Page 110 of The Broker

My pulse lurched forward. “What?”

“Your mother and I are wondering when you’re going to tell us about him.”

All the air drained from the room. “What?” I asked again. “Who are you talking about?”

“The boy you’re seeing.”

He looked so amused, so pleased with himself, while I felt like everything was falling apart inside me. I was in such a panic, it took me a long moment to process that he’d saidboyand notman. My father had a habit of calling anyone younger than himkid, but there was no way he’d refer to Noah as a boy.

He wouldn’t be standing there looking smug if he had any inkling of who my boyfriend was.

He mistook my fear for simple surprise and smiled warmly. “You think we haven’t noticed how many nights you’re going out, or how happy you’ve been recently?” He lifted his bag onto his shoulder. “When you came back home, things were different, and you weren’t yourself. But they seem better now, and it’s nice havingyouback.”

I swallowed thickly.

What the fuck was I supposed to say to that? My gaze shifted away from my dad and to the bookshelf behind him that was decorated with awards I’d need to dust after he left.

My silence was the confirmation he needed.

“When do we get to meet him?” he asked.

My eyes went so wide they nearly fell out of my head. “Uh... I don’t know. It’s sort of new, and I’m not”—ready, my brain screamed—“sure that’s a good idea right now.”

Disappointment splashed on his face. “All right. He got a name?”

“Yes.”

He tilted his head. “Are you going to tell it to me?”

“No,” I said quickly, which was clearly an unsatisfactory answer, because he frowned. Shit, I needed to give him something. “Can we hold off on talking about him? Just for a little while. Like I said, it’s new, and it might not even be anything.”

Of all the lies I’d told so far, this one was the worst.

My father wasn’t happy, but he must have sensed not to push and chose to respect this boundary. “Okay, Charlotte.” He strode toward me in the doorway, and I moved to the side, giving him room to pass. “Don’t forget to set the alarm when you’re done.”

Relief crashed over me. “You got it.”

He only made it another step before a thought caused him to stop. “By the way, Noah was working late in the back office, so he might still be here.” His tone was light. “Thought I’d give you a heads-up, so he doesn’t accidentally startle you.”

This time, when my pulse jumped, it was for an entirely different reason.

“Oh, okay.” Excitement tightened my voice, so the pitch was higher than I wanted it to be.

But, thankfully, my dad didn’t notice.

We said our goodbyes, he went out the front door, and my gaze landed on the equipment I’d brought in. The agenda for the evening had been to create content on deep cleaning a coffeemaker, since there were two types here. The regular one with a pot and filters that made multiple cups at a time, and a fancy, newer one for individual servings that used pods.

Except now that I knew Noah might be here, my agenda was revised, and I practically skipped down the hall to the back office.

The space had once been the den of the house, so it was cozy and homey, even with the corporate-looking office furniture. My boyfriend was seated at the desk, and when he looked up to discover me in the doorway, a sexy smile split his lips.

“Hi,” I breathed.

He shut the laptop in front of him and leaned back in his swivel chair, looking at me like he wanted to take it all in.

“Hi,” he said finally. “Your dad still here?”

I pressed my lips together and shook my head. And then I catapulted forward into the room, rushed over to him, and crawled right into his lap.

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