Page 70 of Sweet Ruin

I froze and my eyes whipped upward as Noah stood from the dining table. There was a bowl of cereal in front of him and a cup of coffee in his hand. I’d clearly interrupted his breakfast, but I had no idea why he was here. It took me a moment to notice my mom was seated at the table across from him.

I closed my mouth when I realized it had dropped open. If any part of me had hoped last night was just a bad dream, Noah being here was proof it was all very real. He was still dressed in his formal wear from last night. Well, partially. He’d lost the tie and jacket, and his white shirt was loose around the collar with the sleeves rolled up to reveal his strong forearms.

“Have you been here all night?” I asked.

“Matthew and I had some final details to sort out. It took longer than anticipated,” he replied.

“Are you going to join us, Iz?” my mom asked.

I wanted to, but I suddenly remembered my sorry appearance. I hadn’t done my hair or brushed my teeth before coming downstairs. And I was still dressed in the pajamas I’d thrown on last night. At least I could be grateful they weren’t the ratty Winnie the Pooh pajamas I normally wore. Still, I felt the urge to turn and run right back up to my room so I could shower at the very least before I reappeared.

I didn’t want Noah to think he’d chased me off though, so I reluctantly nodded and went to sit in the empty chair next to my mom. As I did, Noah lowered himself into his seat and took a sip of coffee.

I helped myself to a piece of toast and nibbled on the end of it. I’d lost my appetite the moment I’d laid eyes on Noah, and my mind was still whirring as I tried to accept he was sitting across from me. Thankfully, he didn’t try to talk, but he was constantly glancing up at me from his breakfast and would give me a nervous smile when I caught his gaze. I wanted to ignore him, but how could I pretend he wasn’t there when I could constantly feel him watching me?

“When are you heading back home?” I tried to fill the awkward silence in the room by speaking to my mom.

“After breakfast.” She sounded tired, and given the bags under her eyes, I suspected she’d struggled to sleep last night too.

“So soon?”

She took a long sip of her coffee as she nodded. “But it’s just a few weeks until Christmas now. It won’t be long until we see each other again.”

“Yeah, I know.” It would still feel like forever.

I focused on my toast again as we fell silent. There was an awkward air in the room, and I assumed we were all still thinking about last night.

My mom was doing her best to pretend everything was normal, and she began conversing pleasantly with Noah, asking him about school and talking about the café. Their light chatter might have filled the silence, but it did little to lessen the uncomfortable tension.

I had no idea how my mom was able to talk with him so easily. He and Matthew might have explained their actions, but I couldn’t just forget the way Noah had acted recently. It didn’t matter that he had been secretly working with my dad; he never should have punched him, and it didn’t excuse the way he’d treated me at school. He’d spent weeks positioning himself as my enemy. But now he was eating breakfast with us like he was a lifelong friend. He’d broken up with me, lied to me, and turned people against me. I wasn’t certain I’d ever get past that.

Matthew joined us just as we were finishing up. He didn’t look like he’d slept much last night either, but unlike Noah, he’d changed out of his formal suit since the party.

“My apologies for missing breakfast,” he said. “I’ve been checking over the paperwork with my lawyers. Everything looks in order.”

I felt sorry for his lawyers being hauled into work first thing on a Sunday morning. But William had probably done the same. The look on his face last night had told me he was going to stop at nothing to prevent this deal from happening.

“How are you feeling this morning, Isobel?” Matthew asked.

“Just a little tired.” It was a huge oversimplification of what I was actually feeling.

“Well, there’s no rush today,” he said. “You can stay here as long as you like until you’re ready to go back to school.”

“Uhh…” While a part of me wanted to go back to Weybridge as soon as possible, I was still without a ride. “I actually have to talk to you about that. Cress is staying in the city to spend a couple of extra days with her parents. I was wondering if you could help organize a ride back to school for me.”

“I can take you,” Noah said.

I’d barely finished my sentence before he butted in, and I stiffened in response. “Uh, no, that’s okay.”

“It’s not a problem. I was planning to head back this morning anyway.”

“I’m sure Matthew has someone who can take me.” I looked at my father, hoping he could see the desperation in my eyes. I did not want to get in a car with Noah.

“Really, it’s no trouble,” Noah said. “We’re both going to the same place.”

Matthew seemed hesitant as he glanced between the two of us, but then his gaze settled on me. “It might be good for you to go back together,” he said. “I’m sure you have plenty to talk about.”

I officially wanted to kill my father. It didn’t help that my mom wasn’t coming to my rescue either. Instead, she was nodding like she thought it was a good idea too. And while Noah and I probably did have a lot to talk about, I didn’t think I was ready to dive any deeper into that minefield.

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