Page 39 of Irresistible Love

Not that it helped, because it still left Lily with more questions than answers.

* * *

Noah kicked himself for the rest of the day and questioned his own sanity. He knew he hadn’t imagined Lily and he also knew that she was a living, breathing person standing in the elevator.

He simply craved her again.

After she left his office, he stayed there with the door closed for the rest of the day. He even had his lunch delivered so there wasn’t a chance of running into her again.

“Because obviously, I can’t control myself,” he muttered as he finally stepped out of his office a little after seven in the evening. At the elevator, he was surprised when he turned and found Sara standing beside him. “Hey! What has you here so late?”

She looked nervous, which was unusual for her. He was the reason she had the job at Montgomerys; she was dating a buddy of his and they all hung out together a lot. When William had announced that Rose was retiring and he was looking for someone to replace her, he suggested Sara for the position. It was safe to say that he knew her well and something was definitely on her mind.

“Sara?” he prompted. “Is everything okay?”

She sighed and moved away from the elevator. “Can we…talk?”

“Of course!” Glancing around, he was fairly certain they were alone, but… “Do you want to talk in my office?”

She nodded. “Please.”

Okay, something was definitely up. As soon as they were back in his office, he motioned for her to have a seat and he sat back behind his desk. “What’s going on?”

“Okay, this has to stay between us,” she began.

He nodded.

“Mr. Montgomery isn’t in Raleigh to meet with a client. He’s actually there for…health reasons,” she told him. “He didn’t want me to know, but there have been a lot of calls coming through that were apparently from doctors and hospitals and he wanted me to be aware and make sure I always put the calls through.”

Another nod.

“Earlier, his granddaughter showed up—she’s been here a lot lately—and she kind of surprised me by asking if William was sick.” She sighed. “I hated lying to her, but…I don’t think it’s my place to tell her. If he hasn’t told her, then there’s got to be a reason, right? I mean…I shouldn’t be the one breaking that kind of news to her.”

For a moment, Noah didn’t know what to say. Lily was clearly onto something and he knew she was going to fixate on it until she got her answers. “I’m sure she’ll talk to him when he gets home tonight.”

“That’s just it,” she said. “He’s not going to be home tonight. He called me a little over two hours ago to clear his schedule for the rest of the week, but said he’d be back in the office on Thursday.” She let out a long breath before adding, “Whatever he has, I don’t think today’s appointment went well.”

Shit.

“And you have no idea what this…health issue is about?”

She shook her head. “Last week, we received several calls from Duke—the hospital. I thought it was odd that he had them calling the office instead of calling him directly on his cell phone.”

“Yeah, that seems a little odd to me too,” he murmured. “So…I guess I’m not sure what to say here. I can tell you’re upset, but…”

“I honestly don’t know what to do or say if Lily shows up again. Lying is not my strong suit and she seems like a very determined woman.” She paused. “I know you’ve hung out with her a little, do you think you could talk to her?”

His eyes went wide. “And say what? Just like it’s not your place to tell her what’s going on, I don’t think it’s mine either.”

Liar.

There wasn’t a doubt in his mind that he was going to leave here and see her, but he wasn’t sure Sara needed to know that.

“Maybe just tell her that William’s client is demanding and he and Robert are staying an extra day or two to smooth things over? Honestly, Noah, she’ll see right through me if I have to be the one to tell her.”

“I’m pretty sure she will have spoken to William by now. I saw her briefly when she was here earlier, and I can practically guarantee that she’s called him already.”

That seemed to relax her. “Do you really think so? Because I’m already dreading what will happen if she shows up here tomorrow.”