Page 48 of Deadline for Love

I remembered Nathan wanted me to take a day off next week, so I asked him about it.

“Yes, you can take next Friday off; you’ll have a slightly longer weekend; that’s no problem.” He pulled a notebook out of his pocket and scribbled down the day.

I thanked him, and he asked if there was anything else, but I waved him off, and he left the room so I could continue working on the tasks.

The working atmosphere was pleasantly quiet, and I was utterly absorbed in reading old newspaper reports about Rita. I wanted to write more in my next article and took new notes about her discovery, I also tried to find a connection between the current victims and her, but at some point, a shadow loomed in front of me, I felt someone touch a part of my hair, and I was forced to look away from my screen.

Nathan stood before my desk, his hair slicked back, his beautiful brown eyes shining with the dim lights of my table lamp. He wore a black suit without a jacket, slightly accentuating his muscles.My gaze then lingered on his full lips.

“Nathan, how did you get in here?”

He smiled. “Nia texted me and got me in here. She said you’d be working late night if I didn’t pick you up now.” He tilted his head and studied me for a long moment. “I didn’t want to disturb you, but it’s getting late. Let’s go home, I’ll make dinner.”

The words go home and prepare dinner rotated like music in my ears. My heart warmed, and I just felt good hearing that.

“One second, just let me save this, and then we can go.”

I hurriedly sorted out all the documents I had on the table. Nathan patiently waited, and I noticed his gaze briefly lingeredon his sister’s newspaper article, and his eyes appeared infinitely sad.

“I’m taking Friday off next week,” I informed him, placing a new sheet on top of the articles to cover them up.

Nathan glanced at me again and nodded. “All right, I’ll take Friday off, too.”

“Has Nia left yet?”

“I think so; she just let me in and told me where to find you.”

I actually wanted to talk to her again about earlier with Aicha, but I decided to just text her about tomorrow’s interview.

She replied within seconds as if she had been waiting for my note the whole time.

Nia

Great. Now spend some time with your future husband. I’ll see you tomorrow, and you can tell me all about it then.

It was evident that she enjoyed the whole situation. The termfuture husbandwas an apparent attempt at teasing, which made me shake my head.

“Something wrong?” Nathan asked.

I shook my head again. “No—I mean, everything’s fine. Come on, let’s go. It’s time for me to clear my head.”

Nathan caught my hand and pulled me next to him, then deftly wrapped his arm around my shoulders before taking the bag I was carrying.

My heart started beating faster again, and my whole body felt warm from the contact. I couldn’t help but stare at him, unsure what to do.

“If we’re in a relationship, we should probably act like it,” he explained, winking at me.

“But no one’s here to prove anything,” I mumbled.

“You’re here.”

Feeling shy, I looked down at the floor, but he grabbed my chin and lifted it quickly, so I had to look at him. My whole body was filled with excitement and nervousness. His touch made my skin feel like it was melting under his fingers.

“I thought you didn’t want to push me?” I whispered dreamily, his gaze full of love and longing.

“I’ll never do anything you don’t want me to do.”

His remark made me chuckle, and then my gaze lingered on his lips. He had already kissed me, even though I wasn’t ready for it... but I enjoyed it very much, even if it was only briefly, and he was unaware of it.

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