13. Noah

Trustmy sister to arrive at the worst possible time. She's had over a week to get here and this is the moment she chooses? Whatever was going on between me and Cat at the bottom of the stairs was heavy and thick with buzzing energy. I couldn't tell if she was staring at my lips or my neck, but either way, I was here for it.

If that connection and chemistry meant anything, she was here for it too.

Not that anything can happen between us while I'm paying her an exorbitant salary, but I was basking in the moment.

I'm playing the long game here.

Cat takes a hurried step back from me and goes into the kitchen to fill a glass with water and gulp it down. She's changed since this morning, and I like the relaxed collared shirt she has tied at the waist. It's coral and bright and so her.

I shouldn't stare. Bree's waiting by the door for her assistant Alonzo to bring in her bags, so I give her a hug. "I expected you like a week ago. This is what you meant by getting here right away?"

Bree flips her long dark hair over her shoulder. "I took a detour to Boston for a minute."

Cat looks up at this. She must know Bree was in Nashville since she sent the flowers for me.

"To see Mitzy?" I ask.

"Yeah. She's single right now, if you're interested." Bree waggles her sculpted eyebrows.

"Still no." I lean in to kiss her cheek. Her dog snaps at me, so I step back.

Bree seems to notice Cat for the first time—she never was very observant—and brushes past me, pushing her purse into my chest. The dog barks again, so I promptly set it down.

"Hi, I'm Bree." She puts out a hand to shake Cat's. "I guess Mitzy's really off the table."

Cat looks unruffled. "Mitzy?"

"My friend. She's been pining after my brother for ages. You are?"

"Cat Keene."

"That sounds familiar." Bree scrunches her eyebrows together.

I step in. "Her family runs the BB downtown."

"Slumming with the competition?" Bree cackles. "I love it."

"We aren't competition," Cat says. "Our guest demographics are worlds apart."

"Cat's my PA for the summer. It's not—that is, we are not—" I clear my throat. "It isn't like that."

Bree looks me over, reading into my stammering. I might as well wear a sign that says how into Cat I am.

"You're so familiar." Bree's nodding, looking between us. "Were you friends with my sisters back in school?"

"Gotta go," I all but yell over her words. If Bree mentions Olive's failed friendship with Cat and ruins the progress I've made so far, she will be sleeping in the pool house. I don't know why they stopped being friends, but I do know that I mentioned Cat being cute and the next thing I knew Olive wasn't hanging out with her anymore. We really don't need to dredge up the past right now. "We're checking out locations for the photoshoot."

Bree lights up at this. "I haven't been to the beach in so long."

"Weren't you in Cabo last month?"

Alonzo lets himself in with two enormous rolling suitcases and sets them down. He gives me a nod and goes back outside, probably for more bags.

She rolls her eyes. "I meant our beach."

"Well, if you want to come," I say tightly, letting my words trail off.

"No, I need a shower. Airplanes make me feel grimy."

She probably had most of the plane to herself and her assistant, but that's irrelevant. I'm relieved I don't have to balance her and Cat at the beach. I look over Bree's head to where Cat is standing in the kitchen, gripping her empty water glass.

"Ready?" I ask.

She nods, then turns a wide fake smile on Bree. "Nice to meet you."

"Noah never stops working," Bree says. "If you're working with him, I'm sure I'll see you around."

"Probably," Cat agrees, her smile growing more strained.

Time to get her out of here.

Bree looks absently toward the door. "I should introduce you to Alonzo. He's with me all the time, so you'll need to?—"

"We can do that later. He's busy." I'm walking toward the back door, and I hold it open for Cat. "Enjoy your nap."

Bree grins. "I said shower. I'll probably jump on the bike later, too."

"We both know what that means. A nap and a movie."

She spins away, heading for the stairs and leaving her dog behind.

"What about the puppy?"

"She likes Alonzo more than me," Bree says without turning around. "Joint custody."

When we step outside, a warm breeze brushes over my skin. I close the door and lead Cat to the gate that takes us to the beachside path.

"Are they dating?" she asks.

It takes me a second to realize she's referring to Bree and Alonzo. I'll admit the joint custody bit made it sound that way.

