15. Noah

CHAPTER 15

NOAH

N oah adjusted his tie yet again.

"You look fine," Sophie teased. "Seriously, you seem more anxious than I do."

He tried not to pace. "Yeah well, I've never really done this before."

"Done what?"

"The parent thing," he said quietly.

"You've never met one of your girlfriend's parents?"

Noah recalled Bradley's comment, stating that an accident didn't count. "No."

"Wait. Seriously?" She laughed. "Like ever?"

Noah shook his head, feeling uneasy. "Never."

He had never felt the need before. It wasn't like any girlfriend he ever had was serious. He knew he was never going to marry any of them. So what would be the point?

But now he was marrying Sophie and it changed everything.

What if they didn't like him? Would they be angry?

They opted to meet at the same restaurant where they had made their arrangement. Apparently, it was one of her father's favorites.

As soon as they walked through the door, Noah's heart rate spiked. He had met people for million-dollar deals, ran an entire company, frequently appeared in magazines, and he was scared to meet a girl's parents?

Sophie's parents, Mike and Sarah, were in their late fifties. They didn't appear to come from wealth but they were both dressed in formal dinner attire.

Mike was a bald man around Noah's height, and he shared the same charismatic smile as Sophie. Her mother, Sarah, looked a lot like Sophie. She had the same light brown hair and piercing blue eyes.

Noah tried to remember why he had agreed to this.

Buck up, Noah! he chastised himself.

He waited for Sophie to finish hugging them to introduce himself and shook her father's hand, praying Mike didn't feel the slipperiness of his palm.

Sarah brought him in for a hug, "It's so nice to meet you, Noah. We were completely shocked when Sophie told us that she had a boyfriend!"

Sophie appeared embarrassed by her mother's comment and pretended not to hear her.

The server escorted them over to their table and they settled in, ordering some water.

Mike rested his elbows on the table. "So, Noah. You are Sophie's boss, correct?"

"Yes, I suppose I am." He'd expected that this question would pop up, but not within the first five minutes.

"Mhmm. So how did you two start dating? I hear my daughter does very well in your company—"

"Dad!" Sophie chastised.

"Well, I'm just—" her father started.

Noah rubbed his hands together anxiously under the table. He understood what her father was insinuating and was appalled. Sophie had worked very hard to get where she was.

"Sophie's success in Birch Industries is completely her own. We only started dating a few months ago. We ran into each other one night outside of work and really hit it off. It surprised us both as well. Up until then our relationship had been strictly professional."

Mike nodded, seeming to accept his answer.

Sophie gave Noah a grateful look. "I'm sorry I never told you guys; we were keeping it private until things became serious between us. We just wanted to be sure."

"So you two are serious, then?" her mother questioned.

Noah reached for Sophie's hand. "Yes. I'm very serious about your daughter."

The waiter came over and took their order, giving everyone a moment to breathe. It felt tense. Noah couldn't determine whether her parents liked him or not yet. He wasn't sure why, but he wanted them to like him.

He saw Sophie take a deep breath beside him, preparing to drop the bomb, and he squeezed her hand in support. "So I didn't just invite you here to meet Noah tonight. We actually had some things we wanted to share with you guys."

Her parents stiffened slightly. Sophie held their full attention.

"Well, me and Noah are actually engaged," Sophie announced. She held her hand above the table, letting them see the ring.

"Engaged?!" Mike said as Sarah gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.

Sophie gave Noah a terrified look; it seemed like she wanted to get all the news out of the way at once.

Noah wrapped his arm around the back of her chair, trying to show some support.

"We're also pregnant." Sophie flinched slightly as she spoke the words.

Her parents' faces were completely stunned, their bodies unable to register so many emotions at once.

Noah felt a tightness build in his chest.

After a moment of dumbfounded silence, her mother nearly shrieked with joy. "Oh, Sophie! Congratulations." Sarah leaned across the table and wrapped her daughter in a tight embrace.

Surprisingly, Mike stood as well, a huge smile on his face as he hugged Noah and patted him on the back. "Welcome to the family, Noah."

Noah was confused by their sudden acceptance. There was so much joy in their faces, even Noah's eyes started to water.

"We're going to be grandparents, Mike!" Sarah was nearly sobbing with excitement.

As her parents hugged one another, Noah met Sophie's eyes, and their smiles faltered a little.

For one moment, it truly felt like they were on this journey together. It felt… well, Noah didn't even have the words to describe it, because it was something he had never experienced before.

Was this what it was like to have a family? Loving parents?

Something heavy settled over him. This was something his own child would never know. Because this wasn't real.

They settled back into their seats, and Noah tried his best to play the role of Sophie's fiancé for the rest of the evening. Thankfully, her parents were much more enthused by his presence and it was easy to converse as they asked questions about work and Sophie, and Sarah talked on and on about ideas for the baby shower, and how she would love to be involved in the wedding planning.

