Page 20 of Double Fault

“Right.” I clear my throat and pull my shoulders back. “I can take Maddie exploring now if you want to get some sleep.”

I’m wiped, but with the way the eight-year-old is still bouncing off the walls, she needs to get out, and that means I’ve got to be on the job.

He cocks his head, eyes narrowing in thought. It’s clear he wants to say no, but hopefully he sees that my suggestion is a good one.

After an awkward bout of silence, he dips his chin. “That would be okay. Don’t go too far from the hotel.”

With a small smile, I turn to leave, but he stops me with a hand on my arm. The calluses on his palm rasp against my bare skin.

“Did Fisher give you a card yet?”

I shake my head. “No.”

He pulls his wallet out and passes me a sleek AmEx. “Here. Get food or anything else you need with that.”

Grinning, I roll it back and forth between my fingers. “Anything I need? What exactly are we talking about? Does a car count?”

He exhales loudly and arches a brow. “Don’t make me take it back.”

I slap the card against my chest, covering it with both hands. “No take-backs.”

“Technically, though, yeah, you could buy a car with it.”

The air escapes my lungs and I drop my hands, nearly dropping the card too. “How rich are you?”

He presses his lips together like he’s trying not to laugh. “Rich.”

From my Google searches, Noah was ranked at number two in the world, behind Elias Johnson, before he stopped competing. While I didn’t Google Noah’s specific net worth because I was scared to know, Ididlook at Elias’s, and it was well over one hundred million.

Being flat broke my whole life means it’s impossible to even wrap my head around that kind of money.

“I’m going to shower.” With that, he turns and shuffles toward his bedroom.

I shake my head, coming back to the moment. “Maddie and I will get out for a while.”

Truthfully, I’d prefer to do the same, shower and fall into bed, but that will have to wait.

Maddie appears as I’m slipping the AmEx into my pocket, wearing a fresh set of clothes.

“My dad said you’re taking me somewhere?”

“Yep. We’re going exploring. How does that sound?”

With an excited squeal, she takes off for the door.

Just watching her makes me weary. I can’t imagine how wiped I’ll be when we get back.

CHAPTER 7

NOAH

The sun is only beginningto rise when I finally wake. Jet lag has never hit me like this before, but the time off has thrown me out of whack, and it looks like my body will need some time to adjust.

Maddie sleeps peacefully in the bed beside mine, mouth hanging open and a puddle of drool forming on her pillow. I didn’t even hear her come to bed. That’s how hard I slept.

Having not traveled out of the states before, I can’t imagine how exhausted Sabrina was. Yet she insisted on taking Maddie out so I could rest. Sure, it’s her job, but she just as easily could have cued up movie after movie for my daughter while she dozed on the couch. Instead, she jumped in with both feet.

I slip out of bed and shuffle over to Maddie. Smiling, I push her hair back and bend to kiss the birthmark beside her ear.

---