Chapter 74

Mirabelle’s POV

I sat at my desk, staring at the stack of paperwork. My eyes felt heavy, and the clock on my computer read 9:12 p.m. I should have been home two hours ago, but my mind was stuck in Shanghai.

More accurately, it was stuck in that moment earlier when Noah cut our conversation short because of Natasha’s sudden arrival. He said he loved me, and I didn’t say it back.

“Focus, Mira,” I muttered, rubbing my temples and forcing myself to glance back at the documents. Numbers, words, data—they swam in front of me, meaningless.

It was no use.

My thoughts kept circling back to Noah’s voice, how it had gone tense and cautious, when he said he had to go.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by the sudden vibration of my phone on the desk. Noah’s name flashed on the screen. My heart skipped a beat. I hesitated, thumb hovering over the answer button, then picked up.

“Hey,” I said, keeping my voice calm, trying not to sound like I’d been ob