“That’s a relief.”
She seemed to think for a second, her gaze drifting to the ceiling fan as it turned. Then she shrugged. “It’s usually pretty chill. We hang around the house during the day. Hit the beach or hang out by the pool. Just take it easy.”
“That sounds nice.” I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had a lazy weekend.
Charlotte was much too high-energy for anything like that.
“And what about evenings?” I asked. “More barbecues and bonfires?”
“Sometimes,” she said. “But we usually go out at least once or twice. Have dinner at some nice place in town or go to a club.” Her mouth curved. “Just depends on how everyone is feeling.”
“That sounds great to me.”
“Good,” she said, her voice warm. “It’s usually just really laid-back.”
“And we’re still doing the Hastings’s yacht thing on the Fourth, right?” I asked.
“That’s still the plan as far as I know,” she said. “I heard that Ian’s siblings took over the planning for that party this year since Ian has been on his honeymoon. But last I heard, they’ll have space for us to spend the night on the yacht if we don’t want to head back to shore after the fireworks.”
“Nice,” I said, imagining what a party on a billionaire’s superyacht would look like. Then glancing down at our joined hands, I asked, “Should we expect the same room pairings?”
“If you don’t mind,” she said, looking up at me through her long brown eyelashes. “I think that’s what most people plan on, at least.”
“Perfect.”
Because if that meant another night with her tucked against me, her legs tangled with mine under the covers, I definitely would not complain about it.
Nora’s expression softened then, like she was thinking the same thing, but neither of us said it out loud.
After a beat, she finally shifted, stretching her legs under the sheet. “We should probably get up before Ky comes to check on us.”
“Yeah.” I huffed a quiet laugh. “You’re probably right.”
We took turns in the bathroom, the same unspoken rules as last night. Give each other space. Pretend we weren’t both hyperaware of the other person being five feet away.
“You ready?” I asked when we were both dressed and back in the room.
“Yep.” Nora nodded. Then reaching for my hand, like it was just something we did now, she said, “Let’s go.”
49
THEO
The restof the day was nice and slow and exactly what I’d needed.
We spent most of it drifting between the beach and the water, like nobody had anywhere better to be. Nora threw herself into the ocean with Charlotte-level enthusiasm, and watching her laugh when a wave smacked her in the face loosened something tight in my chest. Like I’d been bracing for life for so long that I’d forgotten what it felt like to just enjoy it.
After lunch, Miles and Ky dragged me into tossing a football around. And even though I hadn’t played much since high school, I managed not to completely humiliate myself. Which felt like a win.
Nora, Lucy, and Alessi ended up joining in for a football game of 500, and somehow Nora became my personal enemy in under thirty seconds. She blocked me. Stole the ball right out of my hands once. Then acted all innocent and sweet, like she hadn’t just committed a felony on the sand.
And the whole time she was throwing herself at me like a banshee, I couldn’t stop smiling.
It was fun to be physical with her in a way that wasn’t loaded. Fun to roughhouse a little, to get competitive, to not feel like the washed-up single-dad version of myself.
Later that evening, we drove into Montauk for dinner at a tapas place that was colorful and loud in the best way. Plates kept appearing in the middle of the table. People kept talking over each other. Nora sat close enough that our knees bumped under the table.
After dinner, we ended up at the Hastings’s beach house two doors down with a stack of board games. And even though the weekend had started with a plan to sell a story, as the day went on, it didn’t feel like a performance anymore. It simply felt like I was getting to know Nora in all the little ways. The way she teased. The way she listened. The way she fit beside me like she’d always been there.