I smile to myself as I flip through my files, eager for this day to end so I can go home to Amara. The last couple of weeks have been perfect. Truly being able to call her mine changed everything for me. I didn’t think I could fall any further for her, but I did.
I sit up in surprise when my office door slams open, my eyes wide. Harold walks in, his expression chilling. The way he looks at me… he knows.
I’m resigned when he throws a stack of photos onto my desk, all of them of Amara and me. There are photos of us in Cali and then there are some of us walking in and out of my house, my arms around her. He’s even got a few photos of us kissing. How? How did Amara and I not realize we were being watched?
“I warned you,” Harold says. “I offered you my support, my guidance, my network. I offered you all I could, Noah. I asked you for one simple thing in return. All I asked of you was that you stay away from my granddaughter.” His voice breaks, and his expression betrays genuine hurt I wasn’t expecting. It was never my intention to hurt him, to let him down.
“Harold, I…” I don’t even know what to say to him. There’s nothing I can say that’ll make this better.
“You betrayed me, Noah, and in doing so you’re ruining your entire life. I had great plans for you. I thought of you as family. I supported you like you were one of my own.”
He turns away and runs a hand through his hair, his usually broad straight shoulders slumped. I swallow hard, trying my best to suppress the sorrow I feel. I knew this day would come. I knew he’d eventually find out, and I’ve been ready to face the consequences from the moment I decided to go after Amara.
“I’m sorry for breaking your trust,” I tell him. “But I won’t apologize for loving your granddaughter. I’m well aware that I don’t deserve her, but I’ll never stop trying to give her the best of me.”
He looks at me, his eyes flashing with rage. “The best of you? What is that exactly, Noah? You’re broken, and you know it. You’re half the man you could be, haunted by your past. You can’t offer Amara what she deserves, and you’ll break her heart. Your love for her will never overshadow the pain you live with.”
I laugh, the sound humorless. “You think you know me just because you’ve read my résumé, because you ran a background check? You know nothing about me, Harold.”
He shakes his head and looks down at his feet before looking up at me. “You’re fired, Noah. You’re fired on grounds of fraternizing with a patient, in addition to breaking regulation by getting involved with a student while employed as faculty staff. Effective immediately.”
I knew it was coming, but it still hurts. I inhale shakily and nod. “Very well. Fire me, Harold. But that won’t keep me away from Amara. I knew what I was getting into with her. I knew it’d cost me everything. I’ll bear the consequences.”
He stares me down, a hint of pain shining through his anger. “This is nothing yet, Noah. You have no idea what you got into. I warned you, over and over again. You’ll regret being with her. You’ll end up wishing you never set your eyes on my granddaughter. And when that day comes… it’ll shatter my little girl’s heart beyond repair.”
He runs a shaky hand through his hair, his face contorted with barely concealed desperation. “Walk away now,” he says. “Walk away now and I’ll leave you be. I’ll even write you a recommendation letter so you’ll be able to walk into a cushy job anywhere you please. Leave her. Leave Amara, and I’ll get you any job you want and one million dollars on top of it. Enough for you to do whatever the hell you please for years to come.”
He looks at me, his expression pleading, and I grit my teeth. “Do you love her?” I ask him. “Or is Amara just a tool to you, an asset? Do you care about her happiness at all?”
Harold smiles, even though his eyes convey misery. “More than you’ll ever know. More than she’ll ever know. I love my granddaughter, Noah. If you love her too, then walk away now and let her have the happiness I know she’d eventually find without you.”
“Happiness as defined by you? And what is that, Harold? Married to a man she doesn’t even like, giving up on her company and her dreams? No. Amara isn’t alone anymore, Harold. If you so much as try to take away her smile, you’ll have to go through me.”
He shakes his head and sighs. “Go through you? Noah, you’ll be the reason she’ll lose her smile. You’re the reason I’ll lose my granddaughter. You’ll alienate her from her family by refusing to leave her, and in the end, it’ll be you that’ll wreck her happiness. You think you love her, but when it comes down to it, that love won’t stand the test of time. You’ll falter, and you’ll do irreparable damage.” He holds his hands up and looks me in the eye, his gaze intense, unwavering. “I’ll get down on my knees and beg you if I must, Noah. Leave her.”
I shake my head. “No. She’s the single best thing that ever happened to me, and I know she’s happy with me too. You already took my job. I have nothing left to lose, Harold. I won’t let her go.”
He nods. “Then you leave me no choice. You’ll leave her eventually. You won’t be able to find a job. You will never work as a doctor again, Noah. You won’t be able to support Amara. Soon, you won’t even be able to put food on the table. Let’s see how long you can live like that. We’ll talk again. Soon.”
I smile at him. “No, we won’t.”
Harold looks around my office and shakes his head. “You have no idea what you’re throwing away. You don’t even realize how much more you’ll lose by defying me today, but you will. Eventually you will, and you’ll leave her. I’ll be counting down the days.”
He turns and walks out of my office, and I slump into my seat as the door closes behind him. My eyes fall closed as I fight to keep the desperation at bay. He’s right. He’s Harold Astor, and I’m nothing, no one. There’s every chance I won’t be able to support Amara, that I truly won’t be able to put food on the table, and when that happens… I’ll lose her.
