Page 82 of The Merger

I smile that he remembers. “I got a couple of good leads at Courtney’s party. Hopefully, I’ll hear something about them this week.”

“That’s great.”

“Yeah. I hope they pan out. Mom is starting a new wing of her business, and I don’t want her guilt-tripping me into coming back and helping with it. If I’m killing it at Plantcy, she won’t even ask.”

He takes another bite. “What kind of new wing?”

“Life insurance.” I curl my legs up under me. “She started my enrollment into a whole life policy a few days ago. Apparently, I’m still young enough to get my rates locked in at a reasonable price.”

“That’s great advice. Those policies build up tax-deferred over time, and you can withdraw the cash or borrow against it later.”

I laugh. “Again, is there anything you don’t know?”

He shakes his head and looks away.Is he embarrassed?

“What about Brewer Group?” I ask, jokingly. “How’s business?”

Gannon chuckles. “How’s business, huh?”

“I mean, it sounded pretty intense on the phone.”

“I’m surprised you could hear any of it over your moaning.”

I narrow my eyes at him. Although, he’s not wrong. Apparently, my body responds exceptionally well to Gannon Brewer’s growly voice.

“That call was a pain in my ass,” he says, taking another bite. “I’ll jump on a call with them and Renn in the next couple of weeks and shut them down.” He pauses, realizing I’m not following. “Renn gets the final say on all things associated with the Royals rugby team since he’s the GM. But he’ll never agree to their bullshit.”

“What’s it like having a big family? I know Tate loves it, but what about you?”

He takes a drink and then sighs. “It’s fine.”

“It’s fine?”

“It’s fine.” He shrugs. “Things change over time. I’ve never loved it or hated it.”

There’s more to his thought. I can see it in his eyes. But I can also tell he doesn’t want to talk about it, so I don’t push. He’s already sharing so much more than I ever expected.

“Speaking of business,” he says, “I have to fly out of town tomorrow morning, and I’ll be gone until Saturday afternoon.”

My spirits smash against the floor. “Oh. Okay.”

“What do you have going on this week?”

I set my plate next to my tea and curl up with a pillow pressed to my stomach.

“I don’t have too much going on,” I say. “I’ll be in your office on Wednesday and Friday. Tate and I are having lunch on Thursday. My stepmom texted me today that she’s putting together a birthday dinner for my dad. I’m not sure I want to go.”

My chest tightens because that’s a lie. I don’t want to go. I don’t want to put myself out there and feel demoralized all over again. I’m in such a good place and seeing him feels like a step backward.Maybe Aurora picked up on my lack of enthusiasm and will let it go.

He puts his plate beside mine and then sits back, staring into the distance.

The house is dead silent. Instead of wanting to say something to break the stillness, I’m happy to lean my head on the cushion and absorb the peace.“I really like the peace and privacy.”I get it.

“What do you want out of this, Carys?”

Startled, I sit up. “What do you mean?”

“What do you want out of this? Is it a one-night stand? Are we fuck buddies? I just feel like we need to be on the same page.”