“What does this mean?” she says quickly, her voice low.
I shrug. “I’m not sure yet.”
“How can you not know?”
“Because … it’s complicated.”
“I’ll say, but oh my god!” she yells. “I have been waiting for this moment for years.”
“Okay, it wasn’t that dramatic, and what about all those things you just said?”
“Oh, pshh that. I was just trying to be a good friend and not let you stress over it the way I know you would, but oh my god! Was it a one-time thing? Do you think you’ll keep doing it? Are you still going to find an apartment? I have so many questions.”
“And I have zero answers.”
“How?” Her hand slaps the top of the desk, and her baby startles. “I’d be wanting to know everything as soon as possible.”
I shrug. “I don’t know. I just … this is Tobias. I get this feeling that I don’t need to be worried about anything.”
Nora grins. “Yeah, you’re probably right. You two may have been blind all this time, but your friends weren’t.”
“Yeah, that brings up another great point. We aren’t going to tell a lot of people. Actually, you might be the only one who knows.”
Her eyes widen again.
“Well, that’s one way to keep things from getting boring.”
She twists back to her computer.
To keep things from getting boring?
Is that what happened with Griffin?
Did he get bored with me and cheat?
Oh my god.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
TOBIAS
“What’s our plan to send you to Colorado next month to open the new location?”
I pause my writing and look over the screen at Simon. It wasn’t that I forgot we were opening the new location. It’s that I’ve been happily distracted.
The last couple of days since Natalie and I have been back in Wind Valley have been ... shoot, I can’t explain it. Saying they’ve been the best days of my life is too cliché, but that’s exactly what they have been. Every touch, kiss, hug, look, you name it, is natural between us. Yes, it’s physical now, but the rest—the morning routines, the dinners we’ve cooked together, and all the moments in between are effortless. Our friendship has always been this way, but now—hell, it’s like we found a part of us that we didn’t know was missing, and we finally know where we belong.
“I go when it’s ready—that’s the plan,” I tell him. I might not be looking forward to being away from Natalie so soon, but we do both work jobs where we can be anywhere, so I don’t see why she couldn’t come with me since I’m there for only a couple of weeks.
“Okay. You just seem like your head is in another place these days, so I wanted to check in.”
“No, yeah, sorry about that. I’m focused, even if it might not seem that way.”
Which is true. I’ve handled emails, messages, and various phone calls here and there. This area of my life is simple, so it doesn’t take a lot out of me. Especially since once the contracts were signed, the renovations started quickly, and things are going smoothly. After all, the building was ready, and it was mostly cosmetic changes.
“Good.”
“Perfect.”
