Needing clarity for both of them, he’d pushed for a reality check. “I hope you know that this isn’t a done deal.” He’d taken her hand, wishing he hadn’t agreed to not sayI love you. He understood why she’d wanted it that way, that she didn’t want anyone’s feelings hurt, but it was agony to not say it. “The last few weeks have been so amazing. Spending time together. I hope we can keep moving forward.”
“I hope so, too. But let’s just see how things play out, okay? I don’t want any promises made that might later fall apart.”
It was all a little too tenuous for his liking. He’d be a liar if he said that he hadn’t been thinking a lot about everything Barry Millner had said to him. Alec’s big takeaway was that a person had to prioritize. You were going to miss out on something, so the question was, what would it be? No matter what happened with his career, he was going to miss out on a lot if he didn’t find a way to make things work with Brooklyn.
Now that it was the night the interview was set to air, Alec was yet again a ball of anxiety. When Brooklyn showed up at his door forty-five minutes before the show, with a bakery box and a big bunch of multi-colored balloons, he wasn’t sure he’d ever been more thankful to see her.
“I’d yell ‘surprise!’ right now, but you already knew I was going to do this,” she said.
“Come in. Come in. It’s getting cold out there.” He waved her inside his brownstone and closed the door behind her.
“How are you holding up?” she asked.
“I feel like I might be sick. But also I’m hungry. How weird is that?”
“Sounds like a normal Sunday night to me.”
“Right. Well, I ordered Thai. They just dropped it off. I got your favorite. Drunken noodles.”
“You’re the best.” She thrust the balloons toward him. “Here. These are for you. Obviously. And I brought a cake.” She began working her shoulders out of her coat.
“You really didn’t have to do any of this, but thank you.” Alec set the balloons aside, and the small weight tethered to the ribbons plunked to the floor. “Just having you here is enough.”
She popped up on to her toes and gave him a quick kiss, right at the corner of his mouth. “Indulge me.”
“Always.” His lips were buzzing, so he grasped her arms and pulled her closer for a real kiss. She tasted sweet and minty and perfect. Maybe they didn’t have to watch his interview. Or eat. Maybe they should go upstairs right now.
“Mmm,” she hummed, her eyes half-closed, lips turned up in a smile. “What was that for?”
“For being my saving grace. I couldn’t make it through tonight without you.”
“You’re sweet. Now let’s wreck those noodles.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He headed for the kitchen and she followed behind him.
“Check this out.” Brooklyn slipped the bakery box onto the center island, untied the string, and opened the lid. “Ta da!”
He shook his head in disbelief, half laughing. “Brooklyn. It’s my face. Covering the entire cake.”
“I gave the bakery a photo of you and had them transfer it onto the frosting. I love your face. And we’re celebrating you.”
“I really don’t like being the center of attention.”
“Which is odd given your line of work.”
“That’s what makes me excited to move into news. I won’t have to be a show pony anymore.” He pulled two plates out of the cabinet, then a handful of serving spoons and some forks.
Brooklyn opened the takeout containers, leaning down to inhale a waft of green coconut curry, then started dishing up her plate. “Exactly how nervous are you?”
“A little and a lot. I already know that they want me for news. The question is whether they’ll agree to the right terms. It did cross my mind that they might have made the low-ball offer just as a way of saying no without actually saying no.”
“Do you think they’d actually do that?”
“I’m pretty sure it happens all the time.”
“That would seriously suck.” She offered a reassuring smile. “Let’s just stay positive.”
“Excellent idea.”
