Chapter 5

FREYA

I woke up to the smell of bacon. Why do I always dream of food? My eyes flew open to find Gia's face. A smile appeared naturally. She was still sleeping. I checked the clock.

"Get up, sweetie. Time for school." It took more than one call to wake her. She yawned before sleepily murmuring,

"It smells so good?"

That's when I realized the bacon wasn't a dream.

"Go brush your teeth." I went downstairs to investigate the smell. I wasn't surprised by the scene before me. Noah was in the kitchen, cooking. Hearing my footsteps, he turned around.

"Babe. Come on, I made us breakfast." Classic Noah! He'd do something wrong, and the next day, I'd find him in the kitchen. That was his apology.

He pulled out a chair for me. I sat down, and he brought me a plate: toast, eggs, and bacon. It did smell nice.

"Here you go."

"Thank you." I offered a tight-lipped smile. He sighed and pulled out another chair to sit beside me.

"Hey, listen, I'm sorry for last night, okay? It won't happen again."

I kept my eyes on the food. "Don't make promises you can't keep, Noah."

"Why are you still upset? I apologized. I made this breakfast to make it up to you." I blinked in slight distress. He was a bit low on emotional intelligence.

"Noah, I need time. I appreciate this gesture, but you can't expect me to instantly change my mood and smile the second you apologize. It's not an on/off switch." He stared at me thoughtfully when Gia came running in.

"I want to eat! It smells so good!" she said, looking between us.

"It does, huh? Come here." Noah picked her up and placed her in a chair. Gia loved her food. Watching her eat was always worth it. No matter my mood, she could always lift it with her simple actions.

"Freya, I forgot to tell you something," Noah said toward the end of breakfast.

"What is it?"

He put down his fork. "Tomorrow is the company's annual day. Will you come with me to the party?"

He couldn't have blurted it out any faster.

"First, I need to ask Rey if she's free to babysit Gia." I said this knowing Rey wouldn't miss a chance to spend time with Gia. She adored her, something I was grateful for.

"Yeah, of course," he nodded.

"I'll let you know."

"We're getting late, babe." Noah's voice reached me as I fixed a stray hair. I grabbed my purse and left the room.

He looked at me before exhaling. "Finally."

"So, how do I look?"

His eyes quickly glanced over me. "Yeah, you look beautiful."

My smile faltered at how quickly he looked away and at his watch. Lately, I felt like Noah didn't see me anymore. We were in a rut, like a couple ten years into a marriage. I'd been shrugging it off, blaming his work pressure, but those were just excuses.

He waved a hand in front of my face. "Let's go."

Chapter 5

This was a bad idea. I shouldn't have agreed to the party. I was bored while Noah socialized. Some of his colleagues' wives were awful; impossible to have a decent conversation with. So I sat at our table, scrolling through Instagram. I could have done that at home, much more comfortably than in these damn heels.

Noah appeared beside me. "Hey!"

"This is fucking boring."

He chuckled before sitting down. He was about to speak when an announcement began:

"Warm greetings to all the ladies and gentlemen, and distinguished guests! Welcome to our event. I hope you enjoy it.

"I would now like to request Mr. Alden Knight, CEO of Archite Associates, to share a few thoughts."

My heart skipped a beat. I tried to dismiss it. Surely there was more than one Aiden in New York. Besides, what were the chances the man from that night would be my boyfriend's boss?

Aiden. That same…

One moment I was reassuring myself, and the next, the air was knocked out of my lungs. He walked onstage. Aiden. Fucking Aiden! What were the chances?

Calm down! Everything was alright. He probably wouldn't recognize me. He might have been my one-night stand, but I doubted I was his.

"Tonight, we celebrate our company's 22nd anniversary, and I value all of you sharing this special day with me."

He had everyone's attention. His deep, authoritative baritone demanded respect. Now that my heart wasn't in my throat, I really looked at him. He was handsome. His suit looked custom-made.

I zoned out of most of his speech, focusing on his voice. The confidence in his posture, words—it was undeniable.

His eyes were currently fixed on me, recognition shining brightly. Fuck.

But I hadn't noticed his eyes until then. They were…

Even wanting to look away, my eyes were stuck on him. There was something addictive about his gaze. The silence stretched as we stared.

"Is he looking at you?" Noah's voice broke the spell, and I looked away.

"I don't know," I muttered. What the fuck was that?

I needed a drink. Excussing myself, I went to the bar.

"Today, as we complete another successful year, let's celebrate our success and look forward to new milestones. Enjoy the party, everyone."

A round of applause followed Aiden's speech.

One drink, then I'd convince Noah to go home. This would be my last encounter with him.

A deep voice spoke beside me. "Scotch, on the rocks."

FUCK.