Is this destiny?

Chloe was never the one to argue and cause a scene. It\'s not because she is lacking courage, but she grew up in the Long family and learned that talking back does not help. It does the opposite, she gets punished and still needs to do as she was told or suffer further consequences, and if she keeps on defying the elders, even her parents get punished. That is why she decided to leave.

As Chloe was growing up, the demands of her seniors were increasing with the last one being for Chloe to accept an arranged marriage to a man from Montana she never met. She\'s never been to Montana! Chloe\'s parents are good and kind people, but in the Long family, seniors make decisions, and her parents get suppressed because they don\'t have a high standing in the family\'s hierarchy.

Maybe Steve would support Chloe if she spoke to him about what seniors are pushing on her, but Steve is busy managing the company and he has Bridgette and Denise, and Chloe didn\'t want to come to him asking for help with her insignificant problems. Maybe Steve would deal with the seniors this time, but what about the next one? Chloe didn\'t want to rely on Steve to protect her, she doesn\'t even know him that well. Chloe was at college when Steve came to the family and became the patriarch so she didn\'t get much chance to interact with him.

How Chloe saw her situation, the only way for Chloe to have her freedom was to get out.

Chloe\'s parents supported her decision to leave the family in search of independence, even though they were worried about her and she promised to be in touch daily so that they know she is doing well on her own.

The Long seniors still don\'t know that Chloe left, and she can\'t imagine their reaction when they find out. Maybe they just let it be, or maybe they come to find her and drag her back home. Anything is possible. She hopes that the marriage alliance with the man from Montana is not very important and that they will leave her alone.

Back to the present...

Chloe saw that another blue and red cocktail was placed on the bar counter in front of her and she lifted her gaze. "Thanks, Tim."

She remembered that Noah saved her again, and she didn\'t say anything. She gathered her courage and turned to the right, to see Noah looking her way. "Thanks…" Chloe was not sure if she should address him as Noah or something else. Boss? Director Bennet? Any of those might work, but \'Noah\' didn\'t seem appropriate.

In the last two days, she found out that Noah is much more than the head of security. He is a director at Blanc, and it seems that he is someone big in this club as well since everyone is looking at him with respect. The more she found out about him, the more mysterious Noah became, and also more distant. By the way people looked at him, Chloe felt like there is a celebrity next to her.

Chloe fidgeted on her chair. She came here to see Noah and talk to him, yet now that he was there, she was tongue-tied. How embarrassing.

"How is work? Are people treating you well?", she heard Noah ask.

"Great. It\'s really great. Everyone is great.", Chloe responded clumsily. She didn\'t want to say that she was overwhelmed and that she has no idea what she should be doing. Working in a company is so much different than what they taught her in school. But she can\'t say anything other than \'great\' to the man who gave her the opportunity to get a job and leave clutches of the Long family.

"Those were two greats more than necessary…", Noah said. "It makes me think you are hiding something."

Chloe gulped softly. Did he see through her? Is she getting someone in trouble? She looked up at him. "No, no. Really. People are great and helpful, but it will take me some time to get used to it. That\'s all."

Noah\'s lips lifted into a smile and he looked at Chloe with amusement in his eyes. He could see by the readings on his Eve-lens that she was a nervous wreck. Was it because of him? "What do you think about the club?"

"Uhm… it\'s lively."

Noah nodded in slow motion. "Another answer which makes me think you are hiding something."

Chloe exhaled a shaky breath as she realized that Noah made her anxious. Can he read minds? Or is she easy to read? "Why are you asking me questions if you doubt my answers?"

"It\'s the way you say things. You could have used one more of your \'greats\' to respond or say that it sucks, but you paused and called it lively which can be good lively or bad lively or maybe just noisy."

Chloe puffed her cheeks. "Would it be better to say that I was minding my own business while guys were pestering me even after I told them that I\'m not interested in drinks or conversation?"

Noah inched backward and his eyes moved over her body slowly, and she felt as if he was undressing her with his intense gaze.

She squirmed and pressed her legs tightly together.

Noah smirked and leaned closer to her. "You are an attractive woman, Chloe. And that dress is not hiding your curves. Considering that you are sitting here, alone, it\'s normal that guys will come and try their luck, and that they will not give up easily."

Chloe cleared her throat. "I didn\'t come here to pick up a man."

"And why did you come here?"

Chloe froze. How did they end up talking about this? She didn\'t come here to find a man, but she can\'t tell him that she came with the hope to see him. She will look like a stalker or some kind of a creep. Ah! How is she supposed to answer this?

Before Noah could urge Chloe to answer his question, Chloe was saved by the commotion in the club…

"Ladies and gentlemen!", a loud voice boomed across the club making everyone look around and focus on TV screens which showed a man in a black outfit with a microphone in his hand. "We have an external challenger for the right to meet with Nyx!"

The club shook from the loud cheers and Chloe shrunk in her chair while glancing around nervously. Even the bartenders were shouting. What is going on?

"It\'s OK.", Noah\'s voice sounded close to Chloe\'s ear and her head snapped toward him only to see that he was close. Too close. She blushed fiercely.

Noah chuckled, amused by her discomfort and the fact that she didn\'t back away. "It\'s a challenge that didn\'t happen in a long time, so people are excited."

"A challenge?"

Noah confirmed. "They want to meet with Sarah, and she refused them. In this place, if there is a dispute, they can settle it in the fighting arena. If the challenger wins, they will get what they want."

Chloe frowned while processing Noah\'s words. "A unique way to resolve meeting conflicts." She wondered if they heard about things such as phone calls and negotiations. Do they need to fight for it at work as well? How barbaric. 

Noah stifled a laugh. "If you think that it was noisy when he announced the fight, wait until he reveals who will be fighting…"

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