Under His Billionaire Roof novel Chapter 30

Noah stared at his laptop screen. The contract blurred in front of him. He'd read the same paragraph six times. Still couldn't process a single word.

His office smelled stale. Coffee gone cold. Takeout containers piled on the desk. He couldn't remember when he'd last opened a window.

The clock read 3 AM. Tuesday. Or Wednesday. He'd lost track.

He refreshed his email. Nothing important. Nothing from her.

Not that he expected anything. She'd made it clear. No calls. No halfway. She was moving on.

Good. That's what she should do. What she deserved.

His chest felt like someone had carved it out with a dull knife.

He forced his eyes back to the contract. Made it through another paragraph before his mind wandered to her apartment. Small. Cheap. Nothing like what she deserved. He'd looked it up online. Stalked the address like a creep.

The building had peeling paint. Bars on the ground floor windows. A parking lot with more cracks than asphalt.

She was living there because of him. Because he'd pushed her away. Because he couldn't say three words when they mattered.

He grabbed his phone. Pulled up her contact. Stared at it.

His thumb hovered over the call button.

Then he set the phone down. Face down. Out of reach.

She didn't want to hear from him. She'd said so.

He went back to work.

By 6 AM, he'd reviewed four contracts. Answered thirty-seven emails. Approved two project proposals. His eyes burned. His head pounded. His stomach was empty.

He didn't care.

Work was better than thinking. Better than remembering the way she'd looked in his bed. The way she'd said she loved him. The way he'd let her walk away.

At seven, Chloe knocked on his door.

"Noah? You in there?"

He didn't answer.

"I know you're in there. I can see the light under the door." She knocked again. "I'm coming in."

The door opened. Chloe stood there in pajamas, hair messy from sleep. Her eyes went wide when she saw him.

"Jesus. When's the last time you slept?"

"I slept."

"Liar. You look like death." She moved into the office, wrinkling her nose. "And it smells like something died in here. When did you last shower?"

"Yesterday."

"Also a lie." She started gathering takeout containers. "This is bad, Noah. Even for you."

"I'm fine."

"You're not fine. You've been locked in here for two weeks. You barely eat. You don't sleep. You look like you're one bad day away from a breakdown."

"I said I'm fine."

She stopped. Studied his face. "This is about Leighton leaving, isn't it?"

His jaw tightened. "No."

"Don't lie to me. You've been different since she left. Worse."

"It has nothing to do with her."

"Then what? Because something's clearly wrong."

"Nothing's wrong. I'm just busy."

"Busy hiding in your office like a hermit?" She crossed her arms. "Talk to me. Please. You're scaring me."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Noah..."

"I said I'm fine. Now get out. I have work to do."

She flinched. He never talked to her like that. Never.

"Fine," she said quietly. "But this isn't healthy. Whatever's going on, you need to deal with it."

She left. The door closed behind her.

Noah dropped his head into his hands. Pressed his palms against his eyes until he saw stars.

He was losing it. He knew that. But he didn't know how to stop.

Thursday, his best friend Marcus showed up unannounced. Walked right into his office without knocking.

"Okay. Intervention time."

Noah looked up. "What are you doing here?"

"Chloe called. Said you're spiraling. And from the looks of it, she wasn't exaggerating." Marcus sat in the chair across from him. "When's the last time you left this house?"

"I leave."

"When?"

"I don't know. Last week sometime."

"That's what I thought." Marcus leaned forward. "What's going on, man? And don't say nothing. I've known you too long for that bullshit."

"I'm just working."

"You're not working. You're hiding. There's a difference."

"I'm not hiding."

"Then what do you call this? Locking yourself in your office for two weeks straight? Not sleeping? Not eating? Not showering?"

"I showered."

"When? Because you smell like you haven't seen soap in days."

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify