Noah settled at the desk in what he assumed was an office. He didn’t need one, but he liked the idea of one. This room had a large oak desk on which he could set his laptop. He did most of his songwriting with pen, paper, and his guitar, but sometimes he jotted notes.

He paid his bills and did any telecalls from his laptop in his office at home.

Bookshelves lined one wall. A globe sat on a round wooden table. The floor-to-ceiling windows looked out onto an orchard. Noah liked ...