Chapter 218

Noah

By the time I made it back to the house, it was already deep into Saturday night, the kind of hour where everything felt stretched thin and unreal. My nerves were fried, my body energy almost nonexistent, but the second I walked into Lexie’s room and saw her sitting upright—pale, tired, and as conflicted as I was—something inside me loosened.

William was there too, standing near the window with his arms crossed, still in his pressed dress shirt like he hadn’t even stopped to rest. He turned when he heard me.

“How’s your friend? Micah, was it?”

His tone was controlled, but the worry was there—for Lexie, not for Micah.

“He made it through surgery,” I said. “We’ll know more once he wakes up again.”

William nodded once.

“I’m relieved to hear that. And you,” he added, looking sharply at me, “you’re more than welcome to stay the night here if you choose. Both of you need rest. Tomorrow, when everyone is thinking clearly, we’ll resume with the plans and preparations.”

Plans and preparations.

The wedding.

Jesus Christ… Was this guy for real?

Neither Lexie nor I answered.

He studied us for a beat longer, then exhaled and stepped toward the door.

“I’ll let you two catch up. Try to get some sleep.”

Once he closed the door, the silence in the room felt heavy and raw.

Lexie let out a shaky breath, pressing her fingers to her temples.

“Noah… I don’t feel good about any of this.”

I sat beside her, fatigue settling into my bones.

“What part?”

“All of it,” she said quietly. “The wedding. The charade. The lies... Pretending I’m okay. Pretending you’re okay. I can’t breathe, Noah. I can’t keep pretending I’m fine when I’m not.”

Her voice cracked, and it went straight through me.

“I think… I think I need to tell him right now.”

She swallowed hard.

“I need to talk to Dad about the wedding. About everything. I don’t know if he’ll listen, but I have to try. Before I lose my mind.”

My chest tightened.

“Then I go with you,” I said. “If you’re doing this, we’re doing this together. But not now. We are both exhausted and emotional.”

She blinked fast, eyes shining in the low light.

“Tomorrow morning,” she whispered. “Before he gets caught up in work. Before his guard is up.”

I squeezed her hand, grounding both of us.

“Tomorrow morning,” I repeated.

And in that moment—tired, terrified, hearts bruised from everything that had gone wrong in the last twenty-four hours—we both knew:

Sunday morning could destroy everything…

…but it could also be the first real chance we’d ever had.

I woke up feeling like I’d been run over by a semi. Not metaphorically—I mean every bone in my body ached, my head throbbed, and fear was sitting so deep in my chest it felt like another organ.

Being in William's house didn't make it any better. I could almost feel his fucking presence everywhere…

When I rolled out of bed, the whole world still felt tilted, wrong.

Micah in a hospital bed.

Lexie, bruised and shaken.

Aiden, gone.

And today…

Today, we were about to walk into a storm.

I checked my messages first—nothing. Aiden knew not to call or message when I was anywhere near William, which only made my stomach twist harder.

How are you? I miss you so much.

Aiden's reply took only seconds.

I miss you too, baby boy… Any news?

We are talking to William this morning. I'm scared, but we need to try. How's Micah?

I'm not sure… Something isn't quite right with him. I'll know more later… Be careful with William, baby.

I'll call you tonight. I love you.

I love you too, baby boy.

I took a hot shower, hoping it would help me feel human again. It didn’t. But at least it washed the dried tears off my face.

When I went downstairs, Lexie was already at the dining table. A full breakfast spread was laid out—eggs, fruit, pastries—but neither of us could even look at it without feeling sick. We just sat there, pale and shaking, sipping water like two people about to confess to murder.

The moment William walked in with Mrs. Hart behind him, the air in the room crackled.

“Good morning,” he said, voice calm, eyes sharp. “You’re both up early. Lexie, sweetheart, are you feeling well enough to be out of bed?”

He kissed her forehead, then shook my hand warmly.

Lexie straightened.

“Dad… we need to speak to you.”

