“Not in this case,” I said. “This is Seth… I know him. I’ve watched him for ten years and paid attention to all the little things. He’s not as sold on this relationship as he claims to be.”
“Then you need to talk to him about it,” Alani said.
I smiled. “A simple suggestion,” I said. “And yet somehow, I find it the most complication option.”
“Are you scared of what he might say?”
“That’s an understatement,” I admitted.
“But wouldn’t you rather him be honest with you?”
“Of course,” I nodded. “Except that things are a little complicated now, what with the fact that I work for him.”
Alani’s eyes went wide for a moment. “If things don’t work out, would you continue to work here?”
I had been thinking the same thing over the last few days. The thought had popped into my head a few days ago and refused to budge until I had given it proper credence. I had suggested to Seth that we make another visit to his private island for a little alone time. He had smiled and nodded and told me we would do exactly that when he had a day to spare, but that had been two weeks ago, and no trip had occurred.
I had been to the island only once, but I had formed a deep connection with the house and its picturesque surroundings. I longed to be alone with Seth in that space again. It felt like we were cut off from everyone and everything…including my fears. I wished we could go back there, but I was trying to be considerate of Seth’s workload.
“I don’t know,” I replied honestly. “I keep going back and forth. Sometimes I think we’re both mature enough to work together even if we did split up. But then… I really think about it, and I know that I couldn’t do it.”
“Oh, Brie…”
“I’ve been in love with Seth for ten years, Alani,” I said. “If my feelings for him haven’t faded in that time, then they’re not going to. How can I possibly continue to live here and work for him? I’d have to watch him move on with his life, date other women, build a life for himself separate from me… It would be torture.”
Alani’s eyes were sympathetic, but I could tell she didn’t like the idea of me leaving. “This is all very premature,” she said. “Who knows, you and Seth could end up married one day.”
I smiled. “I don’t know if Seth is the marrying type.”
“Convert him.”
I laughed. “Easier said than done.”
“I have an idea,” she said, clapping her hands together.
“What?”
“I think the main problem here is that you don’t get enough time with him, right?”
“Well, yeah,” I said uncertainly.
“You’re both busy, it’s perfectly understandable,” Alani continued. “So what you should do is make time.”
“Uh…”
“What I mean is be spontaneous,” she said. “Surprise him when he least expects it.”
“Um, I’m not sure I understand.”
“I heard Ben talking with Seth this morning,” she told me. “Seth mentioned that he would be heading to his suite this evening to check on something… I’m not sure what, I didn’t hear that part. Why don’t you head on over to his suite and surprise him? Even if it ends up being a quickie in the shower or a fifteen-minute conversation, it’s something. Given how fast-paced your lives are, that’s what you’ll need to do to keep connected.”
I considered that for a moment. “You know, that’s not a bad idea.”
She smiled. “Excellent.”
“Wait,” I said. “I don’t have a key to Seth’s suite.”
“You don’t?”
