She laughs and pushes lightly at my side. “That was one time.”
“It was exactly what I needed.”
We stop at our favorite spot, where the trail opens up to a view of the whole lake. The sun is higher now, turning the water a brilliant and calm turquoise. Jennifer leans against me, and I wrap my arms around her from behind, resting my chin on top of her head and feeling the warmth of the sun, breathing in the fresh air and just enjoying everything about this. “I could get used to this,” I murmur.
“The view?”
“All of it. The quiet. The slowness. You.”
She turns in my arms, silently looking up at me.
“I know. It's been less than two weeks. I know it's fast.” I cup her face and trace her cheekbones with my thumbs. “But I need you to know. This isn't temporary for me.” I clarify so there’s no mistaking my meaning, “You're not temporary.”
“Seth,” she says softly, pulling away.
Not willing to let her go, I tug her back. “Look at me,” I urge.
And when she does, what I see in her eyes takes my breath away.
I kiss her there on the trail, with the morning sun warm on our shoulders and the lake glittering below us, and I've never been more certain of anything in my life.
Whatever this is, whatever we're building, it's worth more than any deal or acquisition or quarterly earnings report.
It's worth living for and I’m not about to let it go.
CHAPTER EIGHT
JENNIFER
I'm late.
I'm never late, but I overslept because I spent half the night positively giddy as I replayed everything that happened. The way Seth kissed me on the trail yesterday, with his blue eyes sparkling and full of tender emotion. How he said, “You're not temporary.” And most important of all, how he treats me. Not like I’m just some dumb cleaning girl but as someone who he sees as an equal.
And then my giddiness turned to worry and self-doubt. What in the world was I thinking? He's a billionaire tech genius, and I cleaned houses for a living. Sure, he’d been so sweet, said all the right things, and was even taking things slow instead of rushing right into sleeping together. But maybe he was just bored, and all this was just me keeping him company? That despite what he said, once he was healthy again and back to his real life full of smart people and sophisticated women, he’d soon forget all about me.
It was those last miserable thoughts that continued to circle in my head all morning, even as I pull up to the cabin at eight twenty. My stomach churns as I grab my trusty caddy and hurry to the door. A part of me is hoping that maybe he hasn’t noticed that I’m late. Maybe he slept in too, he has been doing betterwith not waking up at the buttcrack of dawn. Or he could be on a call, or-
The door swings open before I can knock.
Seth stands there, and he looks... I don’t know how to interpret that look. Not worried and not scared… just off. Very off. A muscle ticks in the tight bunch of his jaw as his light blue eyes rake over me from head to toe, his lips pinching into a firm straight line as he does.
“You're late.” His voice is cold, controlled.
I force a tiny grin. “I'm sorry. I overslept and...”
“Where were you?” He steps back to let me in, but there's tension radiating off him. “Why didn't you call?”
I blink, confusion sweeping over me. “I... I didn't know I needed to?”
He stares at me as if I've said something incomprehensible. “After yesterday, you didn't think I'd want to know you were okay? That I'd be waiting for you?”
Oh. Oh my. My chest tightens. “I didn't think...”
“Clearly.” He runs a hand through his hair, and I can see how stiff he’s holding his shoulders and the way his other hand is clenched into a fist at his side. “What did you think, Jennifer?”
I set my supplies down carefully, not meeting his eyes. “Should I get started on breakfast or do you still want to go for a walk?”
“Answer the question.”
