“Mmmm yes,” I reply, though I feel very drowsy.
“Get naked and into bed, I’ll be back in a very short minute.” He kisses my nose and disappears out of the room.
I toe off my shoes and drag my socks over my feet. Standing up takes far too much energy so I sit on the side of the bed, my eyes getting heavier as I fumble with the buttons on my shirt. The last thing I remember is thinking I’ll just close my eyes for a minute and then I can finish undressing before Chase returns.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Chase
One Month Later
I sighin relief the second Noah steps through the door and into my office.
“Elsa gave me this,” he says and holds up a bag from the deli down the street where she gets me food almost every day.
The problem is that Noah isn’t smiling, like at all. He looks focused, yeah, but just as there has been the past few weeks, there’s a tension-filled air around him that makes me try very hard not to worry.
I can’t bring it up, though, before he sets up the table by the windows with the food for us, and gets right to the matter at hand.
“I’ve heard back from all the publishing houses that have previously made offers, and if possible, you’ve exceeded their expectations. The bidding war hasn’t even really started, butthe numbers some of them are offering are really the best I can imagine in this business.”
“That’s great,” I tell him genuinely, and stand to greet him. I place my hands on his waist and kiss his cheek. “I think we should schedule a two-hour meeting every day,” I murmur in his ear. “I haven’t had nearly enough time with you lately.”
He sighs into me, and I let myself enjoy the feel of him for just a minute before we get back to work. I kiss his jaw, his neck, nip at his ear, before finally brushing my lips against his and sinking into a deep kiss that has me forgetting everything but Noah.
It’s not enough to get him to put off work for an hour, and I have to resist the pout that wants to come out as I sit next to him after he pulls back.
He does suck in a deep breath to steady himself, though, so I haven’t completely lost my touch, which is nice.
The meeting over lunch goes by way too fast, as we discuss the options of different houses to choose for my book. I also bring him up to date with the actual writing of the book, which I haven’t been able to do since the little time we’ve had together over the past month has been spent mostly in bed.
“I’m happy with this structure,” I tell him, pointing at the screen of my tablet. I think having the longer introduction explaining why I wanted to write this book and why I think it can not only teach people some things but also maybe change the way they view money-making is important, but explaining the position I’m speaking from and the different situations I’ll explore is what will maybe push people to read more than one of the approaches.”
“I agree completely,” Noah says, but he’s looking at his own computer—I hope he’s checking something off his to-do list. “And how far into it have you gotten? Do you have any ideas as to when you’ll be done?”
I let out a loud breath and tilt my head back, closing my eyes. After thinking about it for a moment longer, I nod at him and try to smile reassuringly.
“I’ve never finished a book before, and I’m sure there’ll be many rounds of edits with you or someone else you might recommend, but I think maybe another two months? It feels like I’m a third in right now.”
“That works, so we can tell?—”
“Actually I’m wondering if we can hold off on any further negotiations until the book is done? I want them to read it, to actually believe in the finished product before making any decisions.”
That has him finally looking at me, his eyes wide, but I don’t see any traces of anger.
“That’s actually so smart!” he cries out, and his face splits with a wide grin, one I want to kiss right off him.
But then he goes right back to staring at his computer, talking about strategy and possible publication dates, and I can only sit and listen.
I realize when our hour is up and he closes the door behind him—he’s in a hurry because he has to finish another client’s book overview to send off as well—that I have officially crossed the line into worried.
I don’t know the exact number of nights Noah has spent with me at the house in the past month, or how many times he’s said he wants to work late, but what I do know is that the time we spend together has been declining.
I’ve never been a particularly insecure person, but right now it feels like he’s either lost interest in a relationship with me—a personal one—and is trying to drift away slowly, or he’s burning the candle at both ends and doesn’t even realize how much time he’s been spending working.
Everything in me vibrates with the sudden need for it to be the second one.
The start of our relationship has been a roller coaster, to say the least, with him starting his own company and getting it off the ground, as well as me being an investor and keeping up with work while also putting so much time into my book.