Chapter 105 Returning to Work

Noah insists on driving me in to work in the morning. I'm not sure it's his best idea. It's bound to just cause gossip. Not that he seems to care.

It also means I have to get up earlier than I'd like because Noah needs to head back to his place to shower and change. That's something I can get behind though, even if it does mean getting up when it's still dark outside. I've never seen Noah's apartment. He always comes to mine so the chance to see a little more of his world is definitely not something I'm going to pass off on.

Noah drives us there while I text Martin to check on my grandma. Martin's reply arrives quickly and is far shorter than I would like. He simply says that she is still sleeping.

I almost tell Noah to turn the car around so I can return to the hospital.

Taking a deep breath, I try to encourage myself not to get distracted. As much as I might want to be with my grandma, the thing I really need to do is find out who killed my parents. That's if someone did in fact kill them and it wasn't just an accident.

Noah lets us into his apartment and guides me straight through to a large open plan living area.

"Fancy a coffee?" he asks. He knows full well that he doesn't need to ask. I'm never going to say no to caffeine, especially this early in the morning.

"Yes, please," I reply, looking around as discreetly as possible.

He busies himself making my drink in the kitchen area, before turning on the TV and flipping it to the news.

"I'm going to grab a quick shower," he tells me softly. "I'll be right back."

He walks out the door, leaving me alone. Sipping my drink, I sit down on his sofa, doing my best to not go nosing all around his living room. My good manners all but disappear when I spot a photo of Noah with his granny. He's talked about her before and I feel compelled to put a face to the name.

He looks so happy in the photo, standing behind his grandmother's chair. He really is a very attractive man and I'm insanely lucky that he's mine. In the photograph, his granny is glancing back towards Noah, a wide, proud smile on her face.

I feel tears prickle my cheeks and I reach up to brush them away. Putting the photo back down, I tell myself not to worry about my grandma, silently insisting that she will be fine.

"Ready to go?" Noah asks, coming into the room, looking clean shaven and sexy as hell in a navy suit.

"Yeah..." I whisper, moving towards him so I can take his hand in my own, seeking comfort.

He grins down at me but he must notice that my eyes are bloodshot or something because he pulls me into a tight hug.

"Are you alright love?"

"Yeah..." I'm not really sure what else to say.

He doesn't press it even though he clearly sees through me. The look on his face when he pulls away is a clear giveaway. Taking my hand once again, he leads us out of his apartment and out onto the street to where his car is waiting for us.

"You have a nice place," I tell him conversationally.

"It does the job," he says. "I don't really spend much time there."

I'm fully aware of that fact. When he's not sleeping, at work or with his granny, he's usually at mine. I decide not to comment though.

***

When we arrive at the company, I wish that I could just keep holding his hand and hide behind him. But that's really not an option. I'm worried what the team will think. As cool as they were at the memorial, it's hard to believe that they really don't feel angry that I didn't tell them.

If I was them, I'd be livid. I don't like lies and so I can completely understand if they feel betrayed.

That said, I really hope they don't. I don't think I have the energy to deal with their anger while dealing with all the rest of the drama going on in my life right now. And for once, I don't think I'm being a complete drama queen.

Because we had to make a detour to Noah's apartment, we actually arrive later than the rest of the team. As we make our way into the department, silence falls around us and I take a deep, uncertain breath, waiting for everything to erupt.

But it doesn't.

Stacey gives us a quick wave before returning to her work and the others all seem to follow suit. I release my breath, my shoulders slumping in relief.

"Do you want to work in my office today?" Noah offers.

He's so sweet when he's worried about me. I'm really grateful to have him with me. I refuse his offer, telling him I want to just get back to work and he gives me a look that sort of resembles the one on his granny's face in that photo.

I put my things away and power up my computer, busying myself with checking my emails. Noah enters his office, leaving the door ajar. Another sign he's worried.

A team member that I've never really spoken to before comes up to my desk not fifteen minutes later.

"Can I get you a coffee, Eden?" she asks, her voice higher than it usually is.

Since when has anyone in this department ever offered to make me a coffee? I shake my head, thanking her for the offer before returning to my work. It's hard to keep my focus, especially when I'm pretty sure people are watching me.

I don't like the feeling of having eyes on my back and I feel really unsettled.

Unable to maintain my composure, I decide to escape into the staff kitchen for a moment but I don't get two steps away from my desk before someone else is asking me if they can do anything for me. Again, I refuse politely, telling them that I am just going to get a glass of water.

"I can get that for you."

"No, thank you. That's not necessary," I tell him, rushing away so that I can go and hide.

Noah's POV:

I don't like this. I hate sitting in here while she's out there. They're so busy sucking up to her that they've completely forgotten that only a day or two ago, she was their friend. It's ridiculous and I'd like to give them all a good talking to but I'm pretty sure Eden would tell me off.

There are several moments when I want to intervene and have to hold myself back.

It's only when she gets up with a pile of papers in her hands and someone tries to help her with them, causing them all to go flying that I decide I can't take it any more. Getting to my feet, I step out of my office to where they're both scurrying to pick up the sheets of paper.

"Tom, back to work," I say in my most authoritative tone.

He looks like he wants to refuse, probably feeling like a right jerk for leaving Eden to tidy up the mess he caused. Squatting down, I begin to pile up the documents as I offer her a small, hopefully encouraging, smile.

"Are you okay?" I ask in a hushed tone.

She simply nods her head before telling me that she was planning on bringing these documents in to me, but she will need to re-order them again. Laughing, I tell her that I want her to organise them in my office. She looks like she wants to refuse but she gives in when I tell her that I'm going across the street to get us both a sandwich and coffee.

I've learned that the easiest way to win an argument with Eden is by offering her coffee.