AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He didn’t know if he had a future with Sophie. Not until he fessed up to her, and she forgave him. He’d almost told her a dozen times or more. In the end, his cold feet always stopped him in his tracks. For a man who normally feared nothing, the thought of losing Sophie scared him to death.
Now, he was in the middle of a raucous wedding-rehearsal dinner in an Alaskan fishing village. And there wasn’t a place he’d rather be than at Sophie’s side. She looked all kinds of gorgeous in a long, cream-colored dress and matching heels.
He leaned down and spoke softly in her ear. “When everything quiets down, I want to talk to you about something, away from the hustle and bustle.”
“You won’t hear any argument from me,” Sophie murmured, as he grazed his lips against her temple. It was time. Time to speak plainly and from the heart. He couldn’t go on like this any longer.
Noah had practiced his speech to Sophie for hours last night. He would tell her the plain, unvarnished truth. He wouldn’t hold back a single detail. And he wouldn’t paint himself as an innocent victim, either. He would tell her about the financial troubles with Catalano Security and how desperation had blinded him.
He would wear his heart on his sleeve in the hopes of Sophie understanding his situation and how trapped he’d become.
When the music started playing, everyone headed toward the dance floor. Even Noah began to tap his foot to the upbeat tempo.
Sophie held out her hand. “Care to dance? Or do you have two left feet?” Her eyes danced with merriment.
“Those are fighting words. I’m a great dancer.” Noah took her hand and led her to the edge of the dance floor, where it wasn’t as crowded. He gracefully twirled her around and executed a few tricky moves he’d learned along the way. Then he pulled her close to him, steering her expertly across the room as they danced up a storm. When the music died down and people exited the dance floor, he led Sophie back to their table.
Suddenly, Noah felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around, shock roaring through him at the sight of the man standing beside him.
“I can take it from here, Catalano.”
Noah froze. It couldn’t be. But yet it was. He instantly recognized the polished masculine voice with the slight British accent.
It was Sussex! He was standing two feet away from them, with a smug smile on his face. Noah sucked in a breath to steady himself. What was his client doing here?
Sophie gazed at Sussex with a look of shock and dismay etched on her features. After a few seconds she shifted her gaze back to Noah, confusion radiating from her eyes. She shook her head, clearly in disbelief at her ex-fiancé showing up in this remote Alaskan town, but even more stunned by the fact that he seemed to know Noah.
“How do you know him, Noah? Why is he calling you Catalano?” she asked, skewering Noah to the spot with her eyes.
“Sophie, I—” he began. He couldn’t think of a single thing to say to explain it all to her.
“Have you been lying to me about your name?” she asked.
He let out a sigh. “Yes. My real name is Noah Catalano.”
His stomach twisted into knots when Sophie winced. A pained expression crept over her face.
“Can we talk in private?” Noah asked, desperate to tell her everything.
Sophie looked around her. People were beginning to openly stare and whisper. She held up
her hand, then looked back and forth between the two men. “Let’s take this to the main foyer. I don’t want to ruin Jasper and Hazel’s evening by creating a scene.” She turned on her heel and made her way out of the room. Noah followed, ignoring the impulse to stuff Sussex in an empty broom closet.
Once they arrived at the foyer, Sophie didn’t waste any time getting down to business.
She turned to face Sussex. “I want the truth, John. How do you know Noah?”
“He’s in my employ,” Sussex said. “I hired him to keep an eye on you, Sophie. He’s a private investigator.”
Sophie gasped. Her eyes widened. Her face crumpled. “Noah! Is that true?”
The satisfied expression on Sussex’s face didn’t escape Noah’s attention. He looked like the cat who’d swallowed the cream. He was clearly enjoying exposing Noah to Sophie.
Noah gritted his teeth. His moment of reckoning had arrived. It didn’t matter that he’d planned to tell her the truth later today. Almost didn’t count. “Yes, Sophie. It’s true. But—”
“I can’t believe this! You’re just as deceitful as John was.” She took two steps backward. “I trusted you. You made me believe you were someone I could love and trust and admire!” She raised her hand to her mouth and let out a sob. “You’re a private investigator? This whole time you’ve been paid to spy on me?” She glared at her ex-fiancé. “For him!”
“Not just spy, Sophie,” Sussex interjected. “Part of his assignment was to distract you from the other males here in town. A decoy of sorts. That’s how much I adore you. I couldn’t bear the thought of you being paired up with someone in this rinky-dink town.”
