Page 20 of About That Rule

“Okay.” She paused, as if she needed to think things over. “I forgive you. But only because you sound hopeless right now. Pathetic, really.”

They both laughed, and he was relieved. “Either way, you owe me.”

“Wait, wait, wait. You mess up and this ends in me owing you? This isn’t how apologies work, my friend.”

My friend.

Two words he’d never anticipated would make his skin crawl.

What the hell was happening to him?

“You’re on east coast time, but here in my world, it’s mid-day, so chaos is around the corner. Can we chat later? I can’t wait to hear how I owe you,” she informed him as he heard the beeping and pinging from her computer over the phone.

They only talked for another minute before saying goodbye. Which was fine with him. He never looked forward to long talks on the phone.

It was fine, really.

AFTER A RUNin Central Park and revising plans to finalize a sale for a house he’d finished remodeling last month, he was exhausted. Nate had never been cut out for a corporate job, having a nine to five in an office. Working with his hands and managing the daily changes he made to a house invigorated him.

Today, he was testing himself. After reconstructing a light fixture in his own house then working out, paperwork was the last thing he wanted to do. If it was for a hefty paycheck on selling a house, though, he would never procrastinate. Not normally. Money made the world go round—and it was how he paid his employees.

But there had been a change in his life.

For months, something had been off. When he considered expanding his business from the east coast to back home in San Francisco, he hadn’t wasted a second coming up with a business plan on how to make it work. The goal was to transition from remodeling houses to restoring older, historic homes. With his latest sale, he was close to hitting his goal for making Haddic Historic Restorations a reality.

His phone buzzed with a text. He couldn’t stop the smile when he saw it was from Samantha.

I can’t believe you managed to annoy me so much, I had to get wine after work.

His smile vanished. How in the hell could she be upset with him again? He didn’t wait to respond.

You can’t be that mad if you’re drinking wine. You love wine.

Okay, he was being a little flirty, but it seemed to make them both happy.

You’re right. But all day I wondered how I owed you something. You better fess up.

He grinned while he texted. You owe me because I had to sleep on that shit couch.

Nate sent the message before he could double guess it. The bubbles popped up, acknowledging she was responding, then disappeared. They appeared again, then they were gone. He left his phone on the coffee table and went into the kitchen to get a beer. When he got back to the couch, he had a message from her.

I’d love to hear how this is my fault.

A smile came across his face. Talking to her was the best way to end his day.

YIKES. HE WAScalling. Since when did Samantha get butterflies from Nate calling? As soon as he’d kissed her.

Ugh.

She took a deep breath to get herself in check, then she answered.

“Hello,” she said, doing her best to control the excitement in her voice. “Before I hear any silly excuses about me owing you anything, you slept on the couch because you were an asshole.”

His deep chuckle gave her goosebumps. She did have the AC and a fan on in her bedroom, so she blamed the temperature—anything to be the culprit for her tingly reaction, really—anything but her husband.

“Fine, but if we ever fight again, we need to make up before I sleep on the couch. My back still hurts because I care more about the aesthetics of my living room than comfort.”

She shook her head, even though he couldn’t see her. “I don’t feel bad for you at all. You should get an actual office so you don’t need clients to come to your apartment and see your décor.”