William blinked.

“We can talk later. You should rest first, the both of you—”

“Now, Daddy.”

Her voice didn’t waver this time.

“Please. We need to speak now.”

The silence that followed felt like someone had pulled the oxygen out of the room.

William’s eyes narrowed slightly. His gaze flicked between us, taking in our body language—tense, anxious, resolute. Then he looked at his wife and the staff lingering in the corner.

“Very well,” he said tightly. “Let’s go to my office.”

And just like that, my stomach dropped to my shoes.

Walking behind William felt like being marched to the principal’s office—except this principal had money, power, and lawyers.

When we reached his office, he closed the door, gestured for us to sit, and leaned forward, folding his hands.

“What is this about?”

Lexie didn’t hesitate.

“Dad… we need to talk about the wedding.”

His gaze shot to hers.

Then to me.

Then back to her.

“What about it?” he asked slowly.

She swallowed.

Her voice was steady… but my heart pounded like hell.

“Father… I know you’ve put a lot into this. The planning, the arrangements… everything.”

She took a breath.

“But I—I don’t want to get married. Not like this. Not now.”

I swear the room trembled.

William’s eyes widened—genuinely stunned.

“Lexie… what on earth are you talking about?”

“I mean it.”

Her voice wavered, but she didn’t back down.

“This all happened so fast. Too fast. We got carried away, but we're young. We… we don’t really know each other the way a married couple should.”

My throat tightened.

I had never wanted to throw up more in my life.

William turned to me sharply.

His voice dropped into something cold and cutting.

“Is this your idea? Do you have anything to say about this?”

My dry mouth barely worked.

“I—Mr. Hart, after the accident, everything happening so suddenly, Lexie being hurt… it just made us both realize—”

“Daddy,” Lexie jumped in, “this wasn’t his idea. It’s both of us. We’re trying to tell you we can’t do this. Not like this.”

William rose slightly from his chair, anger beginning to seep through the cracks.

“Don’t lie to me.”

He pointed at me.

“YOU told her something. What did you say? What did you put in her head? She was happier than I’ve seen her in years and now suddenly she doesn’t want the wedding? What did you do?”

I opened my mouth—but nothing came out.

Terror hit me so hard my palms were slick, my heartbeat thundering in my ears.

Lexie stood suddenly, voice breaking.

“Stop, Daddy! He didn’t do anything. It wasn’t even him who told me the truth—someone else did! Someone who thought hiding it was cruel.”

William’s gaze sharpened like a knife.

“What truth?”

Lexie’s eyes filled.

“How could you do this to me? Force me to marry someone who doesn’t love me? Who loves another?”

His face went blank—then flushed with fury.

“Oh please,” he snapped, standing fully now. “Don’t act like some innocent victim here. You, Alexis Hart, have made several terrible choices before Noah ever came along. You begged me to help him and to give him a chance from the moment you introduced him to me.”

Lexie’s breath caught.

“And YOU,” he growled at me, “lied to me. Pursuing my daughter when you knew damn well you were… involved elsewhere. How dare you.”

“I didn’t—”

My voice trembled. “Sir, I never—”

“ENOUGH!”

His fist slammed the desk.

Lexie jumped.

I flinched so hard my shoulder hit the chair.

“You will BOTH listen,” William said, voice deadly calm.

“My reputation is on the line. HER reputation is on the line. This wedding will happen. Do you understand me? You don’t love each other? Then you better start learning—fast.”

Lexie’s breath broke into a sob.

I felt like I might faint.

“Dad, you can’t—”

“Oh, I can,” he snapped. “And I will. You think you can blow up months of arrangements? Risk public embarrassment? Ruin our standing? Absolutely not.”

His gaze pinned me like a spear.

“You will marry my daughter, Noah. And you,” he turned to Lexie, “will walk down that aisle. Neither of you have a choice anymore.”

The room spun.

Lexie covered her mouth.

I felt cold all over.

And I realized…

We’d lost.

For now.