The Wedding Pact Box Set - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,357

he was trying to sell him property on Mars. “Dad died of a heart attack here in the office while you were at school over a hundred miles away. You did not kill Dad.”

He shook his head, nearly choking on the bitterness in his heart. “I may not have been here, but I killed him anyway.”

“What in the world are you talking ab—” Recognition filled his eyes. “Dad never called you.”

Now it was Noah’s turn to be confused. “What are you talking about?”

“Dad told me about his visit to you at school. He was really upset that you were buying drugs for your ADD and he thought you were dealing too. He told me he’d changed his mind about making you partner and he wanted to give the whole business to me.”

“You knew? You knew he told me I was no longer his son?”

“He told you that?” Josh reached forward and grabbed his shoulder. “No. He never told me that part. Only that he’d discovered the truth. Oh God, Noah. I had no idea . . . otherwise I would have told you what happened when he came to me.”

“What are you talking about?” Noah choked out, pulling away from Josh’s comfort.

“Mom had already laid into him by then. I think he hoped I’d take his side, but Mom and I both told him off for guilt-tripping you about taking medication for a documented medical condition. Would he deny insulin to a diabetic? Mom told Dad he’d forced you into it.” Josh’s voice broke. “And I made sure he knew I didn’t want this business without you. It was the McMillan Brothers or nothing at all. I think he realized then what he’d done. He said he was going to call you and apologize. The morning he died, he told me that he had. He said he’d called and told you he was sorry and he’d taken it all back.”

Noah shook his head. “I had a voice mail . . . I discovered it after I found out he died.” His voice cracked. “I heard his voice and I deleted it. I couldn’t bear to hear him berate me from the grave.”

Josh took a deep breath, tears in his eyes. “Noah, he swore to me he apologized. He must have done it in the voice mail.”

Pressure built in Noah’s chest.

“If anyone is responsible for his death, it’s him. He didn’t exercise or take care of himself. Maybe when he realized how much he’d hurt you, his grief pushed him over the edge.”

Noah leaned forward, covering his face with his hands. Could that be true?

Josh put his hand on Noah’s back. “He said he was going to call you and apologize, and that was a full day before his death. I guess I got so caught up in my own shock and grief that I never thought to ask you if he had. Plus you never mentioned it, so I . . . I guess I thought it was resolved. And I didn’t want him to hurt you any more than he already had.”

It was all too much. Libby. His father. He jumped to his feet, intending to run far, far away—where didn’t matter—but Josh stood and pulled him into a hug.

“I’m so sorry, Noah. I see things a lot more clearly now and I’m sorry I’ve been such a prick. You really came through with this Abrahams account, even after I treated you like shit. For what it’s worth, your job would have been waiting for you whether you brought in the account or not.”

Noah pulled free and shook his head. “I don’t know what I want anymore. The one thing I wanted most in the world is gone.”

Josh grabbed his shoulders, his fingers digging deep. “She’s not gone. You just have to fight for her.”

“I still think she’s better off without me.” He turned around and opened the office door.

“You two are perfect for each other,” Josh said, his voice tight.

Noah turned to face him in disbelief.

“I saw it the night of my wedding. I know Libby was with Mitch, but she never looked as happy with him as she did when she was with you. Megan and Blair didn’t get it, and honestly, I never tried to explain it to them because I figured they’d amp up their campaign to warn Libby off you. But I could see you were meant to be. The day you told me she was engaged, I think you might have misunderstood my