Page 20 of With All My Heart, Joy

“Mr. Miller!” She moved in her chair with agitation. Those honey-drenched eyes begged him to take it back.

“Yes?”

“I can’t!”

“Why not?”

“I—I—I just can’t. I don’t know how.”

Not the real reason, he could see that. But sometimes a little imagination went a long way. Isaac stood. “On your feet, Joy.”

Tentatively she joined him in the space between the chairs.

“I’m Ben. And you’re going to tell me how you feel about me.”

She puffed out her cheeks, crossed her arms, then dropped them in a huff. “If you insist.”

“I do.”

She closed her eyes, and when they opened, they flashed. “Ben, I need to talk to you.”

He acted affronted. “What did I do?”

“Sixteen years ago you rudely told me that I wasn’t wanted in our family, and I have believed it ever since. Do you have any idea how that has affected me?” Her arms flapped with rage. “Why did you say that, you pompous jerk? And how come you never apologized?”

Isaac stared at her, his mouth agape, feeling personally offended until it slowly came to him that he wasn’t Ben and this was a roleplay. Joy Halverson was a tremendous actress. It was no wonder she had such an avid following online.

Unable to contain his amusement, he rolled his head back and laughed. His loud laugh, the kind that came from his belly. By the time he finished, he was wiping moisture from his eyes.

“I’m sorry, but I was not expecting such a fantastic show from you. Forgive me.”

She was grinning, and—God, help me to stop noticing these details—she had a gorgeous smile.

“Mr. Miller, you have agreatlaugh.”

He appreciated the compliment, but the title that came with it poured ice water on his flames. He was Mr. Miller, her counselor. He cleared his throat and took his seat again, desperately trying to dig up the reserves of his professionalism.

“Well done. I think whenever you’re ready to confront Ben, you might want to refrain from name-calling, but you get the idea.”

A giggle escaped her throat, the sweetest sound. Isaac released a silent sigh. What was it about Joy that made him feel like he was her longtime friend, not her brand-new counselor? At first, he’d thought it was the fact that he’d met her outside of the office. But now he was afraid it was more than that. It was her personality that drew him. A personality with a perfect blend of sweet, sarcastic, and stubborn. A personality he liked.

“Let’s discuss your new homework. This week I’m adding two things to the list. First, stop reading comments online.”

“I can’t do that!” She leaned so far forward in her chair she almost slid off. “Part of my job is online engagement. That means interacting with fans. I can’t just ignore the comments.”

“Is there a way to filter out the negative ones?”

“Well…no.”

“Then I’m asking you to stop reading all comments until our next session. This is an experiment for the sake of your mental health. Is your happiness worth sacrificing for the comments of strangers?”

She blinked rapidly, and then he noticed her eyes were shiny with unshed tears. “You don’t know how hard I’ve worked to get to where I am,” she whispered, her voice cracking in the middle.

He longed to reach out and put a comforting hand on her knee. Not good. “I do know. I did some research this week on what it takes to be successful in your sphere. You’ve earned the place you have. But at what expense?”

He let the question hang, and this time, he let her cry, no tissues offered. At last, she sniffed and nodded.

“Okay. I won’t read comments this week.”

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