Leighton's alarm went off at six. She reached for it. Knocked over a water glass. Heard it crash. Perfect start.
Jetlag had them both wrecked. Three days back from Italy and sleep was still wrong. Too early. Too late. Never right.
Noah groaned beside her. "Is it morning?"
"Unfortunately."
"Can we go back to Italy?"
"I wish."
She dragged herself to the shower. Hot water helped. Barely. Coffee helped more. She drank two cups standing at the counter. Staring at nothing.
Her phone buzzed. Work email. Then another. Then five more. All marked urgent. All demanding immediate attention.
Two weeks away meant two weeks of backlog. Projects stalled. Decisions delayed. Clients waiting. Everything piled up like dirty laundry.
She opened her laptop. Scrolled through emails. Two hundred unread.
