Chapter 6
After another pleasant group-made breakfast the next day, Noah walked beside Caitlyn ahead of the other interns as they made their way to the park again. She hadn’t looked at him once today.
“Did the games go so well last night only because of this particular group of people?” he asked.
Caitlyn glanced at him, and he had to push down an unexpected sense of accomplishment that she had. He was such an idjit.
“Could be.” She looked ahead again. “We should discuss it as a team.”
As they made their way to the model-boat pond, Noah found himself struggling. A part of him wanted to do something—anything—to make Caitlyn look at him again. Wasn’t he supposed to hate her for the false accusations she’d made against Keven?
Yes, but whenever Noah was with her, he experienced selective amnesia. Then, when he was alone again, he would come back to himself. Why couldn’t his heart and his brain get in sync?
“I’ve always wanted to go sailing,” Zoe said as the oval-shaped pond came into view. “This is probably the closest I’ll ever come.”
“We’ve been sailing many times,” Finn said. “‘Tis craic.”
“Crack?” Zoe stared at him.
“It means fun,” he said with a grin.
“Come decide which color sailboat you want,” Caitlyn called. “If we’re going to race, we need to tell whose boat is whose from a distance.”
“What’s your favorite color?” Noah glanced at her hair. “Pink?”
Her expression lightened for the first time in two days, and she gave a soft chuckle.
“Since I see it in the mirror every day, it may now be my least favorite color.” Caitlyn looked at him, and Noah made a mental tick. Twice now. She said, “What about you?”
“Blue,” he said, his voice soft as he stared into her eyes.
They widened, then she dropped her gaze. There he went, being an idjit again. Noah took a step back and asked Heath, “What color do you want?”
Once everyone had chosen, Max, who had the most experience using remote control toys, went into an explanation. Noah accepted his plain white boat and did what he was told. He focused only on getting his sailboat across the pond. It was harder than he’d expected, especially with the breeze.
“Look out!” Caitlyn yelled.
Noah’s gaze shot to her yellow boat as a small destroyer-type vessel crashed into hers. It flipped onto its side, its sail now bogged in the water. Unless someone went out into the shallow pond, there was no way she could get it back.
“I’m sorry,” a boy of about twelve cried from a few feet away.
Noah let his remote drop, and it bounced on the lanyard around his neck. Before he could bend down to roll up his jeans legs, though, an older man approached Caitlyn carrying what looked like a model tugboat.
“I’m Bart, and I’ll rescue your boat, young lady,” he said. “Don’t you worry.”
Noah and the others came to stand beside Caitlyn while the man put his boat in the water. With ease, he drove his tugboat to hers. Once the two boats were close, Bart tried to maneuver a little hook to the sailboat. The breeze, and too many helpers, kept him from latching onto it.
“Everyone, please send your boats away from the yellow sailboat,” Bart called.
A hand grasped Noah’s arm, and he glanced to the side. His heart gave a hitch at Caitlyn’s touch, warmth running through him. She watched the boats while the man carefully shifted the hook closer. It connected, and the little tugboat tugged toward them, hers behind. The crowd cheered.
“He did it!” Caitlyn turned and threw her arms around Noah’s neck. Almost without thinking, he pulled her close. She didn’t stay there long before she was turning to hug the other interns too.
Noah stepped back, memories washing over him of other times he’d held her. It had felt good. So good. Too good. Idjit. He needed to be professional.
On their second run, they were more successful. Everyone managed to get their boats around the colorful balls at the end of the pond and then back again.
“Sona had Joe take me and Finn around New York when we first got here,” Noah told the group as they walked back to the penthouse, “But we never came to the park.”
“So, this visit to the penthouse isn’t your first,” Caitlyn commented from behind.
“No, we’ve been invited many times,” Noah said, stepping back to join her. “Why?”
An odd expression crossed her face, and she sent Noah a furtive glance. What was she up to?
“Now don’t you be getting secretive with me. What do you be wanting to say?”
Caitlyn sighed. “I’m not trying to be offensive, and I only bring this up because others have mentioned it to me.”
“What?” Noah asked, going defensive anyway.
“You need to be careful about name-dropping. It’s a kind of bragging when you mention the bosses or rich people you hang out with. People don’t like it.” She didn’t look at him.
“Who—” He stopped, his ire rising. What a lot of nerve. Did she understand nothing? “You mean I shouldn’t mention my family?”
Caitlyn blinked in surprise, but Noah didn’t wait for her to reply. He sped up his walk to catch up with the others.
What would she be doing now, making up mad accusations of assault against him too?