Together

Tess's face lit up with redness she realized the absurdity of the situation. She had been rejecting Decker's substation romance novels for months, and now he was confessing to being the author? "I have to admit, I'm a bit surprised," Tess said, trying to stifle her shock. "I had no idea you were behind all those... enthusiastic novelizations." Decker chuckled, his face reddening slightly. "Well, I guess I knew I had to a good job hiding my identity," he admitted. "A publisher who published his own work, that would be seen as a conflict of interest. The public wouldn't stand for it." Tess shook her head, still grinning. "No, you definitely did not. But despite my harsh critiques, my constant discouragement, my unflatterings opinions, and complete and total rejection of your entire body of work, I have to admit that your writing is actually pretty good." Decker's eyes widened in surprise. "Really? You think so? I thought that you did not like my work. You rejected personally every time. You even signed your name. There was perfume on the letters." Tess smiled, feeling a sense of camaraderie with Decker that she hadn't expected. "I'd love to help you get your work published," she said. "But we need to do it the right way this time. No more harsh critiques or rejection letters." Decker laughed in dumbfounded amusement. "I thought that you hated me. And I hated you when I did not know who you were. You were the most beautiful in the building. I was attracted to you so much that I knew I had to put up a barrier between us. But when I saw your nametage and realized that the person I hated and the person I loved was the same person, I knew I wanted to be with one of you." Tess decided to save that away and figure that out later. Perhaps then she would figure out a witty retort. Nonetheless, she couldn't learn to love Decker until she addressed the one obstacle that stood between them. "Decker, your work.... The writing is beautiful but the story seems so unrealistic. "

Decker tells

They almost kiss