17. Josie
SEVENTEEN
JOSIE
A nervous laugh bubbles up from deep in my throat at Tyson’s words. I stare at him for a few seconds, wondering how he keeps taking me by surprise. “What?” I ask, shaking my head at him.
He stares at me with a smirk that tells me he’s made up his mind, no matter how outlandish his words may have sounded. “Whenever I make food for myself, I’ll make some for you too. That way, you’ll have proper meals while still being able to work toward your deadline.”
I continue to shake my head. “No, that isn’t necessary.”
“I think it is.” He holds my stare, the confident smirk he wears not budging in the slightest.
“No it isn’t, Tyson.”
“When will you start calling me Ty?”
My mouth hangs open as I just stare at him, ignoring his comment about the nickname because I’m still hung up on him thinking he needs to feed me. “You don’t need to make extra food for me. I’ve made it through plenty of deadlines like this. It’ll be fine.”
“Yeah, but those other deadlines you didn’t have me. Now, you do.”
His words take me by surprise. He’s only just met me, yet he’s being so nice.
I’m not used to it, and if it were anyone else, I might think the gesture is fake or because he wants something.
But there’s something about him that seems like he’s genuinely just trying to be nice and cares.
“You just met me. Why do you keep doing all these nice things?”
For a few moments, he says nothing. He just stares at me with a slight tilt to his lips as he thinks about my question for a moment.
His eyes rake over my face as he gathers his thoughts, and I can’t help but wonder what’s going through his head.
Is he taking so long to answer because he’s thinking through his response carefully?
Or is it that he hasn’t even asked the question of himself?
His shoulders slacken a little as he continues to stare at me for a little while longer. Eventually, his lips part as his gaze moves to my mouth for one moment before looking back at me. “Because I want to,” he answers simply, as if that’s all that needs to be said.
I frown because his answer only makes me more confused. “Because you want to?” I repeat.
He nods. “Yes, because I want to.”
“Why do you want to?”
His fingertips trace over his lips as he thinks about my question for a moment.
It doesn’t take him long before he opens his mouth to answer.
“I don’t want to scare you off, but my only answer to that is because I’m interested in you, Josie.
I want to know you, and if we’re being honest, no one’s quite captured my attention the way you have. ”
My mouth snaps shut as his words register. I don’t know what answer I was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t that one.
Tyson smirks as I continue to stare at him. For the moment, I’m unable to come up with any response.
“Are you done asking questions, then?” he asks, a teasing tone to his voice.
“For now,” I whisper, my mind still reeling. The bluntness with which he admitted his desire to get to know me is extremely attractive. I want to get to know him too; it’s just incredibly bad timing, considering I’m supposed to be locked away working for the next month.
“Then it’s settled. I’m going to be making you food. That way, you actually have sustenance when you’re working all day.”
I can’t help but laugh at how stubborn he is. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone use the word sustenance in casual conversation.”
He shrugs, my teasing not affecting him in the slightest. “Well, now you have. And maybe words will come easier when you’ve had a nutritious meal instead of a snack.”
“Or maybe my spark won’t come back and I won’t be able to write a book, whether I’ve had sustenance or not.”
Tyson gives me a wild smile. “I guess we’re going to find out.” He leans back in his chair, his gaze still pinned on me. “So tell me what the problem is. Why do you think you’re struggling with this book?”
“I already told you…I lost my spark, and I suck at writing.”
He scoffs as he runs a hand through the top of his hair. His fingers have now made the gelled-back strands look messy. I love the sight of it. He’s too attractive for his own good. “You haven’t lost your spark. Maybe you just need to talk through the problem with someone else.”
I lift an eyebrow as I attempt to get comfortable in my seat. “And you’re going to be that person?”
“I’m going to be whatever you need.”
I close my eyes as I let out a loud groan. “Stop saying things like that.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. Things that are perfect. Things that make me want to spend more time with you when I most absolutely should be focusing on writing instead.”
I pop an eye open after he doesn’t respond for a few moments. I find him staring at me with what might be the biggest smile I’ve ever seen from him.
God, the sight makes my entire body feel tight. His wide, confident grin, mixed with the way he looks in a suit, will be a mental picture I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget.
“So you do want to spend more time with me?” he prods, not bothering to hide the excitement in his tone.
“Yes. I wouldn’t have invited you inside tonight or said yes to dinner with you if I didn’t want to spend time with you. It’s just a bad time for me to be doing anything but working.”
Tyson shakes his head. He taps his knuckles against the counter as he thinks for a moment. “And I thought I was a workaholic,” he quips.
I playfully knock my knee against his. “I’m not a workaholic. I just happen to be on a tight deadline.”
He smirks as he lifts his chin. “Right. Whatever you say, Josie.”
“I’m not. I just have to push through the next month and finish this book, and then I’ll return to doing fun things and not working all the time.”
“And feeding yourself proper meals.”
I roll my eyes. “What is up with you making sure I eat?”
Tyson shrugs. “Because I care. Now, tell me about how writing’s going.”
“Writing’s not going,” I immediately respond. I pull my legs to my chest and wrap my arms around them, my stare still trained on Tyson.
“Why do you think you’re struggling with it?
” he asks, his tone soft. He watches me closely, and I try not to shiver under the intensity of his stare.
I don’t think I’ve ever had a man so genuinely interested in what I have to say.
It’s refreshing, but also terrifying. I don’t know if I want to dive into why I think this book isn’t working with him because it doesn’t feel like I know him well enough to go to that level.
But then again, there’s some kind of connection between us that has me open to discussing my lack of being able to write with him.
I chew on my lip for a moment before resting my chin on my knees. He leans in a little closer, his attention solely on me. “My biggest problem with it so far is that it feels like the two main characters lack connection.”
“Yeah, I bet it’s hard writing a romance book when you feel like there’s no romantic connection.”
“Exactly,” I mutter with a defeated sigh. “It’s like I know they have the potential, and I know they can have an epic love story, but I just can’t think how to make that happen.”
“Have you ever thought maybe it’d help if you just took a break from the book for a bit and came back to it?”
I groan as I sit back. My knees stay pulled up on the chair, but I fold my arms over my chest. “I think that’d help a ton, but I don’t have the time to walk away from it. It has to be done in less than six weeks at this point.”
“Can your publisher give you more time?”
I shake my head. “No. They were very clear in the meeting that the book needed to be done. Plus, my pride is on the line. I refuse to go back and ask for more time.”
Tyson cocks his head to the side, his blue gaze inquisitively raking over me. “Why’s that?”
My lips purse as I decide how honest with him I want to be.
I let out a long breath of air as I decide I might as well tell the truth.
“It’s complicated, but basically, my ex-boyfriend is the director of marketing at my publishing house.
While my editor gently told me I needed to rework some things for the book, my ex wasn’t quite as kind.
I refuse to ask for any more of an extension on this book because I don’t want to give him the satisfaction.
Plus, I really just want to prove to myself and everyone at my publishing house that I can write a good book in the timeframe we have right now. ”
Tyson nods in understanding. He traces his knuckle over his top lip as he thinks about what I just said. I like that he doesn’t immediately give a response. It’s just more proof that he actually takes in what I tell him.
“Well then, let’s talk more about what’s holding you up with writing. That way, you can prove to everyone and yourself that you can turn in the best damn book they’ve ever read next month.”
Warmth floods through my body at his words. I attempt to hide my smile behind my hand, but I’m sure he still sees it. “We’ll see. It seemed that the entire publishing team didn’t believe I could make this timeline happen.”
“You’re going to prove all of them wrong.”