Page 87 of Love is a Harmony
Henry nodded. “I thought you told me he wasn’t on your client list anymore. I figured he was joking, but I don’t understand what he wants. He says he has a delivery.”
She ran a hand through her hair. “Let him in. This is just a last meeting before I hand him over to Devlin.”
Henry nodded as if her lie was a perfectly believable explanation. He disappeared, and a moment later, Noah walked in with a long, wrapped parcel in his hands. He set it against the wall and closed the door.
“Hi.” His grin. His accent. There was no way she could stay irritated with this man. He reached her desk in three long strides and leaned over it to place a deep kiss on her lips.
He tried to pull away, but she fisted her hand in his shirt and pulled him back down for another.
He chuckled against her lips. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were happy to see me, love.”
“A little happy.”
“But also annoyed I interrupted your workday.” He smiled like that didn’t bother him. “It’s okay, I won’t stay long.”
“Where’s Stella?”
“Wait, she’s not with me?” He looked behind him. “Daft girl. Must be lost somewhere in this labyrinth of halls.”
Melanie didn’t believe that for a second. Noah would never take his eyes from her. “I take it she’s okay.”
“Oh yes, a nice stranger offered to show her the fountains in the courtyard. He looked clean enough.”
“Noah.” She narrowed her eyes.
He let out a laugh. “Relax. She’s with your dad.”
“W-what?” What would Stella be doing with her dad? “Why?”
Noah shrugged. “Mr. S. was by the front desk when we walked in. I told him I was dropping something off, and he recognized Stella from when he found us at your apartment. I don’t pretend to know how that man’s mind works, but I didn’t argue when he asked Stella if she wanted to go with him.”
It didn’t make any sense. Her dad definitely wasn’t a kid person.
But Stella had a way of thawing hearts everywhere she went.
“I brought you something.” Noah grinned, walking to where he’d left the package along the wall. He bent to unwrap whatever it was he’d brought and faced her again with a proud smile on his face. He held a framed painting with swirling bright colors rotating around darker colors.
Melanie stood and walked around her desk to get a closer look. The way the colors played off each other… it was breathtaking. “You brought this for me?” She lifted her gaze to his.
His smile widened. “Come on, Mel. It’s about time you stop working in this sterile office, don’t you think? We’ll work on your apartment eventually, but for now, I wanted to bring you some color.”
She ran a finger along the bottom of the dark frame to where a silver placard said one word. “Harmony.”
“I talked to the artist when I bought it. It’s meant to show a harmony between the bright and the dark colors. She told me it was about opposites attracting to one another and working in together to make something beautiful.”
Of course. Rock stars didn’t just buy art, they got first class service and access to the artists themselves. Melanie smiled at the effort he’d put in to finding something so perfect. “I love it.”
“Yeah?” She recognized his smile for what it was. Unsure, hopeful. He hadn’t known what she’d think, and it scared him.
“Yes, Noah.” In the years since Justin died, she’d never met someone who cared about the small things like bringing color to her office, making sure she didn’t lose herself in blandness.
Taking the painting from Noah, she set it on her desk and turned back to him. “Come here.”
He didn’t have to be told twice.
She stretched up on her toes, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him there in a long hug. “Thank you.”
“Anytime, love.”