Noah could tell that Sophie was trying to maintain the same enthusiasm as her mother but was struggling.

He wondered what her parents would think if they told them the truth. Would they still be happy?

Would they grow to resent him when they realized how little of a role he would play in their life? When he didn't show up to Christmas or Thanksgiving holidays?

These were things that he had never considered about their agreement. He never had to worry about his family because he didn't have one, at least not in the normal sense. In fact, he didn't have many people in his life that cared about him at all.

He was reminded by how shocked Sophie was by the size of his guest list compared to hers. Sure, she only had about thirty people on her list, but they were all important to her. How many people on Noah's list were comparable? Maybe four?

Most of his mother's side had abandoned them after she died and his father had always been distant with his own.

Noah's only family included Bradley, who he had met in college, and Anne, his nanny from childhood. And his two other friends he had met through mutuals, Kelly and Jason.

That was it. The sum of Noah's support system.

Everyone was looking at him.

"Huh?" Noah asked.

Mike smiled. "I asked if you'd like to go golfing tomorrow?"

Noah tried not to show any panic, tossing a quick glance over at Sophie who frowned apologetically. Her eyes told him it was okay to say no.

"I, uhm—"

"You like to golf, right? If you're busy tomorrow, I have another tee time booked for next Saturday," Mike told him.

Sophie cut him off. "Dad, I don't think Noah—"

There was so much pressure. He could see Sophie's mind reeling for excuses.

"Yeah, tomorrow works for me," Noah blurted. Sophie blinked in disbelief. "I love to golf. I used to play with my father."

Technically, it wasn't a lie; Richard had taken him golfing plenty of times, but only so he could meet important clients. It was also a monthly ritual for Bradley and him to get together, drink beers and golf.

He didn't know why he agreed. It felt like he would be letting Sophie down by not going. It already felt like he wasn't giving the same amount that she was in their arrangement. Hopefully this was a way for him to even the score.

"Great," Mike said. "I'll see you there. Nine a.m. at The Ridge."

Noah smiled in response.

They began to discuss different courses that they had played on and even bonded over their favorite brand of clubs. By the end of the evening Noah felt better about spending time with Mike tomorrow, excited even. Both parents hugged him again before departing. Sophie didn't seem to think twice about it but Noah's family had never been big on displays of affection.

On their way back to Sophie's apartment, she was quiet. It unnerved Noah. The last time she was quiet she ignored him for a week.

"You know you don't have to go tomorrow, right?" she said nervously.

"I know," he stated. "I want to. I like your dad," he said more convincingly.

They pulled into her parking lot. "If you're sure…"

"I am. I told you this is my time to be more involved in our agreement. You're doing so much for me, all the appointments and the planning… It's only fair that I do the same for you."

"Well, I hope you guys have fun, then."

"Don't forget we have the engagement shoot next weekend with Nova . I suppose it would be a good time to announce the pregnancy as well. Two birds with one stone," he said as she climbed out of the car.

"Sounds good." She smiled, then. A real smile. "Text me if you want any advice for tomorrow."

The next morning, Noah met Sophie's father at The Ridge.

It took a while, but eventually Noah's anxiety started to ease. After their fourth hole, her father even began cracking jokes at his expense.

Noah had never considered himself to be a pro, not by a long way, but Sophie's father was making him look like an amateur.

"You're pretty good at this," Noah admitted. "Or should I say, above par."

"I see the dad jokes are already starting to come in." Mike laughed, setting up for his next swing. Which thankfully, prevented him from seeing Noah's face.

When he was finished, Mike turned to him, a more serious look on his face. "I hate to ask, and it's not really any of my business but… this engagement, was it only because—"

"No," Noah interrupted. "I proposed to Sophie a few weeks before we found out she was pregnant."

Mike nodded, seeming to take in what he said. "She's an amazing woman, my daughter. Always knew what she wanted out of life."

He couldn't disagree. "Sophie is amazing. I'm lucky to have found her."

"You know she used to run around the house dressed up as a bride," Mike laughed. "And she had this baby doll named Bella that she took everywhere — even dressed the thing in her own clothes. It's hard watching your kids grow up, especially when things happen so quickly, but Sophie's going to be an amazing mother. I only asked because I care and I want her to be happy."

Did Mike know? Noah was sure that Sophie hadn't told her parents anything about their arrangement. He didn't know what to say. "I'll try my best."

It was hard hearing her father be so protective of her. Hearing him express his love for his daughter. Noah could never imagine Richard saying something like that on his behalf.

They finished their round after another couple hours and walked back to the parking lot.

Mike patted him on the back. "We should do this again sometime."

"Yeah, of course," Noah replied, knowing that it was unlikely.

It would be a bad idea to get attached to Sophie, let alone her family. But he really liked Mike, admired him even.

Maybe if Noah had been raised differently, he could have been like Mike. A person who would emotionally support and protect his child. A man whose child could truly depend on him.

But he wasn't.