He grinned and replied:Just to be clear, when I said I needed to be able to cover up your signature, I meant with my sleeve. So like, you can sign my wrist, for example.
This time, she replied with the mad emoji, the red one with the pouty face.I was hoping for a bicep at least. Maybe one of those amazing shoulders.
Noah: You think I have amazing shoulders? All this time, I just thought they were for holding up my shirt.
The eye-roll emoji flashed onto his screen. Somehow he hadn’t pegged Sabrina as an emoji texter but he liked it. Her texts felt very stream-of-consciousness, and he was nothing if not an avid student of what went on inside her fascinating brain.
He wanted to know everything: what she thought about, what she dreamed of, her favorite colors—because someone like Sabrina did not have just one, or he’d be very disappointed.
Sabrina: Spare me the false modesty. What do you bench, like 150?
200.Delete. Good grief, was that really how he wanted to impress a woman? Instead, he replied:A better question is why we’re not talking about the case.
Sabrina: Because that was a flimsy excuse to text me and we both know it?
That made him laugh out loud.In that case, you should just call me so we can talk all night.
His phone lit up with a call notification instantly, Sabrina’s name flashing across the screen. His heart slammed against his ribs.
Man, this woman was doing a number on him. He hit the Answer call icon.
“New phone, who dis?” he deadpanned.
“Angelina Jolie,” she retorted with a laugh that unfurled inside him. “I thought my lawyers told you to delete my number.”
“That is literally the best response to that question I have ever heard.”
“More where that came from.” She paused. “We can talk about our case if that’s really what you want to do.”
Ourcase. He liked that. Liked how naturally she’d slipped into being his partner in this investigation. “We can talk about whatever you want. The case was just an excuse, because you see right through me, apparently. I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”
A soft intake of breath carried through the line. “I’m still not used to the way you lay it all out there. Most guys are not so direct.”
“Life’s too short not to be.” He leaned back in his chair, savoring the way just talking to her made everything feel more vibrant. “Besides, I have a feeling you appreciate honesty.”
“I do. And since we’re being honest—” she paused for a heartbeat “—I’ve been staring at my phone for the past hour wondering if it was too late to text you.”
His heart did a slow roll in his chest. “Great minds think alike.”
She didn’t give him a second to absorb the implications. “Thanks for the SAR application. I started working on it.”
Her voice sounded scratchy and low, as if she might be lying in bed too. He did enjoy that visual. “Good. I didn’t want to ask in case it felt like hovering.”
“I’m allergic to hovering. If I start to feel itchy, I’ll let you know.” Her tone held a smile that made him wish he could see her face.
Maybe he’d suggest FaceTiming tomorrow night.
“So, the training manuals, study guides and full history of the SAR program weren’t too much?” He’d maybe gone a little overboard with the supplemental material he’d attached to the email. But he’d never been accused of doing things half-heartedly.
“You forgot to mention the case studies.”
She was laughing at him. But he didn’t mind. “I’m ridiculous. I straight-up admit it. I just want you to succeed. So you can show up Bonner and hit him where it hurts.”
“Oh, I like you a whole lot,” she said, drawing out theoinwhole. “You’re speaking my love language.”
“Vengeance and retribution are my favorite vices,” he informed her, even as his gut responded to the texture coming through the line loud and clear. “Especially when it ensures a tool like that gets what’s coming to him.”
How was this soeasy? It felt like they’d had a million conversations like this, late at night when the rest of the world had faded away. He’d never had such a genuine connection with someone before.
