He was still awake when she got home.
That was the first sign something was wrong. Noah never waited up. He was always either locked in his office or already in bed by the time she came back from late design sessions. But tonight he sat on the living room couch in the dark, jacket still on, tie still knotted. Like he had walked in from the SEC building hours ago and never moved.
Leighton dropped her bag by the door. "Noah?"
He looked up. His face was the kind of still that scared her more than anger would have.
"Sit down," he said. "Please."
She sat in the armchair across from him. Not beside him. Something about the way he said *please* made her want the distance.
He leaned forward. Elbows on his knees. Eyes on the floor. He turned his wedding ring once around his finger, then stopp
