Page 108 of Mark my Words

“You can’t tell Kristine,” he warned as he stepped toward me, his gaze going over my shoulder again.

“Why would I tell her?”

He laughed as he shook his head. “You two aren’t that subtle. Something is going on between the two of you. Chase knew it as soon as press training started.”

“Gotcha,” I nodded, not confirming things, but I was smart enough to know it was a confirmation by omission in his eyes. He may have been socially awkward, but he wasn’t an idiot. And part of his job was to observe the way people interacted with each other. I hadn’t been hiding my behavior, and I knew Kristine had tells they’d probably picked up on weeks ago.

“I’m proposing to Chase.”

My eyes widened as he nervously shifted from foot to foot, his body a live wire of nerves. “Congrats. That’s awesome. I didn’t realize things were that serious already.”

I knew he’d—very publicly—asked her to move in with him in Chicago, and it was clear he was enamored with her. She was just as besotted with him, so I had no doubt she’d accept, and part of me was resentful of their easy coupling.

“What do you need me to do?” I asked, trying to concentrate on listening to his plans without my mind drifting.

“Are you coming to my room later?” Kristine asked as we shared the elevator up to our floor. The rest of our party had crammed into the previous elevator, Isobel and Chase chatting animatedly about the progress of her next project.

We were in separate rooms again, but they weren’t adjoining.

“Why would I do that?” I teased as I leaned against the side of the elevator.

“Oh.” She averted her eyes, staring down at her shoes, and I momentarily felt bad that she thought I was rejecting her.

“Is that what you want?” I asked, placing my hand in the middle of her back as I stepped closer. “What if someone comes looking for you?”

“Then I’ll hide you in the bathroom,” she laughed, leaning into my touch. “Please.”

“You know I’ll follow your lead,” I sighed, hating that her first instinct would be to hide me, but of course, it would be.

She nodded, watching the numbers rise on the elevator, exhaling loudly as the doors opened. I let her walk out first, turning toward the left before she stopped. My door was down the opposite hallway, and I waited to see if she asked me to follow her.

“I’ll text you.” She shifted nervously, adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder.

“I’m meeting Evan and Adrian downstairs for a little while later on. I’ll let you know when we’re done.”

“Oh, okay.” The small frown on her lips made me want to fill her in, but it wasn’t my news to share, and I wasn’t in the mood to listen to her talk about how crazy he was for moving so fast. Just because she was terrified of commitment and letting someone in didn’t mean others were.

I nodded, turning around, but her quiet voice stopped me. “Sam?”

“Hmm?” I glanced back.

“Do you need to go back to Boston right away?”

I pulled my bag off my shoulder, sliding the handle through the strap on the back of my laptop bag. “Not that I know of. Why?”

“Would you stay an extra night in the city with me?”

The open look of vulnerability on her features made me pause, holding in the joke I’d normally lob back in her direction. “If that’s what you want. Any reason in particular?”

She sighed, closing her eyes before she pulled up the handle on her suitcase, her knuckles white with her firm grip. “My parents are hosting Nana’s birthday party at their apartment in Manhattan. It’s probably not going to be fun, but I don’t want to go alone, and...”

I stepped forward, closing the distance between us and cupping her jaw, tilting her face toward me as I leaned in. She relaxed at my touch, sagging against my chest with her fingers tangled in my shirt as she blinked at me with those expressive hazel eyes. “If you need me, I’ll be there.”

“I do,” she nodded. “I don’t know how I’ll ever return the favor, but...”

“Come to my friend’s wedding with me in a few months. Be my date,” I whispered, knowing it was too far away to have asked her, but I didn’t want to take anyone else.

She nodded, pushing up to her toes as I gently kissed her lips, knowing that asking me to accompany her was a huge step toward her letting me in. I had no doubt she could plaster on a fake smile and a designer dress, faking her way through the party without assistance, but she wanted me there. And that meant more than any public declaration of affection.

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