Chapter 310
I wrench my hand from his grip.
“What the hell, Noah?” I grind out, irritation flashing through me.
There’s something in his eyes. Something I don’t recognize or fully understand. Something that feels wrong and out of place.
“I need to talk to you,” he says simply, but the man standing in front of me doesn’t look like the Noah Woods I know. The self-assured billionaire who walks into every room like he owns it is nowhere in sight.
“And you couldn’t just approach me like a normal person?” I ask, folding my arms over my chest.
I refuse to acknowledge the defeated, almost broken expression on his face.
“I—I…” His words falter.
Instead of finishing the sentence, he starts pacing the room back and forth, running a hand through his hair like a man fighting a battle inside his own head.
I watch him carefully, confusion tightening in my chest. I’ve seen Noah angry, arrogant, cold, even cruel… But this? This version of him is completely unfamiliar.
“What is going on with you?” I finally ask.
He stops pacing and for a moment he just stands there with his back to me, shoulders tense, breathing uneven.
Then slowly, he turns around.
When our eyes meet again, something inside my chest tightens because those grey eyes… they look wrecked.
“I don’t know where to start…” he says quietly.
For a second, neither of us moves, but I wait because after everything between us, I’m not about to make this easier for him.
“Then don’t,” I say flatly. “If you dragged me in here just to stand around looking miserable, I have better places to be p>
I turn toward the door, but his voice stops me.
“Chloe lied p>
My hand freezes on the doorknob as the words land softly, but they hit something deep inside me.
Slowly, I turn back.
“What p>
He runs a hand down his face like the motion physically hurts.
“Back in high school,” he repeats, his voice rougher now. “She said something to me right when I was about to ask you out p>
My stomach twists. Of course she did.
I shouldn’t be surprised knowing the kind of person she was, but I am.
I’d already figured out she must have said something, though I had never figured out what was so bad that he actually believed it… But hearing him say it out loud after all these years feels like ripping open an old wound that never quite healed.
“And?” I ask, forcing my voice to remain steady. “What does that have to do with me now p>
His jaw tightens.
“And?” I ask, forcing my voice to remain steady. “What does that have to do with me now p>
His jaw tightens. “Everything p>
A humorless laugh escapes me.
“Funny,” I mutter. “Because years ago, it didn’t seem to matter p>
He flinches… Actually flinches and that alone almost throws me off balance.
“I know,” he whispers.
The room goes quiet again.
He continues, the words heavy like they’re being dragged out of him. “She admitted that she made it up. That she told me you hated me… that you were only after my family’s money p>
The memory hits like a slap, and I have to swallow everything down.
All those years of humiliation. Of watching him treat me like I was nothing… and now to find out it was all because of a lie makes something violent rise in my chest.
For a split second I actually imagine dragging Chloe back from the grave just so I could beat the absolute shit out of her… and then castrate Noah and shove his balls down his fucking throat for good measure.
“And you believed her,” I say simply, trying to keep the anger sharp in my voice.
“I did p>
Something bitter curls in my chest as I watch him.
There’s no arrogance in him now. No smug confidence. Just a man standing in front of me looking like he’s been run through a shredder.
“And now?” I ask coolly. “What exactly do you want from me, Noah p>
He hesitates and that alone almost makes me laugh. Noah Woods has never hesitated a day in his life.
“I… I wanted you to know the truth,” he says finally.
The laugh slips out before I can stop it.
“Really? So what?” I tilt my head. “I can absolve you of your crimes? Tell you that it’s okay because you didn’t know better p>
His brows pull together, but before he can say anything, I cut him off.
“I already knew the truth… Lilly and I figured out pretty quickly Chloe was behind it,” I continue, shrugging lightly even though my chest feels tight. “But by then it didn’t matter p>
“Why not p>
“Because the damage was already done,” I grind out. “Because you wouldn’t have believed me. Because you were so damn high up on your horse that you’d already decided I was the villain in your fucking story p>
The words taste bitter, but I don’t stop.
“There are plenty of reasons, Noah,” I add coldly. “Take your fucking pick p>
Silence falls between us. He just stands there, watching me, listening like every word is carving into him with a blade, and honestly? I don’t fucking care because whatever he’s feeling right now doesn’t even come close to the kind of pain he put me through.
“You chose her,” I say quietly. “Over and over again. Even when I tried to explain, even when I tried to talk to you, you shut me down like I was some kind of parasite p>
His jaw clenches. “I know p>
“You called me names,” I continue, the words slipping out before I can stop them. “You humiliated me in front of people who used to respect me. You made me feel like dirt for years and then went on to flaunt your fucking relationship in my face like you were using it as a weapon p>
Each word feels like peeling off an old scab. Feels like pouring acid on the newly exposed wound.
I honestly thought I’d moved on, that I’d buried the past, but I haven’t. I’m still resentful. Still so fucking pissed off.
“You don’t get to come in here now and suddenly act like you just discovered gravity p>
His shoulders sag slightly.
“I’m not asking for anything,” he says hoarsely.
“Good,” I snap. “Because just looking at you makes me want to wrap my hands around you and… Ugh p>
If he had asked for forgiveness right now, I honestly don’t know what I would have done, because I don’t think it’s something I’m ready to give as yet.
“I just needed you to know that I know the truth now,” he adds quietly.
I stare at him for a long moment and for the first time in years… I see it. Not the arrogant billionaire. Not the arrogant boy who broke my heart. Just a man drowning in regret.
Unfortunately for him, regret doesn’t turn back time.
“Well,” I say finally, straightening. “Congratulations. You discovered you were an idiot p>
His eyes flicker, but I don’t give him another minute.
I Immediately move for the door again, because I don’t have the capacity to listen to any more of that bullshit.