His Secret [Completed]

Chapter Thirteen

"No Brooke, you're the one here because of money! She's here because your fucking brother has an obsession with her!" Noah shouted, his voice filled with anger as he stalked down the hall to his bedroom, with Brooke close on his trail.

"You know it's not just that!"

"No, I fucking don't! You won't tell me shit!"

"You know I can't."

"And why's that?"

"Family loyalty," Brooke stated.

"Bullshit. I've had to sacrifice so much for you and your family because yours are blackmailing mine!"

"Noah...baby, you know it's not like that." Brooke gripped his arm but he tugged it out of her grasp and stepped into his bedroom.

"Just get out."

"Baby...I still love you."

He turned on his heel, his eyes glaring into hers, "I don't love you, not anymore. Not after this." Noah slammed the door shut, leaving Brooke standing on the other side with tear-stained cheeks. There was one thing that Noah knew, and it was that the woman standing on the other side of the door was not the same woman he had fallen in love with two years before. From the moment he'd laid eyes on her he knew that she was the one for him. Her beauty mixed with mystery and elegance was what drew him to her; they dated for a while and eventually became exclusive. Brooke was sweet and cared for him. She was never one to go after his money, she'd already been scouted by a modelling agency and had big things ahead of her, Noah simply helped her increase her media status. Being with Noah gave her more exposure and boosted her career even further. Soon enough, they became one of the most loved couples, and were featured on magazines all over the states.

When Noah proposed he did it in front of a crowded runway audience. It was Brooke's first Victoria Secret runway walk, it was a momentous day for her career, and also her personal life. With permission, Noah ran up onto the stage as Brooke posed at the end, knelt down on one knee and as she turned around, the crowd cheered when he opened the small black velvet box, revealing a stunning diamond ring. As he slipped it onto her finger after an excited yes, he left the runway to allow her to continue her walk. Tears slid down her cheeks as she finished the walk and met her fiancé backstage. They embraced each other in a loving kiss and held one another the whole way home.

Noah had fallen in love with her for who she was but didn't like the person she'd become. He felt trapped, as if she had lied to him the whole time. Was the only reason she agreed to marry him because of the plan her distant family had conjured up?

There was still a part of him that did love her, it was a small part that he knew would never fade. She was his first love, he fell for her at age twenty-two. Noah was naïve because he was so young, he believed she had actually loved him; and in truth, she did, but when she found out about her long lost family who wanted her in their lives, they became the most important thing to her. She had no one else: her mother and father both were dead, and so were their parents. Any other family she had had abandoned her when her mother died. They blamed Brooke for the car accident - it happened on the way back from school. Noah did feel sadness and sympathy for Brooke and he hoped he'd have been enough, but when she found out about her brother, he realised that he was no match for blood relatives. It was that moment that he realised she'd latched onto him for stability and fallen for him in the process, but after that, he knew he'd never be enough. When her family finally wanted contact with her after fifteen years, the joy she felt couldn't compare to the joy Noah had tried to provide her with. He was no match, and he never would be.

Noah's mind drifted to the woman who had been occupying the guest room for some time now while he ran on the treadmill with his headphones secured to his ears. Sophia hadn't any family, just as Brooke hadn't, and he wondered whether that was why he was drawn to her. Was it the stability and security that he could provide that drew him to those women in need? Was he always looking to be the hero? There was one difference though, between Sophia and Brooke. Sophia needed help, but was hesitant to accept; she didn't want to appear weak and vulnerable. Asking for help was admitting weakness, he knew that was how Sophia's thought process went, and it only made him try harder - it drew him closer to her. The chemistry between them was far from one-sided and he knew he felt something during their first kiss. Noah had hoped that she did too. The one thing that he wanted most was to sweep her off of her feet and kiss her once more: he had to know if there was something between them, he had to be sure. He needed an excuse to fight the blackmail, a solid reason. It wasn't enough for him to simply do the right thing, it was his family's reputation and safety at stake for crying out loud! Noah couldn't risk their family secrets being exposed to the media, it'd ruin not only his family's reputation, but their business empire and also his own. The only thing he'd risk it for was something he didn't know if he could ever feel again - he'd risk it for love.