Page 20 of The Workaholic Down the Hall

“I mostly like designing the gardens, but I don't mind getting my hands dirty.”

“But you hate being outside,” I said. I knew that because Cody had invited him to go camping once. I'd been in the office when Noah had gotten the call and he'd made it clear he was an indoor kind of guy.

He looked at me, his brow crinkled in confusion. “I hate sleeping outside, and I'm not a huge fan of hiking, but I like being outside when civilization is close by, especially if the outside is beautiful.”

“And you like to design gardens.” I'd never known that about him. I mean, he did sometimes spend extra time with the landscape design team working at one of the properties, but I'd figured that was because he was a control freak.

He nodded. “I took a few landscape design classes in college, when I could fit them in between business classes.”

“Huh. So, tell me, how would you design this yard?”

I didn't expect he'd ever really work on the yard and I knew I wouldn't, but I wanted to hear what he saw when he looked at it. I wanted his eyes to keep lighting up the way they did when he talked about it.

He described what he'd do with the yard, his smile growing as he spoke, his tension lessening. I really didn't understand most of what he was saying, about grades and drainage and the types of plants that would thrive there. After a while, I stopped listening and just watched his easy smile, the excitement in his expression. This wasn't just a passing hobby for him, it was a passion. I wondered why he'd never pursued it, but I didn't ask. I didn't want to say anything to snuff the happiness on his face.

***

“What now?” Noah asked. I was at the kitchen table, reading a book about branding and marketing and jotting notes by hand on a legal pad. It had been a long time since I'd written anything by hand and I liked it. I liked the feel of the pen in my hand, the pressure of putting word to paper, of committing to an idea that might someday become a plan. After our walk and tour of the yard, we'd had lunch and Noah had changed into workout clothes and gone for a run. He was now showered and dressed and bothering me.

I looked up at him. “What?”

“What are we going to do now?”

I bit my lip not to laugh. He looked truly perplexed and uncomfortable, practically bouncing with a need to do something. “When's the last time you did nothing for a day?”

He glanced at my notepad. “When did you?”

He had a point. “Okay, so neither of us knows how to relax. You could help me figure out this social media marketing stuff, or we could try doing nothing together.”

His eyes widened. “I'm not really in the mood to help my mother with anything.” He waved at my books. “I assume that's what this is all for?”

“Yep. You probably know more about it than I do. I could use your input.”

I expected him to jump right into that idea. He was always working, always thinking about work, and I was sure he would choose work over trying something new. He frowned. “I should want to do that, but the idea appeals to me less than the idea of trying to do nothing.”

I was truly shocked. I slid the legal pad into my book to hold my place. In all honesty, I'd rather work. The book about branding was fascinating and giving me all kinds of ideas for Nora's business, but if Noah was going to try something new, so could I. “Okay, then. Let's do nothing. How should we start?”

He grinned and looked around the kitchen, his gaze snagging on the huge front window. “It's almost six. Why don't we sit on the back porch and watch the sun set?”

It looked cold out there, and I was cozy and warm in the house.

He could see me hesitating. “When was the last time you just sat and watched the sun set over the mountains?”

“Why don't we watch it from inside? The windows are so big it's as good as being outside.”

“You can stay in here, but I want the full experience. I want to feel the chill in the air and smell the forest and the fallen leaves.”

I huffed. “Fine. Give me a few minutes to get some warmer clothes on.”

He helped me out of my chair. I waddled back to my room and bundled up in my warmest clothes. “It's October, not January,” he said, when I made it back to the kitchen. He was wearing a light coat and jeans.

“It's a lot colder in the mountains than it is in Atlanta this time of year.”

He shrugged and smirked while I slid my feet into shoes and pulled on a winter coat, hat, and gloves. I followed him outside and we took seats next to each other in the rocking chairs. There was a cold bite to the air and the wind was whipping. I shivered and stared at the mountains, waiting for something to happen. It didn't take long for me to get bored.

“So, this book I'm reading—”

“Shh,” Noah said. “We're doing nothing. Just soak it in.”

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