Page 50 of About That Rule

“Three, but one will be an office,” he said, grabbing her hand. “Let’s look inside.”

He took out the key the realtor had given him and they stepped inside. Nate explained how each room looked now, but what he hoped to do. The house needed work, which was why it was affordable in such a nice neighborhood. But needing work didn’t deter him. It was more of a motivation factor because he loved working on houses.

“Your vision for this house turns it into a home,” Samantha gushed. “I’m completely in love.”

Having her onboard was going to make buying the house that much easier. He smiled.

THIS HOUSE WASperfect. Samantha knew Nate would improve the interior within six months flat. Every room they walked into, his energy sparkled with how he imagined the room would look when he was finished remodeling.

After an hour exploring the house, they went back to the car.

“When will you put an offer on it?” Samantha asked, putting on her seatbelt.

His left hand tugged at the collar of his shirt. “Who said I was putting in an offer?”

“Um…you did when you created a whole new interior design. Nate, it’s beautiful and in a great location. You should do it.”

“What about you?” he countered. “You’ve been talking a lot recently about how much you love New York. Do you think you could have a schedule like me?”

This was uncharted territory since they’d hashed out not blurring the lines.

She laughed the idea off. “I work in corporate America. They don’t care about my whimsical idea of working wherever I want.”

“Please, you could market the idea to the CEO and get it.”

“You have no idea how people with an actual boss work, do you?”

He switched lanes on his way back to getting to her house. “Sure, I don’t know what it’s like to have a direct boss, but I think the answer is easy. Are you not interested in asking because you love your job and don’t want to lose it, or are you not asking because you don’t like the idea of working wherever you want?”

This was Nate, boiling a problem down to its most simplistic form.

“It’s not that easy.”

“It is, though. What do you want in life? Once you know that, it’s on you to make it happen,” Nate said with confidence.

She paused. Was it that easy?

“Come on,” he urged. “What is the dream of professional Samantha?”

“Okay, in a dream world, I’d be a marketing consultant helping start-up companies. This would give me the luxury of working where I want, but also being able to help the little guy in business, not the money-hungry bank. But there’s too much risk involved.” She had to add the last sentence because it was what she had been telling herself. It was the whole reason she hadn’t made the jump.

He pulled into her driveway. She was about to get out of the car, but he grabbed her elbow to keep her in. “What’s the risk?”

She faced him. “Outside of the fact that I might fail, which would be bad all on its own? I only have so much money saved up. How would I pay for all the other expenses of starting a business on my own? How would I pay rent once I run through my savings?”

“Maybe the answer is right in front of you.”

“What does that mean?” she questioned.

He turned away from her. “Nothing. I’m just saying, don’t give up on yourself too quickly. That’s not the Samantha I know.”

“Same goes for you. Take the next step, Nate. Buy the house.”

She got out of the car and walked into her house. They’d had a great day, but their parting words had sounded more about them and less about their career moves. Why couldn’t Nate make their growing attraction as simplistic as he made everything else?