Page 37 of Dream Chaser

He was being ridiculous. “We barely knew each other in Barcelona.”

“As if that ever stopped anyone. Let’s go until the end of the walkway, then we can stop to stretch.”

Emerport was waking up by the time we finished a set of stretches.

“Any plans later today?” Asher asked.

“I’ll shower and go to the office. Need to check the pitch deck for NitroFlow. Nova and I were going to have lunch with their marketing director when we got stuck.” It was barely seven a.m., but I’d rather start early.

“Maybe I’ll stop by later,” Asher said. “Nova wanted to talk about the Aeterno campaign. Want me to find out if she likes you?”

I rolled my eyes. “Stick to racing, mi niño.”

Smirking, Asher slapped my shoulder and set off toward his bike.

His words replayed in my head while I showered and got dressed at home, and they were still stuck there like an annoying tune as I waited for the elevator in my office building.

“Morning, boss,” Eleanor said, stopping beside me.

I turned. She raised her takeout coffee. “Salud. Want to know what I did with the free afternoon you so generously gave me yesterday?”

“Nothing work-related, I hope.”

She chuckled as the elevator doors crawled open. “I went to eat at the new Italian place at the marina. Do you think Nova would like it?”

Nova, Nova, Nova. Why the fuck did everyone keep bringing her up?

“Probably. She likes lasagna,” I said, entering the elevator with Eleanor. “Why? Do you two have lunch plans?”

“If she agrees.” Eleanor twirled her coffee. “She hasn’t so far.”

“Why?”

She sipped from her cup, humming. “I thought you’d tell me.”

“Funny you’d think I know.”

She shrugged as the car stopped on our floor. “You’re the boss. Bosses know everything.”

We headed for the office. As I unlocked it, air left my lungs in a whoosh.

Nova was there. Curled up in her chair. Asleep. What the fuck? Why was she here at seven-thirty? And were those yesterday’s clothes?

Heart pounding, I stepped forward.

Eleanor caught my forearm. “Wait,” she whispered. “Don’t wake her up. Come with me.” She slipped out of the office, and I followed, equal parts confused and alarmed.

The office door clicked shut behind us. “Let’s go have coffee,” Eleanor said.

“I already had one.”

“Well, I could use another one.”

We didn’t speak until we left the building. The pensive frown was still on Eleanor’s face. Once we were on the sidewalk, I couldn’t hold the words in any longer. “Do you think she got in before us this morning?”

But Nova didn’t have a key. How would she enter?

Eleanor led the way to a coffee shop next door. “She could have if she had a key, but I think she might’ve spent the night there. The cleaning crew came yesterday. She could’ve stayed after they left,” she said as I held the door open.