Chapter 201 VACATIONS AND FOREVER
Chapter 201 VACATIONS AND FOREVER
NOAH’S POV
The boardroom feels smaller than I remember, or maybe it's just me.
And for the first time since I entered this room, I'm no longer going to be the deciding person.
Maybe it’s because I’m… letting go.
Temporarily at least.
“I’ll be stepping down for the foreseeable future,” I say, my voice calm and steady across the room. “For medical reasons.”
There’s a subtle ripple but they all don't show a reaction, at least not in front of me.
Unlike my father, I was not nice.
“What does that mean for leadership?” one of them asks carefully.
Always straight to the point with my Managing Director.
“It means,” I reply, folding my hands loosely in front of me, “that someone else will be taking over operations.”
“Effective immediately.”
I pause for the drama.
“Davis will be stepping in as CEO.”
I see the flickers of surprise and I nod silently.
For once, this isn’t about maintaining their expectations.
This is about doing what I want so I end the meeting and walk out of the room in relief and quiet confidence.
Of course, Davis is now trapped with a mountain of paperwork in contracts and the fact that he's not receiving a penny for life but I can now retire and be the good hands off Chairman that I can be.
.
.
.
.
.
The house is quiet when I get back but I smile because right there is Shawn exactly where I knew he'd be.
My chest tightens slightly at the sight of him but with a full and content feeling.
“You’re back,” he says softly.
I nod.
“Yeah.”
A small pause before he asks in concern.
“What happened?”
I walk closer and slowly to him with fake sadness.
“I stepped down.”
His brows knit slightly.
“For how long?”
I shrug lightly.
“As long as I need.”
His gaze searches mine like he's looking for something of doubt or regret but he doesn't find it.
“And the company?” he asks.
I exhale quietly.
“Handled.”
A beat passes before I drop something that's guaranteed to shock him.
“Davis is the CEO now.”
That gets a reaction from him as his eyes widen slightly.
“Davis?”
I nod.
“He’s capable.”
That’s the simple version and clean version.
The truth?
He earned it, in his own sick and twisted way.
Shawn studies me for a moment longer before he smiles.
“Okay then.”
Just that.
No questions or screaming like I had got from my now retired and pensioned father.
Just simple and plain acceptance.
Heavens.
I don’t deserve him.
But I have him and I’m not letting go.
———
We don’t invite anyone for the real wedding.
It's just the two of us swearing to love each other for as long as we live.
Inside?
I'm planning to follow him in death too.
There’s no script or rehearsed lines, just the plain truth.
“I didn’t think this would be real,” I admit to him.
“Not at first.”
Shawn doesn’t look away or interrupt me.
“I thought it was only temporary,” I continued.
“Something I could control and something I could end whenever I wanted.
“I was wrong wife.”
“You changed everything for me,” I say with my gaze locked on his.
“You made me question things I never questioned, made me feel things I never let myself feel.”
My chest tightens but I don't stop.
“I don’t know what comes next,” I admit honestly. “I don’t know what this looks like in a year… or ten.”
A breath.
“But I know I don’t want it without you.”
Silence settles between us as Sawn hugs me tightly.
“That’s good,” he says quietly.
A faint smile touches his lips.
“Because I’m not going anywhere.”
When we kiss it's simply beautiful.
———
Later–
We’re sitting together with the world quiet around us again when Shawn speaks.
“What about Davis?”
I glance at him.
“What about him?”
Shawn tilts his head slightly.
“You don’t just hand over something like that,” he says. “Not without anu reason.”
A faint smirk tugs at my lips.
“It's merely payback.”
His brows lift.
“For what?”
I lean back slightly.
“For everything.”
A pause.
Then I add–
“He’s under a contract.”
Shawn blinks.
“A contract for what?”
“An unfair one,” I say lightly as his expression shifts somewhere between amusement and disbelief.
“You’re unbelievable.”
“Probably,” I agree with a smile.
———
The letter arrives later in the evening addressed to Shawn who frowns and stills when he opens it.
“Shawn?” I ask quietly.
He doesn’t respond immediately but he's blinking rapidly like he can't believe his eyes.
“Who is it from?” I press gently.
His throat moves as he swallows.
“…Lily.”
My jaw tightens slightly as he continues.
“There’s… something else.”
A pause as my chest tightens.
“What?”
He looks up at me with shock still written across his face.
“An apology.”
I frown.
“For what?”
His grip tightens on the letter.
“…Martin.”
The name lands heavily and I clench my jaw in anger.
Isn't he supposed to be dead by now?
“That’s not possible,” I say flatly.
“He’s dead.”
Shawn nods slowly.
“I thought so too.”
Silence stretches and breaks hen the door opens and Lily enters.
Today, it's Lily and not my mother I guess.
“He was alive,” she says calmly.
The words hit like a strike.
“But now?”
“He’s truly dead now and so is Sophia Hernandez and that is my last favor to you.”
Her gaze flicks briefly between us then she turns and walks out with no explanations.
Shawn looks down at the letter again before tearing it apart and crumpling it together.
Until there’s nothing left but pieces in his hands.
He exhales like he's finally letting go and moves quickly.
He's closing the distance between us before I can blink and he pulls me into a bruising kiss with his lips crashing against mine.
Hey, I'm not complaining.
I respond instantly with my arms wrapping around him and holding him just as tightly.
Because I understand and I feel it too.
The past and all of his skeletons are finally gone and they don't matter to us any longer.
When he finally pulls back, his forehead is resting against mine as he's breathing heavily with a smile.
I know baby.
We’re finally free.
The Billionaires Decoy Husband has now become his real husband.
Or wife if we're going by me.
And for the first time in my life, that’s enough for me.
So I press my forehead against his and close my eyes briefly.
It's now just the two of us, together and forever.
“Want to go to Bali, wife?”