Page 94 of Play On

He squeezes my hand in his. “I know. I’m going to miss you, too. But I promise you, Violet, we’ll figure this out. Like I said, I’ll drive for hours just to see you for one hour if I have to. I can’t go without seeing you.”

“There’s something I want to share with you,” I say softly, watching as the rain continues to drop on the roof covering us.

Noah looks expectantly at me, waiting for me to continue.

I clear my throat. My stomach gets anxious, and I realise it’s important for Noah to believe in what I’m doing just as much as I believe in it myself.

“I’ve decided it’s time to take a step towards building my career in art,” I say, shifting my gaze to the sea. I can feel Noah’s eyes on my profile, but I’m not brave enough to return his gaze just yet. “I don’t have enough experience to get the type of jobs I want yet, but I have a plan for that. And the plan involves me working in London.”

Why is my heart suddenly hammering inside my chest? Why do I fear that the idea of me locating closer to him might freak him out? Even if he’s not the complete reason I would be going to London?

“Yeah?” Noah asks.

I nod. “It’s the best place for me to work if I can’t work at Wintersmith Hall. Besides, I know the estate will be in my future, in some capacity, but I love London. And it would be closer to you.”

There. I said it.

Yes, logically, I know Noah just said he would drive for hours to see me, and he’ll miss me, but me coming out and saying I’m headed to an area close to him and he’s one of the reasons after two dates is almost … crazy.

So I find myself holding my breath as I dare to look at him.

Noah’s eyes lock with mine, and they shine back with … is thatexcitement?

“That would be the best-case scenario if you were in London or even Surrey,” he says. “If that’s what you really want, that is.”

My body lets go of the anxiety, and instead, I bask in Noah’s excitement about the idea.

“It is,” I say happily.

“What’s your plan?”

“My plan is to create art exhibits and events at Wintersmith Hall to get experience for my CV. Fear has kept me in the gift shop and sourcing items to stock in it for two years now. But I’m ready to face my fears by first, hosting these events at Wintersmith Hall, then, after I have done these things, applying for jobs in London, like art gallery positions.”

“I think this is super smart,” Noah says. “What are some of the ideas you have?”

I happily go into detail about some of the things I’ve outlined, such as showcasing local artists or students in a sip-and-shop-type event.

“It will take time to organise an event, so that’s the downside,” I confess. “None of this will happen soon. So we’ll have to date long distance for quite a while, I’m afraid.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Violet.”

I grin wickedly at him. “Yes, because I broke you. It would be rather hard for you to get up and walk out now, wouldn’t it?”

He blushes again. I swear he couldn’t be any cuter in this moment if he tried.

“I’m ignoring you, but in all seriousness, I only want to seeyou. Even if you live two hours away, that doesn’t matter to me. You do.”

Swoon.

“Good, because I only want to see you, too,” I say happily. Then I pause. “I just hope I can get my dad to go along withmy ideas. He’s really prickly about the estate and is threatened whenever Nicholas has an idea. I don’t know if he will be the same with me or not, simply because I can never inherit Wintersmith Hall. I’ve already talked with Nicholas about it, just to make sure he was okay with me approaching Dad.”

Noah furrows his brow. “Why wouldn’t he be?”

“I didn’t want Nicholas to be hurt if Dad said yes,” I say softly. “Because it would probably hurt him to see me get opportunities when he’s denied everything. I would never want anything to come between me and Nicholas. I love him too much for that.”

Noah is quiet for a moment, a thoughtful expression passing over his face.

“This is why I like you so much,” he finally says. “You care about your brother. You keep his feelings in mind along with yours. I love that about you.”

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