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He wraps an arm around my shoulders. “You’ll figure it out, and you’ll be amazing. I watched you working with Lennox tonight. You truly love editing and you’re damn good at it. If Tenth Avenue can’t see that, they don’t deserve you.”
I swipe at my eyes, doing my best to dry my face and pull myself together. “Thanks, Noah. That means a lot.”
“I’m sorry I haven’t been supportive from the beginning. I just…” He hugs me tighter. “I lost my parents to their work and I never want to lose you.”
This is the first time he’s ever mentioned his parents to me, other than to tell me he isn’t close with them. “What happened to them?”
“They’re alive and well.” He rubs my arm, the touch sparking through me like electricity. “They just weren’t present. Whether I’d had a rough day or an amazing one, they weren’t there. They missed most of my birthdays and games. I was practically an orphan, raised by nannies because my parents chose work over me every single time.”
I gasp, beyond shocked, my heart breaking at the devastated look on Noah’s face. “I had no idea. How awful. I’m so sorry.”
He shrugs, staring at the wall beyond us. “It was a long time ago. Not that they’re present in my life now. I speak to my mother every few months, but I haven’t talked to my father in years. Nothing I’ve ever done has been good enough for him, and I’m tired of trying.”
“That’s why I’m never having kids or getting married,” I say without thinking. “I know I’ll never be able to pull myself away from work long enough to be a good parent or wife.”
“I don’t believe that for a second.” He turns to me and pushes my hair behind my ear, smiling softly. “You were an excellent wife to me.”
I slap a hand over his mouth. “We agreed never to speak of that.”
I can’t see his smile behind my hand, but I can see it in the crinkle of his eyes. Gently, he pulls my hand from his face. “Best twenty-four hours of my life.”
I roll my eyes. “If that’s the case, I feel very sorry for you, Noah. Especially since we were asleep for like twelve hours of our marriage.”
“I’ve always wondered…” His expression sobers. “Why did you agree to marry me in that ridiculous Vegas chapel?”
I can’t help smiling at the memory.
When we passed the small Vegas chapel, Noah said, “We should get married.”
I’d turned to him, shocked. “Are you kidding?”
And he’d said, “When you’ve already met the only person you want to spend the rest of your life with, why wait?”
His words had bowled me over and something deep down inside me had pleaded for me to say yes. I’d been attracted to Noah since the day I met him and he was my very best friend in the world. If I’d ever let myself think past my laser-focus on getting my degree and getting a job in publishing, I’d probably have admitted to myself I was half in love with him already.
In that moment, I wanted, even more than I wanted, to be a successful editor, to call Noah Brooks my husband. So, I said yes.
In the stark light of morning, he’d been the first to realize it was a mistake.
And that’s what I focus on now. “Midnight delusion,” I say. “You said it was a slip into a fantasy world or something like that.” After a night in his arms, his body wrapped tight around me. We hadn’t had sex. We’d agree to take things slow, but wehad kissed and cuddled and fallen asleep together. I loved being held by him so much it scared me.
“That’s not what I said.” Noah pulls away to look at me, his gaze intent. “After you made it clear you regretted what we’d done, I said ‘at least I got to have the fantasy for a night.’”
I stare at him. “What did I do to make it seem like I regretted our marriage?”
He runs a hand through his hair and looks away, his jaw working. “Where do I even start? You leapt out of bed like it was on fire and rushed around the room, rambling about not telling anyone we got married. It was incredibly clear you wanted to pretend it never happened.”
I get to my feet, but there’s nowhere to go, so I lean against the wall and look down at him. “I didn’t want our marriage to overshadow Desiree’s big day, Noah.” I shift on my feet. “And I might have been freaking out a little, because marriage is a big step. There was a lot to figure out.”
He leans back on his hands, the position casual, but his expression hard. “You didn’t argue with me about getting the marriage annulled.”
I don’t want to do this here. I want to run away and not have this conversation. “And how would it have gone if we’d stayed married? Me working all the time and you traveling the world as a doctor? We’d never have seen each other.”
“I traveled because I was trying to find a home.” He stands and cups my face in one palm, his smile sad. “I’ve never really belonged anywhere, and you felt like home to me. You always have. You still do.”
My heart spasms at his words and something like happiness fizzes in my gut. Our faces are so close it would only take me crossing a teensy space for our lips to connect. “Just because we aren’t married or really dating, that doesn’t mean I didn’t wantto be your home base, Noah. I don’t think I realized how much I missed you until I got to see you every day again.”
He slides his hand into my hair and grips the back of my head. “I’ve never stopped thinking of you as my wife, Daisy. I know you think we could never work, but you’re the only woman I can ever imagine wanting for the rest of my life.”
