At the end of the performance, Noah cheered loudly, giving Violet and her colleagues a standing ovation. He yelled her name as she and the prince took their bows; for a split second, their eyes met, and she beamed at him.

As soon as Violet officially joined the New York City Ballet, Noah bought a season ticket in one of the VIP seats close to the stage, ensuring the best view in the house. He wanted to see her facial expressions while she danced.

It was a worthwhile investment, solely for the end of each show, when she looked out at the audience, saw him cheering, and her eyes crinkled with genuine delight. She only displayed that expression when truly happy.

A few minutes later, Noah met her in the lobby as she graciously accepted compliments. He handed her a bouquet of colorful gerber daisies and smiled.

"You killed it out there, Vi. How did they manage to change your costume so quickly during the transformation scene?"

Violet laughed. "A lot of practice, let me tell you. I'm always worried about missing my cue. I've seen it happen before."

Her laughter subsided, replaced by a serious expression. She hugged him tightly, and he savored the moment.

"Thanks for coming, Noah. You never miss opening night, and it means a lot to me."

"Consider it part of my job description as your best friend. I'm glad it makes you so happy, though. You're always prettiest when you smile," Noah said softly.

She pulled back, giving him a puzzled look before being distracted by someone calling her name. A tall blonde man, Jeremy, approached with a large bouquet of red roses. Violet had previously explained flower language to Noah—red roses signified romance.

He'd made the mistake of giving her red roses at a high school recital; she'd laughed and shook her head. "You don't give red roses to your best friend, dummy. Yellow roses represent friendship. But thank you. They're beautiful."

Noah hadn't given her red roses since. He tried to vary his gifts, sending flowers about twice a month—hence the gerber daisies.

So, who was this man daring to give her red roses? Violet would surely correct him.

He was wrong. She smiled serenely—not her dazzling, joyful smile, nor her polite, detached one, but something in between.

"Jeremy! I didn't know you were coming to my show."

Jeremy? The "business robot" who, according to his father, never did anything on weekends but work? Hadn't they met only three times? What gave him the idea to show up with red roses?

Noah panicked. Neither Violet nor Jeremy noticed.

"I knew you were a ballerina and was curious. You danced beautifully," Jeremy said, offering the flowers. "Here. I didn't know someone else would be giving you flowers and thought the star of the show deserved some."

He finally acknowledged Noah. "I'm Jeremy Ward. You're Kaleb Hale, right?"

Noah couldn't speak. How did Jeremy conclude he was Kaleb? Shouldn't the first assumption, seeing a woman receive flowers from a man, be a boyfriend, not a brother?

"Kaleb almost never comes to my shows," Violet said, shaking her head. "This is Noah Singleton, my best friend and most avid fan. He always brings me flowers on opening and closing nights."

Jeremy reassessed Noah upon hearing his name. "Noah…Singleton? Your father wouldn't happen to be Cameron Singleton, would he?"

"Yes," Noah said almost defiantly.

He wouldn't tolerate being belittled by this man who only knew how to ingratiate himself with Aaron. What was his interest in Violet? Was he trying to date the boss's daughter to advance his position? That was low.

His father disliked Jeremy. Cameron admitted the man was brilliant but judged people based on their perceived usefulness. In that respect, he was worse than Aaron had been before Keeley's influence.

Noah also felt Jeremy was trying to usurp his vice president position. Cameron didn't want the company; he worked for Aaron out of habit. His friend had never steered him wrong. He became VP because Aaron needed a replacement when he became CEO and asked Noah first.

But he believed Jeremy thought he was trying to steal the company, even though Aaron clearly stated he was grooming Jeremy as his successor. His father reasoned that if he and Aaron didn't retire simultaneously, Jeremy's first act as CEO would be to replace him, despite his years of dedicated service.

Noah wouldn't have liked Jeremy regardless. Making a move on Violet crossed a significant line.

"Interesting. And here I thought the two of you were siblings, given the pictures Aaron has posted of you together," Jeremy said, narrowing his eyes.

"We're as close as siblings," Violet replied. "Since our parents are best friends, we grew up together."

Noah tried to ignore the weight of her statement. He wasn't her brother! They weren't related! Why couldn't she see him as a man?

Jeremy relaxed slightly. "I see. I work with your father regularly. Come to think of it…you actually look a lot like him."

"Yeah, I know. I get that a lot," Noah said evenly.

Could this guy leave already? He hadn't finished discussing Violet's performance.

Other people had attended opening night before; usually, it was one of the Quinns or Clarks. Because they all knew each other, inclusion in the conversation felt natural. Now, Noah felt like he was under a microscope.

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