"Who knows." I unlock the gate and let her through before locking it again with the code. "He's been her assistant for a few years, and she's had boyfriends, but there's something weird between them for sure."

Cat doesn't say anything.

We walk the path to the resort, then pass through another gate and take the stairs down. We aren't here as early as I'd hoped, so the sun is starting to leave for the day. Sand coats the steps down to the beach and whips the salt through the air. Waves crash along the shore, bringing the white noise I love about this part of the world. There are a few couples in beach cabanas on the sand, so we walk behind them and keep going toward the cove.

I want to show it to Cat, but I don't really want to use it for the ads. It's not very big and it means a lot to me. It's the one place on the island that truly felt like it belonged to my family. Not in a possessive way, but because of the memories it holds. We spent most of our time there as kids, and even when we were teens, it wasn't a place we brought friends or hookups to. It was special to us, and bringing the photography crew there would taint it.

My family might be imploding, but that makes me want to protect the cove even more.

"Where did you have in mind?" she asks, sweeping her eyes over the beach. "We could use some of the chairs near the water. Have a few people make a sandcastle and then a wave comes through and drowns it."

Better save the cove for later. Cat's down here for work, so we should work. "That could be good if we can find someone to make a castle."

"I'll do it. We just have to build it early, then it'll be ready when the tide rolls back in to do the filming."

We walk side by side, moving closer to the water. I look at her while she analyzes the area. The sun is low and warm, making her skin glow. She looks up at me and my breath catches. This is not safe territory. I need to break the connection.

Clearing my throat, I stop walking and face the other direction. "Maybe we can quarter the beach so each shot has a different background. The teams can work to set up one section while the other is being shot. The castle, the bonfire, the volleyball."

"And kissing in the surf?" she says. "Or were you planning the picnic thing instead?"

"We can roll the sandcastle into the picnic." I can't think about kissing in the surf right now because that's all I want to do with her. My mind keeps flashing back to our tumble on the beach and how tangled we were. I need to get my brain onto something else, quickly.

"Great. Then the couple can stand in the water, kissing and looking happy. It'll show people the end goal for the app."

Right. The app. Because we're here for work and not because Cat has any feelings for me.

"Are you going to come clean about the computers, Millburn, or do I need to beg?"

I look at her sharply. "I don't know that one."

A slow grin spreads over her face, so mischievous I want to kiss it off.

Yes, I know I have a problem. This crush has been brewing for years. Cat shows up again in my life with her spunky smile and contagious energy and every bit as unaware of me as she was in high school, and I feel sixteen again. The years away from her were like sticking my crush on a back burner set to simmer.

Maybe I can cook four things. I make a mean taco soup.

"You're avoiding the question now."

"What question?" I ask, turning to face her again.

"What's with the computers?"

A laugh bubbles from my chest as I start toward the ocean. "Aren't you curious."

To my relief, Cat follows me. "You don't have to tell me. Even though I'm dying of curiosity."

I don't want to. Whatever impression she has of me being a Scout CEO businessman will crash and burn once I open the door to my most ridiculous pastimes. I'm not ashamed of my particular brand of nerd. I have enjoyed many games of Dungeons and Dragons, World of Warcraft, Halo, even Warhammer 40k. But this? It takes my nerdy to another level.

Most people don't develop their own games just for fun.

Or pay three of their employees to do it for them.

"You really don't want to know."

She bumps her shoulder into mine. "I do. But I'll respect that you don't want to share with me." She stops walking, looking out over the water. "We could do a boat scene too, if you wanted."

"On my yacht?"

Cat chokes. "You have a yacht?"

Okay, quick. Change course. "Or were you thinking a speedboat? Mine's been in the shop, but I'll pick it up in the morning."

"If we're going for down-to-earth, a speedboat might be a better choice. If that's another scene you want to film."

"I'll mention it to Christine."

"The photographer?"

"She'll know best if it's something we can pull off last minute."

Cat inhales a deep breath, her gaze out over the water.

My phone buzzes, so I pull it out, see my mom's name, and immediately put it back in my pocket.

"I haven't watched the sun set in so long." She glances at me. "I've seen sunsets, like daily, but it's been forever since I've sat and actually watched the sun go down."

