Page 25 of The Workaholic Down the Hall

“It's just a routine check-up,” I said, making my way to the front door and standing next to Noah. “Everything is fine.”

“There's a birthing class, too,” Nora said. She was still standing on the porch, since Noah hadn't moved to let her in. She was dressed in pressed, gray slacks and a puffy winter coat. “I want to be fully prepared to help Aubrey through the delivery.”

“I should go with you,” Noah said.

The reluctance in his voice hurt. God, how it hurt. But it was unfair to expect him to be one hundred percent in this with me after just a few days. I needed to remember to keep my distance, to not expect more than he could reasonably give. “You don't have to go. It'll be really—”

“Of course, you will go with us, Noah,” Nora said. “But we have to leave in five minutes, so hurry up and get dressed and, for god's sake, run a comb through that rat's nest on your head.”

Noah nodded and ran a hand through his tangled hair, before turning and heading up the stairs to his room.

Nora looked around the cabin. “How's everything, dear? Do you have everything you need?”

“I could use more to do and my laptop.”

“So that you can ignore my son? That would defeat the whole point of my risking jail time for kidnapping.” Her eyes twinkled as she spoke.

“He knows about the baby, now. Wasn't that the whole point of kidnapping him?” I knew there was more to it than that, but I hoped getting her to say the words aloud would make her realize how silly this was.

Her eyes widened and she frowned. “My son is so miserable, so caught up in what he should do that he couldn't see his soul mate was right in front of him for three years.” She looked over my shoulder at the windows and the forest beyond. “Honestly, I feel responsible. I saw it happening, saw him taking on more than he should, and I didn't do anything about it. I didn't see how unhappy he was.”

“And you think kidnapping him will make him happy?”

She smiled and gripped my chin in one hand. Nora had always been so kind, so classy, and so down-to-earth. I'd totally missed that she was also batshit crazy. “I know you will make him happy, Aubrey.”

“You think we're soul mates, Nora, but we aren't. We're barely even friends anymore.”

She was still holding my chin. “I've seen the way he looks at you. I know how miserable he was after you left.”

I grabbed her wrist and pulled her hand from my face. “He's attracted to me, Nora. That's all.” I needed to squash down that nasty beast hope that appeared at her words. I needed to accept reality and so did she.

“Argh,” she growled, losing a bit of her cool. “If you are both blind and stubborn this won't work. You have to make him see—”

“No,” I said. “I don't want a man I have to persuade to love me. I want a man who can't stand to be away from me, who loves me with his whole heart. I won't settle for less.”

Nora's frown deepened and a worry line appeared between her eyes. “Aubrey, dear, I—”

“Ready to go?” Noah asked. He skipped down the last couple of steps, his expression serious.

“Of course, dear,” Nora said. She led us out to the car where George waited in the passenger seat.

Noah and I took our seats in the back. “You're going with us to the obstetrician's office?” I asked George.

“I'm the muscle,” he said, flexing for us. “In case you two try to escape.”

“Don't you have a job that expects you to show up?” I asked. George was an English professor at the university and he'd told me before he had a flexible schedule, but I couldn't help poking him. I felt Noah's gaze on my cheek, but I ignored him.

“No classes today.” George cupped a hand around his mouth and mock whispered, “I owe a lot of favors.”

“Or you just enjoy kidnapping people.”

George winked and I couldn't help smiling back. Maybe I was developing Stockholm syndrome.

Nora backed the car around and drove away from the house. George stayed turned toward us and flashed two cell phones. “You are authorized to check your emails and make necessary phone calls. If either of you try to call the police or some muscle of your own, there will be unpleasant consequences.”

“What kind of consequences?” Noah asked. “How far are you willing to take this?”

George's smile widened. “I won't be dishing out the consequences, your mother will handle that.”

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