"Oh Jesus, Carter. You’re really going to do this?"
"I need more time with her." I hated how pathetic I looked especially in front of Noah.
"At least tell me you're really going to throw yourself down the stairs so that it's not all fake."
"I'm not an idiot."
Noah shook the report at me and then tossed it on my desk. "This report says otherwise."
"I'm not an idiot with a death wish then."
"Again, that report says differently because I can totally see Jess wanting to kill you for duping her."
"This is the best way to spend extended time with her,” I argued.
Noah shook his head. "The best way is for you to pursue her the way normal people do. Ask her for a date —"
"I have, and the only time she actually came was when dad was chaperoning."
"Look, we both know that I'm not an expert in relationships —"
"Then maybe you shouldn't try to give me any advice," I said through a tight jaw.
"It doesn't take a relationship expert to know that starting a relationship on a lie doesn't bode well for the longevity of it. Ask anyone. That's what they'll tell you."
“It's not really a lie or deception, just more of creating an opportunity to spend more time with her. Hopefully it will work but if it doesn't, hopefully, I will understand what the hell is going on with her."
"I'm telling you it's nuts, Carter. Things are not going to go well with you and Jess unless you screw your head on straight."
"My head is screwed on straight. It's probably the only thing that is on straight at the moment. I have complete clarity about what it is I want. And there's a part of her that wants it too, so I'm just trying to create some time for us to figure it out."
"Look man, I like Jess —"
Everything in my body went cold, and I was about to tell him to stay the fuck away from her.
Noah waved his hands. "Not like that. Just as a person. As a friend. I can't get behind what you're doing here because she doesn't deserve having this done to her."
I didn't like his wording, because she didn't deserve to be tricked, but I didn't deserve to be given whiplash with the hot and cold way she behaved around me. "Why are you really here?"
Noah shrugged. “I need to look at your computer to make sure the patch we just installed is working right."
I rose from my chair offering it to Noah so he could access my computer.
I watched as he typed away on my keyboard. "When are you finally going to come on board here like the rest of us?"
Noah’s eyes were intent on the screen, but he shook his head. “I'm not the corporate work everyday, 9-to-5 type," he said.
I scoffed. "You're here, almost here 9-to-5 every day anyway. If you make it official, you’ll make Gran happy."
"I like to make Gran happy, but I'm not like the rest of you willing to sacrifice my freedom to make it happen."
I stood looking down at him. "You come running every time Andi gives a call. How is that freedom?"
He made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a growl. He stood and bumped me out of the way as he came around my desk and headed towards my door. "I’m not joining the ranks and that's final."
I rolled my eyes at his wake, and sat back down at my desk gathering my papers of deception. Noah really needed to stop fighting reality and join the family business. I felt certain that he wanted to, but I wasn't sure why he wasn't. That whole freedom thing was a bunch of bull, because we all had a lot of freedom in how we worked. It was one of the things that made working for Strong Incorporated so good. I got to travel the world. I got to flex my math muscle in ways that challenged me. Noah would have the same. It was time for Noah to grow up and accept what was.
It wasn't lost on me, that perhaps that was the advice I needed to take as well. Maybe it was time for me to grow up and accept what was; that Jess wasn't that into me.