This feels like a lead. I'm not about to miss an opportunity. "Do you have time now?"

"I'm supposed to meet up with my friend at the diner?.?.?." She checks her phone. "Yeah, I have thirty minutes."

We're far enough away from the incoming waves to make this stretch safe, so I sit down on the sand and Cat joins me. Pink and orange streak across the sky, blending down into the warm sunlight and reflecting off the water on the horizon. The sun slowly dips down toward the sea, growing smaller and deeper orange as it moves.

My phone buzzes again, so I take it from my pocket, see my mom's name, and silence it again.

"Do you need to get that?"

"Not unless I have two hours and a comfortable chair."

Cat brings her knees up to her chest and folds her arms over them. Leaning forward, she rests her chin on her arms. "Girlfriend?"

I laugh. "My mom."

"Oh."

"She and my dad are getting a divorce. I don't know if you've heard."

"I saw something about it." Cat tilts her head so she's looking at me and cringes. "Sorry. That was probably insensitive."

"We're the family who televised our lives for five years. It's not your fault you saw a commercial somewhere."

Cat watches me, her face not revealing anything about how she's feeling. I lean back on my hands and stretch out my legs, crossing my ankles.

"Still, this must be really hard."

At least I still have parentsalmost rolls off my tongue, but it's apples and oranges. Comparing our situations wouldn't be in any way helpful, and it's irrelevant. Our struggles are independent of each other, and contrasting the two wouldn't add anything to our conversation.

I decide to be honest. "It's been more irritating than anything else."

"Because of your mom's long calls?"

"Because of all the bickering and fighting and her wanting us to take sides even though she constantly says we shouldn't take sides. I know she really means that if we don't ditch my dad, it's a personal affront to her, but she won't admit it. I'm not sure she even realizes she might feel that way." I scrub a hand over my face, feeling the tension in my forehead. "Then there's the show. If she's not crying about the divorce, she's in a manic mood, bragging about her great single life and begging me to return to The Belacourts because they don't have a show with just a divorcée and three high-drama girls."

Cat's silent for a second. "You'd think that's all they need for a reality show. Do you feel like you balance them out?"

Well, I guess she never watched the show. It's not surprising, and I shouldn't be disappointed, but part of me is. I don't want her knowing the details of my dysfunctional family, but I wouldn't have minded her showing an interest.

"That's what my mom says."

"I can see it." Cat looks out over the ocean again. "Your sisters carry the gossip and drama, your parents carry the high-end class, and you carry the smoldering masculine charm."

Someone hold my drink. Smoldering? Masculine? Charm?

Her brow furrows slightly. "Not that I think your only value is your looks, because obviously people love all the Scout content on the show. You have both the brains and the beauty."

People love the Scout content? I grow very still. Maybe she had more interest in the show than I thought. Instead of asking about that, my mind snags on her compliment. "Beauty?" I ask, looking at her. I can't look away.

Her skin glows warm and rich with the sunset, her eyes sparkling and her smile relaxed. "Handsomeness doesn't have the same ring to it."

All I can hear is the fact that Cat thinks I'm attractive. Probably objectively speaking with no feelings involved, but I'll take it.

My phone rings again. I don't even take it from my pocket this time, I just reach in and slide the lever to put it on silent. The sun is so close to the horizon now, it'll only be a few more minutes. "Stupid ringtone. It's a relatively new phone, so I need to adjust the settings."

"You must be used to that, though," she says.

"Adjusting settings?"

"Getting new phones. Don't you techy guys always need the latest version of everything?"

For my gaming computers, yeah, but I'm not going to voice that one. "I've never really cared much about phones. I only got this one because—" My words die, shriveling awkwardly on my tongue. I don't want her knowing what happened to my last phone. She doesn't need to add anything to her responsibility list.

Cat shifts, facing me. "Why?"

"Just needed one."

I must not be good at evasion, because she can see through me. Her eyes narrow. "Why?"

"My last phone, uh, fell into the ocean."

"Fell into the—" She gasps, her pink lips forming an O. "It dropped when you thought you were saving my life?"

