CHAPTER 16

NOAH 

I closed the door to Mr. Carmichael's study, my heart hammering in my chest. 

What he just said made sense. Hell, I should've seen it coming. Maybe, deep down, a part of me knew. I had suspected for a while that this might happen. But knowing and hearing it out loud are two completely different things. 

Why the hell did it feel like a punch to the gut, then? Like something I could've avoided... if I had just been smarter.

My phone vibrated. I looked down to see that it was Luke that was calling me. I took a shaky breath and made my way to my room before I picked up the call.

"Hey. How did the meeting go?" my personal assistant asked. 

I sat down on my bed, my head spinning with the conversation I just had with Ciara's father. 

"Noah? Hello? Are you there?" Luke called out when I said nothing. 

"Hey. I uhm…he wants us to get married," I spitted the words out immediately.