Somethingreal.
Something that might even make her blush again.
CHAPTER7
Anna
The soft glow of my monitor lights up my office, casting faint shadows across the cluttered desk.Lines of code stare back at me, a blinking cursor mocking my lack of progress.Normally, this is where I thrive—solving puzzles, creating order out of chaos.
But today?
My brain is a tangled mess, and it has nothing to do with the program I’m supposed to debug.
No.It’s JoelfreakingPrice.
I lean back in my chair, letting out a frustrated groan.
Of all the houseguests in the world, why did it have to be him?Joel, with his infuriating smirks and annoyingly quick comebacks.Joel, who somehow managed to crack through my defenses this morning with just a few stupid, heartfelt words about music.
Music.
The very thing I’ve spent years trying to lock away in a mental vault and throw into the deepest part of the ocean.The thing I promised myself I would never think about or long to return to.And yet, here he is, dredging it back up with nothing more than a coffee mug in hand and that damn lopsided grin.
I twist the pen in my fingers, staring at the monitor but not really seeing it.His words keep replaying in my head, weaving through my thoughts like a melody I can’t shake.
Why does he have to be so—ugh.No.Stop.I’m not doing this.
I roll my chair back, shoving to my feet and pacing the small space.The floor creaks under my socks as I mutter to myself.“Get a grip, Anna.He’s just a guy.A frustrating, smug, overly emotional guy with zero empathy for others.”
But a part of me—the part I’d rather pretend doesn’t exist—whispers that maybe he’s more than that.Maybe the Joel sitting in my kitchen this morning isn’t the same Joel I shoved into the “irrelevant” folder years ago.
No.I refuse to go down that road.It’s too dangerous.Too vulnerable.And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that vulnerability gets you nowhere but trampled on.Especially by him.
Shaking my head, I force myself to focus.“Code, Anna.Fix the damn code.”I sit back down and try again, fingers hovering over the keyboard as I reread the lines.
But everything blurs together, and my thoughts slip back to Joel.How he leaned against the counter, looking so damn sure of himself yet...not.How his voice softened when he talked about music, like he wasn’t just saying words but showing me something real.
Why does he have to be like that?
My fingers clench around the edge of my desk, and my eyes flick to the drawer on my left.That drawer.The one holding the envelope.It’s ridiculous, sitting there like a Pandora’s box of bad decisions, daring me to open it and ruin my day.
I almost reach for it, fingers twitching as if the pull of it is magnetic.What would it even change if I read it?It’s just words—words from the same guy who turned everything into a joke when it mattered most.
I chew on my bottom lip, my hand hovering over the drawer handle.Curiosity burns in the back of my mind, but so does something else.A heavier, deeper weight that warns me not to look.
No.Not now.Not ever.
I yank my hand back and shove it into my lap like I’ve been burned.
Joel doesn’t get to take up any more of my time—not then and certainly not now.
Enough.
I’m done letting him linger in my head like some unsolvable equation.
I scowl at my monitor, glaring at the blinking cursor.“Code, Anna.Fix the damn code,” I mutter again, louder this time, as if saying it might make it true.
But it all still blurs together and it becomes painfully clear I’m not gonna get any work done.