"Maybe."

"Belacourt."

"Yes, okay. It fell in while I was swimming. It's not a big deal." I pat my pocket. "Just have to fix the settings on this one."

She shakes her head, scoffing quietly. "If you've had your new phone that long and still haven't personalized it, then yeah, I can believe you aren't the techy type who's constantly upgrading." Cat glances at me, tilting her head a little. "I'm sorry."

From her tone, it feels like she's apologizing for more than just the way I lost my phone. Maybe for misjudging me, too.

I need to change the subject before my muscles can tense any more. "How's Otto?"

She lets out a sigh. "Fine. Oblivious. He doesn't love that I took on another job, but he supports me doing what I want to do. He's just making his breakfasts and hitting the waves and living his life." She sounds tired. Am I working her too hard? "He golfs now, which is new."

"If you need to pull back at all, Cat, just say the word."

She looks at me quickly. "Are you kidding? You're an actual literal angel. I'm dying for the moment I get to tell Otto we have the money to pay off his bills, and this job is making that possible. Thanks for hiring me. I know you could have had someone more qualified."

Is now a good time to tell her that even someone more qualified wouldn't charge half as much as she is? No. That'll go with me to my grave. Besides, she thinks she's making significantly less than Mateo.

My phone buzzes again, and I'm tempted to chuck it into the ocean so it can hang out with my phone from last week. My stomach churns, wondering at all the reasons Mom is calling now. Did Dad text her again about the house in Park City? She doesn't even like skiing. I don't know why she's trying to hold on to it.

Either way, my blood is pumping and I just don't want to deal with it. I know I probably should, or Mom's frantic calling will only get worse.

"You should probably answer it."

"And ruin the sunset?" I pull my phone out, though, because she's right. There's a string of texts from my mom.

Mom

I need your confirmation for Tootsie's party ASAP

It'll be at the Apollo Lounge

Your father just RSVP'd. He's coming and he's bringing the model

I will not survive the night without support by my side, Noah. Please come.

Answer your phone!

Shall I put you down for a plus one? Bree mentioned Mitzy?

Mitzy might be messy. Should you come alone? That might be better.

Celine hasn't RSVP'd yet.

*a string of crying emojis*

CALL ME

Barbara needs an answer now so we can work on your suit!!!!!!

The last time I let her stylist dress me I ended up on a red carpet in an electric blue tux. We are not playing that game again.

Noah

I'll wear my own suit, Mom. Count me in.

I groan, sliding my phone back into my pocket to the tune of more text vibrations. Or a phone call. When Mom texts like this, it's hard to differentiate between the two.

"Guess I'm heading out of town."

Cat looks startled. "Now? But the campaign?—"

"Not for a few weeks. It's my aunt's birthday, and she likes to throw these lavish parties."

"That'll be fun?" she asks, like it's a question.

I watch the sun. "It's almost time."

Cat faces the ocean. Her arm brushes mine, and she leaves it there. I want to reach over and hold her hand and ask her to tell me about life in her beach house with Otto. It sounds cozy and idyllic compared to my stainless, sterile house.

It feels like such a shame that both of our hands are empty for the duration of the sunset.

While Cat watches the sun fall over the curve of the earth, I watch it through the reflection in her eyes. She's breathtaking, her skin glowing with an orange hue from the sunset and her hand trailing through the warm sand, heedless of the mess. She's so relaxed in her own skin. I would die to know how that feels.

I can't even get through one half of a texting conversation with my mom without feeling like I'm going to hurl.

My phone keeps buzzing, and I can't deal with it. Besides, Cat mentioned needing to meet a friend. A date? The sudden thought hits me like steel. I tear my gaze away from her and push myself up. "So you have a date tonight?" That was casual, right?

"Date? Ha. That's funny. No, just meeting a friend." She falls in beside me while we make our way past the beach cabanas toward the stairs. "Holland. Do you know her? She moved here a few years ago."

"I don't think we've met."

She nods like this makes sense.

I don't even have time to stress about the implications of that, because all I heard was the fact that Cat brushed off dating like it wasn't even on her radar. That meant she was single. Totally available.

Now I need to find a way to put myself on her radar.