Page 95 of Yours, Finally

"Lina, Jake and I didn't plan to share with anyone yet." I guided us to the elevator, where I pushed the call button. "In fact, Jake may panic when I tell him you know. I'm in shock myself, look."

I showed her my trembling hands.

"You can't tell anyone about us," I insisted.

With our agreement and each of our stories as they were, the sudden change could put an unwelcome strain on us. I didn't think this could trigger Jake into anything particularly alarming, but I could see it adding to his trepidation.

"How am I supposed to—" She frowned, her gaze a mix of confusion and amusement. "Wait. Start at the beginning. How long has this been going on?"

The elevator arrived, and we stepped into the car still arm-in-arm.

"Since the gala," I replied. "What parkade level are you in?"

"The gala?! That was a month ago!"

I nodded with as much irreverence as I could add to it. "Floor number?"

"Minus two. The fuck! You've been keeping it quiet this whole time?"

I nodded again, my eyes on the decreasing numbers on the LED screen. "Yep. And we want to keep it quiet for a bit longer, if you don't mind."

"Why? I mean, I'm going to do my best, just out of respect for you guys, but it would really help if I understood the reason."

I bit the inside of my lips. "There's the VP issue— it's not a good look on us if we got together as soon as we could. It may not be the same scandal as if we'd gotten together before he became a VP, but still. We don't want any suspicion on us that way."

"Okay… yeah. The owners' daughter and the man who's another son to the family and also a new VP— I can see a few eyebrows arching your way."

We got to Lina's floor and I came out of the elevator with her. I was parked on the floor below, but I needed to finish this conversation. We faced each other now in the small elevator lobby.

"But that's not even the main thing, is it?" Lina asked.

There was a certain tension on her lips, like she had a thousand thoughts she planned to keep back. It didn't take away from the patience softening her eyes.

She was shorter than I was, but I still felt like I looked up to her.

I crossed my arms and gazed at the polished concrete under our heels. "I wanted to make sure we could test the waters safely. Privately. If one of us made a mistake or wanted out, or if it fizzled out before we knew it… I wanted to lick my wounds in peace."

"I can't think of a single person in the family who would not want to hold you while you licked your wounds, Vi."

She was right, of course. Still, my stubborn streak had me lifting my chin in defiance.

I took strength out of the resolve carving knots into my bones. "I adore you, Lina. You're a fave, and also you were ready to marry Jake and I even before we got together. Remember lunch before the gala?"

Her face took on a more sheepish look. It took the fight out of me.

I put a hand on her arm. "I didn't want those kinds of expectations on us. To worry about what other people thought. I wanted all my attention on Jake— and all his attention on me."

"Okay, I can see that." She sighed. "I shouldn't push, really. Weirder things have happened."

I raised an eyebrow; that was a strange way to talk about it, but I didn't call it out.

I smiled. "I'm happy that if anyone caught us it was you. I finally have someone to squee with about how much I like Jake."

She laughed. "That might be a benefit to it, yes. I'm happy for you two."

"Thank you. I'm happy, too."

Chapter 28