Page 159 of I Shouldn't Love This Way

“You won’t have to. I promise.” Noah paused and changed the subject. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to discuss with you.”

“What’s up?”

I hoped it wasn’t bad news. Then again, nothing could be worse than being Robert Mitchell’s daughter. To be fair, there were worse things compared to my situation, but I didn’t want to think about poverty, war, and underground pedophile rings at that moment.

“I got a call back from a prominent law firm in New York earlier this afternoon,” said Noah. “They’ve offered me a position. A friend of mine is the co-founder and senior managing partner of Keller & Trent. I accepted the position today.”

“What? How come you never told me you were job hunting?”

“Because I wasn’t sure I’d get hired at that firm. I guess my credentials helped.”

“Oh, my God!” I gasped. “You didn’t get fired, did you?”

“No, that’s not what happened. I’m resigning because my senior partners refused to fire that asshole. I’m blind siding them and handing in my letter of resignation tomorrow. I’m not gonna offer my legal services and expertise to a team of people I don’t believe in anymore. I’m their best asset. They need me, but I couldn’t care less. My contract never had a non-compete clause.”

“So… you’ll be living in New York?”

“It’ll be good for me—a fresh start.” He seemed hesitant to continue, but said, “By the way, I’ve done a bit of research about Columbia, and I think it’s a great university.”

“But I don’t want to be anywhere near Rob!”

“You won’t have to see him. I want you to move in with me, eventually.”

Say what?

“We’d have to stay off the radar for a while. I can get you an apartment and—”

“Oh, my gosh, no!” I cut him off and he looked confused. “I can’t let you do that.”

“Why not? I love you. I want to help.”

“Don’t take my independence away from me, Noah.”

“How am I doing that?”

“By doing everything for me and being the hero all the time. I can work on my own.”

“Are you too proud to accept my financial support now? Is this about Rob?”

“No.” I lied.

“He projected his shame on you all your life. Release it, baby. You need to trust me to take care of your needs.”

“I’m not even yours biologically. You don’t owe me anything.”

“I still feel protective of you, Aria. I still feel responsible. I want to take care of you because I can, and I love you. You can’t expect me to just shut that off like a switch overnight. I’m older than you. I’m established, and I have the means to help.”

This was so frustrating.

“I can go to school and work part time,” I said. “Ally, Jade, and I can get our own place and split the rent and expenses.”

“You want roommates?” He seemed to be against that idea.

“They’re my best friends. It wouldn’t be like they’re strangers living with me.”

“I guess I should be relieved you don’t want any ‘boyfriends’ shacking up with you.”

Ryan and Evan were the only guys that were my best friends, and Noah already had enough issues with them.

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