Quinn left the display, and Noah’s strong, warm hand, and headed back to his desk. ‘Yes, I do.’
‘You do?’
Quinn sat on the chair behind his desk. ‘Maybe it’s for the best. Nothing can last forever.’
Noah headed to the counter, placing his hands on the countertop. Quinn looked at them, taking in every wrinkle, every crease. He couldn’t get enough of them.
‘You sound like you’ve given up.’
The words hit Quinn hard. He gripped the table, more so to steady himself than anything else. ‘You think so?’
‘If this place is as special as you say it is?—’
‘Hey, it is,’ Quinn said, almost shouting. ‘It’s special to me.’
‘Then it isn’t for the best, is it?’
Quinn hated that Noah was right. Hated that this man didn’t know him as much as he wished he did. Yet somehow, he saw straight through him. Called him out, even if that isn’t what he intended to do. Maybe Noah had tanzanite on, too.
‘What will you do instead?’ His hand crept ever closer to Quinn’s.
‘I can get work elsewhere,’ Quinn said. He had to focus on Noah. But that was hard to do when he looked likethat.
‘But will it be as fulfilling as this place?’
‘No,’ Quinn admitted. ‘Not one bit.’
‘Can’t you compromise with the developers?’
‘My stepdad? No. He’s headstrong. He will never listen.’
‘He has it in his sights and won’t see anything else?’
‘Yeah.’
Noah nodded. ‘Sounds like my mum.’
Quinn bit his tongue, knowing who Noah’s mum was. He heard all the stories and was aware that he’d be on shaky ground if he acknowledged it. If Hay was a kingdom, Noah’s mum had become the town fool.
‘Does it?’
Pitiful. Was that all he could say?
‘She’s a typical Aries,’ Noah said, and his hand definitely moved closer this time. Quinn bit his tongue and kept his hands firmly on the edge of his end of the table. ‘Determined. Skilled. Acknowledged. A true leader. Everything good. But ruthless. She did what she had to do. Salute to her.’
‘I haven’t seen her in a while. How is she doing?’
He felt like he’d gone too far. Noah’s hand slid away ever so slightly.
Noah shook his head. ‘It doesn’t matter. What matters is you, and what you want to do.’
A secret floated between them. Quinn let it disappear.
‘I don’t have a choice here.’ Quinn recovered from trying to acknowledge Noah’s mother. ‘I thought the press would get on board. I thought more people would care. But…’ Quinn’s voice broke. His eyes welled up and tears rolled down his cheeks, beginning to burn out of embarrassment. He covered his face, not wanting Noah Sage,theNoah Sage, to see how pathetic he was.
Then he felt him. He smelled him. He experienced him.
First the cologne, just enough to be powerful, but not enough to overwhelm. It smelled of citrus and of something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. Fresh and airy, despite the colder month and the season. Earlier it had been a hint. Now it was like showering in all its glory.
