At last, Noah and Stuart managed to get both Eliana and Bailey into the SUV. The women were swaying on their feet, their unexplainable laughter and mood swings, as well as their slurred words making it clear that the alcohol had hit them hard. Noah placed both his hands on his waist, his gaze shifting between the two women who were now sprawled on the back seat while resting their heads against each other. “Uncle Stuart,” Noah began, his voice firm but tinged with worry. “You should sit in the front with the driver. I’ll sit with Eliana in the back, just in case her health gets upset during the ride.”Stuart nodded absentmindedly, as his mind was preoccupied with an entirely concern. Ever since he had heard about Jensen's intentions about spiking the drinks, a cold fear had settled in his gut. But the thought of mentioning it in front of Noah, who was already stressed, made him hesitate. Could he even bring it up? He wasn't sure what to do, but he knew they needed to get the wome
Once Stuart had left to drop Bailey off at her place, Noah walked over to his own car and opened the door, settling into the cool leather seat. The interior was dimly lit by the overhead LED, casting shadows across Eliana’s face as she leaned against the window. She stirred at the sound of the door closing, and as soon as she sensed him nearby, she swung her head toward him, almost crashing onto his shoulder.Noah reacted quickly, cushioning the fall with his palm. “Easy there…” he murmured softly as he gently guided her head to rest on his shoulder. Eliana’s breathing evened out almost immediately, and within seconds, she was asleep again. The car started with a low purr as they began the drive.Eliana’s soft snores filled the backseat of the car, acting like a gentle background noise that allowed Noah’s mind to drift into his thoughts again. His focus shifted back to the events of the day, settling on a nagging suspicion that he had been ignoring till now. Although he had met h
Eliana gave Noah a small, reassuring smile. "Yeah, of course."They both stepped out of the car, and as Eliana followed Noah into the living room of the house which was supposedly her own, she was still not used to it.She immediately noticed the older man dressed in a sharp, striped three- piece suit, and sitting on the couch. One of his legs was crossed over the other, and his polished boots were practically shining under the lights.Despite his age, which Eliana guessed to be somewhere in his late seventies, there was an undeniable sharpness to his gaze. His skin was wrinkled, his face bearing the signs of time, but his posture was still upright.His hair was a silvery- white, neatly combed back; but what intrigued Eliana the most was his eyes, which were quite keen and observant. As they entered, a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips, softening the stern expression on his face to some extent. Meanwhile, Warner's watchful eyes also fell on Noah as soon as he entered, wi
The automatic double doors of the apartment slid open once again once it had verified the identity of the visitor, and Stuart walked in.Noah, who was standing by the kitchen counter, nodded toward him as he dropped the conversation with his grandfather in the middle.“You must be tired. Please, have a seat, Uncle Stuart," he said, his voice steady."I’ll get you some water."Stuart took a seat at the couch in the living room, glancing briefly and bowing towards Warner, who sat across from him, his posture as straight as the lines on his perfectly pressed suit. As Noah returned with a glass of cold water, he sensed something in Warner’s eyes— something like disapproval. But he couldn't figure out, for the life of him, what that was all about. He shrugged off the thought and placed the tray in front of Stuart, who gave him a small nod of thanks. “Thank you, Young Master. But you really didn’t have to–”"Come on, uncle Stuart! It was no problem at all.”Stuart replied and gulped the
The statement almost made Noah laugh, but he managed to control himself, and only reacted by giving a quiet nod. Warner, however, didn't notice to his grandson's reaction and continued, “While you were gone this afternoon, I took the liberty to assess your apartment. And I must say, I am dissatisfied with quite a lot of things, which I’m going to fix by tomorrow.”Noah watched as his grandfather paced, his steps slow but deliberate, a sign that he was deep in thought. He raised an eyebrow, feeling curious now. “First of all, I really don’t like the furniture that has been placed here. I don’t know why Stuart would commit such a faux pas, knowing the kind of taste I prefer.”Stuart, who had been silently observing the exchange, suddenly became the focus of Warner’s icy glare. His shoulders tensed, and he bowed his head, showing an appropriate level of embarrassment. Warner continued,“I will also send the interior designers with him tomorrow, so you can tell them your preferences f
Once Warner and Stuart had left, Noah realized that it was indeed time for dinner, and he hadn't even woken Eliana yet.Also, he didn't have any idea about what he was going to tell her when she woke up and saw the army of servants, who had infiltrated their house at his grandpa’s command. Right now, they were roaming from one place to another, doing something that was completely useless in his eyes. Not just that, the crowd of chefs had already made themselves familiar with the kitchen, and were busy whipping up a buffet that would be enough to feed the entire village, for only two people. He would have dealt with this matter easily, if these were the only problems of his life. But there were already three huge problems standing in front of him, which had been piled on his plate by Warner, and now he had to explain it to Eliana… while he was completely unaware of the problems that were waiting for him in the future.And the funniest part was that he didn't even have the time to thi
