Page 46 of Necessary Roughness

Nothing else had mattered.

Now, here I was, floundering about like a fish out of water.

I nervously sipped my coffee and turned the ringer volume up just to be extra sure I wouldn’t miss anything.

Maybe he’d changed his mind.

Maybe our night together hadn’t meant as much to him.

Seconds ticked by on the clock, taunting me with their repetition.

I was tempted to walk over to the window and see what Leonard was up to, but I knew that he’d only serve as a temporary distraction. His hijinks couldn’t insulate me from the anxiety that was consuming me.

If only I could read Brett’s mind through the walls and glass separating us. For a moment, I considered casually wandering over to the window to see if I could steal a glance at him and see what he was up to, but I talked myself out of it.

I didn’t want to look like a weirdo.

But maybe I could head out to the beach for a while andsuper subtlyglance up at Brett’s house to see if he was busy.

Finally, a sound.

But not a ding. Or a ring.

A knock at the door.

I rushed to my feet before gliding over to the door and swinging it open.

There, on the other side, was Brett, looking shockingly handsome and evidently armed with lunch supplies and wine.

“Picnic on the porch?”

That was when I knew: Brett Mercer was going to bemine.

13

BRETT

THREE MONTHS LATER

“Microphones?”

I pointed Luke toward the home office that would soon become the recording studio for my podcast, and found Claire, drunkenly attempting to install the soundproofing.

“Claire!” I shouted. “Put down the Clairsmopolitans and the sound insulating foam!”

She turned around and pouted. “Can I just put down the foam?”

Luke laughed and gingerly placed the box of microphones next to Claire’s feet.

“Do I get one of those?” he asked, pointing at her drink.

I had spent the past few hours moving a few of my belongings over to Luke’s house. That was,ourhouse.

Luke had extended the contract on his rental house for one year and asked me to come stay.

I had taken that—correctly, thank goodness—as his request for me to move in.

Fortunately for me, my boss was back from his summer vacation and I’d completed my summer housesit. My boss washappy with how things had gone, especially when I told him that I had booked the one and only Luke Dalton as a featured guest on my podcast.

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