She kept her eyes on his immaculate desk.
“Look at me.”
Something in his voice forced her eyes to his. He looked at her the same way he always did—with focus, friendly affection...maybe a hint more intensity than usual. But overall, he just looked at her like he was Noah and she was Mia.
So what was it about this moment that had her breath trapped in her lungs?
“Don’t make this a bigger deal than it is,” he finally said.
That sent an exhale between her lips. “Marriage isn’t a big deal? Insurance fraud isn’t a big deal?”
He pursed his lips and glanced around briefly, as if to confirm his earlier assertion they were alone. “Insurance fraud isn’t why you’re hesitating.”
Dammit, why did he know her so well?
He just watched her for a few seconds. “I usually don’t have to ask what you’re thinking.”
Funny, she felt the exact opposite about him.
“Noah, it’s too much.”
“It’s not. It’s signing a piece of paper. I’ll even let you pay the court fees if it would make you feel better.” He leaned forward and rested his forearms on his desk. His sleeves were rolled up, revealing the dark ink covering the inside of his left forearm.
Her eye caught on the wordsthe sun will rise and we will try againless than two inches above his wrist. If he slid his sleeve a little higher, she’d see a mountain.
“Don’t focus on the short term. Think about what it could mean in the long run. We do this, what—for a few months, a year?Maybetwo? Until your time comes and you get a transplant? Then it’s over, and what did we lose? Nothing. What did we gain? You took a chance on an opportunity that could lead to the career you’ve always wanted.”
“What didyougain?”
“The knowledge that I helped my friend achieve her dream. Lifelong happiness.”
“What if you meet someone—”
“I won’t.”
“Noah.”
“Mia. I don’t care about that.” His eyes dropped to his hands for a second before he looked back at her. His next words were so quiet she almost didn’t catch them. “You mean more to me.”
Her mind skipped back to that night in college, and a tiny part of her wondered if they’d made a mistake.What if...?
She swallowed and glanced away. “What if we got caught?”
“We wouldn’t. We’ve been friends for decades. It’s completely plausible we’ve been pining after each other all these years and finally decided to do something about it. No one else needs to know the situation.”
“Don’t you think your dad would know? If I quit, we got married, you put me on your insurance...he’d know something was up.”
“Let me deal with my dad.”
Her face must have revealed her doubt, because he kept going.
“My dad loves you like you’re his daughter. Even if he suspected something, he’d never say anything.”
Was she actually considering this? “I’d leave him in a lurch.” She waved a hand in the direction of the lobby.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but we can find another administrative assistant. Maybe even one who doesn’t pry the letters off my keyboard once a week.”
She grinned at that. “You’d probably move offices if I left.” He hated being so close to the lobby.