“Yeah,” Noah replied. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do.”
“Why wait?”
“I couldn’t afford it.”
Goran frowned. “You’ve been a Premier League player for a few years now. What do you mean you couldn’t afford it? Surely Winterbourne aren’t that poor.”
Noah’s face burnt and it wasn’t only due to his elevated heart rate. He hated talking about financial things with other people. The rest of the team were very open about their spending habits. Noah felt that it was a private matter between him and his accountant.
“I’ve been saving my cash.”
“How many rainy days are you expecting?”
“I just don’t believe in waste.”
They ran for a little longer.
“Sorry,” Goran said. “That’s none of my business.”
“Don’t worry.”
Goran was barely out of breath. Noah was struggling. Not that he would let it show for one instant. This is what happened when he wasn’t totally focused on the job.
“Make sure you don’t take any shit from this architect,” Goran said. “When we did our place, some of the ideas our guy had were ridiculous. Luckily Paloma knew exactly what she wanted. And believe me, nothing and no one puts her off course.”
Paloma, Goran’s wife, was a firebrand. She starred in a successful soap opera although was on maternity leave currently. Noah could well imagine that she would not be distracted by an architect’s opinion.
His mind drifted to the photo of Carmine. The man was model gorgeous. Noah hoped that wouldn’t be an issue. He’d never been a naturally assertive individual. Even less so with someone so attractive.
He would have to dig deep.
Maybe I should ask Tito to go with me.
As soon as the idea entered his head, he dismissed it. Firstly, because he needed to stand on his own two feet. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, he wanted to be on his own with Carmine. Tito would command the room and probably bag Carmine’s personal mobile number.
Why should that be a problem? Because deep down, Noah wanted that for himself.
FOUR
CARMINE
“God, I miss my old place,” Carmine said.
“Here we go,” Samantha replied. “Tell me all about your fancy L.A. office again. I can hardly wait.”
They were shifting a table for the third time. Despite it being sub-zero temperatures outside, Carmine was working up a sweat. Everything had to be right. If an architect can’t create a welcoming space for clients, what does it say about his abilities?
“I’m not sure you’re supposed to talk to the boss like that. A little more to the left.”
“We had it there to start with.”
She was right. There were no other options available. The whole place was way smaller than he’d been used to. The meeting room they were frantically getting ready barely fitted two people.
“Okay,” he said. “Let’s leave it. Soft furnishings?”
Samantha glanced at her watch. “It’s only just gone one thirty. I’ve got time to run out and get some flowers.”
They walked into the main working space they shared. It wasn’t much bigger. At least it fitted a decent-sized workstation for Carmine and Samantha’s desk, which doubled as coffee-making space.