Noah looked at Eliana, his brows knitting into a frown as he looked at her with confusion and concern, while his eyes were filled with surprise. Her eyes, usually so guarded, were wide and vulnerable as she continued, her voice trembling slightly, “I’m sorry, Noah… I really am. I wasn't able to give you anything in our marriage– not even the companionship you deserved from the sacred bond called marriage. I haven't ever been able to take a stand for you, not even at my own house, where my own family treated you so horribly… like you were a second class human. But you… I don't know what you are made of, that you never let it faze you. I know that you must have been frustrated and angry, but forget about taking it out on me, you never even complained out loud. In fact, all you have ever done is protect me, shield me from everyone in this world… including my own family.”Her voice cracked, and she looked down, her hands wringing together nervously. “But I promise you… I promise you th
Noah couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Eliana was saying everything he had always dreamt of saying to her, everything he had longed to ask for, but had never dared to utter. The fear of offending her, pushing her away and scaring her off had always held him back and stopped him from opening his mouth where he felt like already, he was barely being tolerated.But now, here she was, speaking the very words he had kept locked in his heart, words he had wanted to shout from the rooftops, in the hope of hearing a "yes" from Eliana, in return.And yet, he stood there, speechless, struggling to believe whether this was his reality or the most beautiful dream of his life.Eliana’s hesitant voice cut through his thoughts, as she spoke up after he had been silent for almost two minutes straight. “It’s totally okay, Noah, if you don’t want the same. I can understand if you don’t. After all, it won't be easy to accept my proposal. You might have the doubt that I’m only saying all this becau
Noah was sitting in the garden, trying desperately to calm himself as he had been feeling a little uneasy because of the way things had unfolded.He had spent most of his life away from home, this is why, he knew the value of family. He had also met several people who were dark to the very core, but for some reason, he thought that Liam was different…Noah had a feeling that everything he had been doing so far, was just because something that he thought would always remain his, had been snatched from him in the middle of all the succession drama… and especially because of Noah himself.So it was a logical thing that he hated him from the core of his heart… but he had also seen his affection towards their grandpa. He was lost in his thoughts, staring off into the distance… when he noticed some disturbance near the ivy vines, lurking by the southernmost boundary of the garden.He rose from his seat and started walking towards the boundary; and Ben snapped to attention.He had been stan
“Killed him? Dad!! You are saying you killed him… wasn't his death an accident? Then how is it possible that you are the reason behind–”Liam didn't even realize that he had started to interrogate his father under the effect of his anxiety on hearing the last words spoken by him.Till now, he had been thinking that they were standing on the right side of the situation as well as the history that was yet to be written. He really believed that they were the oppressed ones who had always been discriminated against, trying to fight for their rights which had unjustly been snatched from them.But after hearing his father's nonchalant response, he wasn't able to think straight anymore. He was ready to go to any extent to get what really belonged to him, but killing someone was something he could never imagine doing… nor was he able to digest the fact that his father was a murderer.But before he could have completed his statement, Otis interrupted his rambling. “Yes! It was an accident, a
Sabreena hesitated in the doorway, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment as she clutched a large bouquet of white lilies. She took a deep breath before stepping into the living room, her eyes darting around nervously and scanning the faces: her brother was looking at her with confusion, while Olivia’s gaze was sharp, Eliana’s gently curious, and Noah was stoic and calm; although his calm demeanor wasn't exactly helpful in taming her anxiety.Finally, with a forced smile, she spoke up. “Oh, come on, Olivia…” She started awkwardly, the bouquet trembling slightly in her hands. “How long are you going to hold on to some… some small incident from ages ago? Why would I insult him? I… actually, I have come to thank No- I mean, Mr. Kingsley.”Eliana shot her mother an amused glance, while Noah remained silent, his face unreadable as Sabreena took a few steps forward, extending the bouquet of lilies towards him. Olivia crossed her arms and cut in sharply, “Well, I can’t exactly let it go
