't that incredible!? That's all because of you, Finn! That's you they're talking about."

He didn't even notice when she had put her hand on his shoulder but suddenly she was standing right next to him with that megawatt smile of hers, looking so damn proud and happy. Her eyes all wide and bright, she was looking at him like he had hung the goddamn moon. All of a sudden he feels some sort of warmth filling up his chest, along with a weird feeling in his stomach. For a few seconds all he can focus on is her full lips, he's never noticed how pink they were before.

He's snapped out of his thoughts by two familiar arms hugging him from behind.

"Oh, Finny! I'm so happy for you. I knew you'd do well!"

"Thanks, Mom." He says, hugging her back tightly.

She makes her away around him and reaches up to grab his face in her hands and looks him in the eye, tears welling up in her own.

"Your father would be so incredibly proud."

It takes everything in him to fight the lump in his throat and not cry like a little boy in his mother's arms. Instead, he just gives her a tight hug and whispers in her ear.

"Thanks, mom. I love you."

A loud pop reverberates throughout the room, startling the three of them. They all turn and look at Kurt who is standing in the middle of the living room, an opened bottle of Dom Perignon in one hand and four champagne flutes in the other.

"Sorry to interrupt this little love fest but I think this occasion calls for some champagne!"

He pours each of them a glass and raises his own up in the air.

"To Finn for finally getting his ass in gear and being the man we all knew he could be. To Finn!"

Rachel and his mom join in, raising their own champagne flutes and cheering along with him.

"To Finn!"

Hours later, after Burt arrived to join them in the celebration and after Finn's mom convinced Rachel to stay for dinner and dessert, everyone began to trickle out slowly and excuse themselves for the night.

Finn watches Rachel get up to go grab her bag in the living room so he tries to catch her before she leaves.

"Hey, Rach. Mind if I walk you out? I can tell Frank to drive you home so you can save on cab fare."

"That'd be nice. Thank you, Finn" She says, with a smile.

They step into the elevator and Finn presses the button to take them to the main floor.

"I absolutely adored your family, Finn. They're so great, not to mention hilarious. I'm pretty sure I almost peed my pants once from how hard I was laughing." She giggles.

"Yeah, they're pretty awesome. I mean, they've put up with so much of my crap yet they still love me and haven't kicked me out." He jokes.

"I know I've already said it before but thank you and your mother of course, for inviting me to stay for dinner. I really appreciate it. I don't really get to see my family a lot so it really meant a lot that yours welcomed me into their home with open arms like that."

He notices that her eyes get a little watery so he puts his hand on her shoulder, giving it a little squeeze (that's keeping it professional, right?).

"You're very welcome, Rach. It was really great having you here and joining us. It was just as much your celebration as it was mine."

They stood in comfortable silence until the elevator doors opened, leading into the lobby. Finn signals over to Frank, sitting at his desk by the entrance, who understands the gesture and walks out to the town car.

"Hey, Rach. Before you leave, I have a question for you."

"Yes?"

"So, GQ's editor in chief has invited me to dinner with him and his wife as a thank you for everything that happened. They said I could bring someone and you were kind of the first person who came to mind." He looks down at his feet, trying to hide the heat rising in his cheeks and his crimson ears.

"Do-do you want to come with me?"

He can't believe he just stuttered. What an idiot. Now she's gonna say no, he's sure of it. But when he looks up to meet her gaze he's surprised to see a warm smile on her face.

"You want me to be your date?"

"Ye-yeah…I mean, not a date date, but like, I mean you were a big part of this and you're my assistant who helps me out a lot and I just think you deserve to come. So it's not a double date or anything, just a work related dinner. Purely professional."

"Right, a work dinner. Yes, of course I'd love to join you! It's such a great opportunity. Thank you, Finn. When would it take place?"

"It'll be tomorrow night at 8pm. I can pick you up at your place if you'd like."

"That sounds great! I'll pencil it into my calendar. And yours as well while I'm at it."

He chuckles.

"You would."

"Of course I would." She grins.

They stare at each other for a few lingering moments; neither noticing how long has passed until Rachel's phone goes off.

"Oops! Sorry, that's my alarm. I have to go home and feed Elphie."

Finn gives her a questioning look.

"Wait…you have a kid?"

Rachel's eyes go wide.

"No! No! I mean my cat, Elphaba! I call her Elphie for short. She's my little pride and joy but if I don't go home and feed her she'll be the thorn in my side for the rest of the night." She jokes.

"I wouldn't want Elphie to get upset then." He turns towards Frank who's waiting patiently by the car. "Hey, Frank, you mind taking Rachel home?"

"Of course not, Mr. Hudson." Frank opens the car door. "Miss Berry, whenever you're ready."

"Thank you, Frank." She looks at Finn with another one of her dazzling smiles before entering the car. "And thanks again, Finn, for the wonderful evening. I'll see you tomorrow at the office. Goodnight!"

"Goodnight, Rach." He closes the door as Frank starts the car, watching as they quickly drive off into the busy Manhattan street, the smile on his face remaining long after the car disappears from his eyesight.

Then a huge realization hits him: this bet was going to be a lot harder than he thought.

Fuck.

Hoped you all liked it and that it was worth the wait!

Leave a review and let me know what you think. :)