“We have a staff meeting tomorrow,” I say with a laugh.
Noah cups my cheeks in his palms.
“Do you trust me?”
The question sits between us, the answer more raw and more vulnerable than I’ve ever been with another person. I don’t trust myself, and I’m not sure I can trust him.
But I want to.
I take a deep breath, and for the first time since pulling myself off the floor of Axel’s shitty kitchen, make the decision that might not result in being as self-reliant as I promised myself that night.
“Yes.”
He nods, pulling me down to his face for a soft, intimate kiss. When we break, in an effort to stave off the mounting panic, I make one more reach for the safety of our rules.
“But I don’t want to tell anyone. Not yet.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal.”
The remainder of the flight is spent in our own seats, hashing out some guidelines—mostly surrounding work—and avoiding eye contact with Maggie when she comes to check on us. Noah is happy to oblige my no nonsense at the office rule, and eases my fears about having to disclose to HR for any reason. He promises, should this thing implode next week, we will figure our way through a working relationship and my job will be safe—no question. Because this is such a delicate thing, feeling like an unpinned grenade in my hand, I am grateful to have some semblance of boundaries to fall back on.
He convinces me to stop for a quick bite before dropping me off at home and has the driver drop us at a bistro near his apartment so we can take his car when we’re finished.
I’m halfway through my plate of chicken carbonara before I remember the weirdness with Megan yesterday. Curious if it was just an over reaction due to feelings I was refusing to acknowledge or something to explore further, I mull over the best way to bring it up. Like most things, however, it plops out with no grace whatsoever.
“So, your lunch date yesterday.”
“It wasn’t a date,” Noah clips, reaching for his ice water and giving me an unamused glance.
“Whatever. That’s not why I’m bringing it up. You mentioned it was terrible.”
“It was.”
I hesitate, unsure I want to hear about it at all.
“Was it awkwardness with your ex sort of terrible, or something else?”
He frowns. “What are you getting at?”
Twirling my fork through the remaining noodles, I try to explain the exchange I had with her while he was on the phone. His face continues to sour, giving me the distinct feeling my worrying about it was valid.
“Does she have any involvement with Flourish’s contracts?”
He shakes his head and takes another bite of his salad.
“No. She did a little social media marketing for us last year, but she’s not officially on payroll. It was more a favor to me while we were involved.”
“Is she close with anyone else on the board, or in upper management?”
“We ran in the same circles.”
It’s not a confirmation or denial, and I chew on my bottom lip, trying to piece it together.
“Why?”
I shake my head. “I’m not sure. She was asking what felt like loaded questions. Like she was looking for a certain answer.And from what you’ve told me, she’s never been interested in the business practices before. She mentioned brunch with your mom. Is she close with your parents?”
Noah stiffens. “No. She and my mom were friendly while we were together, but after I ended things my mom cut ties. She never liked her much anyway.”