Liam threw down the glass vase which was placed on the side table in his room, sending it crashing to the floor, as soon as he noticed his parents trying to enter his room once again.It had been four days since his return- or to be honest, the rather rude way in which he had been thrown out, not just from the party but from the city itself. The security had unceremoniously dumped them on the first flight back to Edinburgh, without caring which class tickets were available. And apart from declaring in front of his parents that he had failed miserably, he hadn't given any specific details to his parents. Instead, he had locked himself in his room, boycotting everything: from eating properly to speaking to his parents.In fact, since last night, he had not even touched the food, even for once… and this was making both Otis and Viola more and more tense with every passing second.Even though they were aware that the deal had slipped out of Liam's hands, they were still trying to keep th
“What? Richard Jensen was there too?!” Eliana’s voice burst out in surprise from Noah's phone speaker, her lovely face filling the screen of their video call as she heard the entire story from his mouth. She leaned closer, her eyes wide with disbelief, while Noah glanced into the screen as he replied while preparing to go to bed. “Oh yeah! And he had plenty to say against me at first, calling me a scammer and whatnot. But as soon as Grandpa Omar and Norm showed up, he went quiet and practically disappeared into the crowd, fearing for his own safety.”Eliana burst into laughter, covering her mouth. “After what happened last time, I can’t believe he had the nerve to show up and then also splash mud on you! I mean, did he get the guts?”Noah chuckled. “Apparently, he bribed the event organizers for an invitation. And I guess he was really feeling frustrated after our last meeting, and thinking that he had nothing more to lose now, just vented out all his anger. His little scam was
“I understand, Grandpa Omar, that you’re not much of a drinker.”Noah continued with a steady voice, meeting some raised eyebrows from the people gathered around there. He continued, knowing that his words were surely having some effect, since Norm and Omar were looking at him with curiosity now, instead of suspicion. “I am also aware that you, Grandfather Norm and my grandfather have planned to visit Edencrest Estate together after the signing of the deal, and finally share the bottle of wine purchased so long ago. That is why I have ensured that the other bottle has safely been delivered at your residence, as the homage to that promise.”He glanced at the broken necklace on the floor, and everyone else's eyes followed; to the place where Sienna had thrown it after snapping the string and causing the pearls to scatter in all directions. “And I apologize for the condition of the necklace. It was a vintage heirloom, and though it was meant to be my gift to Eleanor, I shall make sure
Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Noah blinked before responding. “Of course,” he said smoothly. “I am happy to answer any questions you might have to help you see that I’m speaking the truth.”Blaine folded his arms, looking Noah up and down, an expression of irritation on his face. Clearly, he thought it was nothing more than a waste of his time to entertain him, but he had no other choice. “Fine! Then show me what you have brought as a gift for my niece. If you are truly the heir of the Kingsleys, you would know better than to show up empty handed, wouldn’t you?”Noah inclined his head, unbothered by Blaine’s mocking tone. “Certainly, uncle. I’ll show you the gifts I have brought.” Turning slightly, he motioned to one of his guards, who stepped forward, handing him a wine bottle wrapped in elegant packaging. Noah held it, his fingers lightly wrapping around the bottle— the vintage wine he had personally unearthed that morning.He extended the bottle toward Blaine. “This
Sienna’s eyes narrowed with suspicion as she looked at the scene in front of her. Just this morning, this idiot Noah had been roaming around the city, trying to get access into a high- end bank.And now, he was supposedly surrounded by an army of guards? Something was really fishy…Just then, her eyes landed on the man at the front of the group, and recognition flashed in her eyes. She clenched her fists, it was him! The same gullible bodyguard from the bank earlier that morning; the one whom she had already fed lots of half- truths and mostly lies about Noah, painting him as a dangerous criminal.She had tried to make sure that he wouldn't slip away by any means, but he had. And now she knows how! Feeling a pang of betrayal and anger, she couldn't hold herself back from commenting;“Oh! I see, he has managed to fool you all too! And now you’re siding with him?” Her laugh was bitter, remembering the way this guard had promised her that he would call the police on Noah and that the
At the time when Noah had entered the venue, hardly anyone had noticed him in the middle of VIP guests, each more prestigious than the last.As long as he had an invite and the security had allowed him in, only a fool would waste their time questioning a nobody instead of making the most of this opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the most important people in the world. However, as Liam and Sienna started to mock and humiliate Noah out loud in the open, a crowd slowly started to form around them.The guests started to point him out specifically, murmuring about the possibility of him being a con man and still dodging the security arrangements at this venue.Meanwhile, Noah was standing at his place, completely unfazed by their speculations and instead maintained his calm with a smile that didn't even budge for a single moment.“And do you mind telling me, when will she become your wife? Because as far as I know, my sister in law was already married to someone else. So I'm assum