CHAPTER THREE — THE SECRET

Ethan’s grip tightened around the device until his knuckles turned white.

He lifted his gaze slowly and when his eyes met Noah’s, the calm, composed CEO was gone.

“What the hell is this?” Ethan’s voice was low. Controlled and Deadly.

Noah shook his head, heart hammering. “I don’t know. I swear I don’t know.”

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I’m not!”

Ethan rose from his chair, the movement deliberate. “They don’t publish this kind of thing without something to back it up. So tell me, Noah, what connection do you have to my father?”

Noah blinked, stunned. “None! I’ve never even met him!”

“Then explain this.” Ethan shoved the tablet at him.

Noah’s eyes darted over the words, his stomach churning.

> Sources close to the Cole family reveal that Noah Bennett once interned at Cole Industries under a different department and was personally recommended by Richard Cole himself.

********

Noah’s mouth went dry. “Oh my God.”

Ethan’s jaw flexed. “So it’s true.”

“No! I mean—” Noah ran a hand through his hair. “I didn’t even know he remembered me. It was years ago, before I ever worked for you. I was fresh out of college, broke, and desperate. He offered me a short-term internship through a recruitment agency. I never even spoke to him directly.”

Ethan folded his arms, expression unreadable. “And you conveniently forgot to mention that?”

“I didn’t think it mattered! It was six years ago!”

“Six years,” Ethan repeated quietly. “Right around the time my father was vetting new assistants for me.”

Noah frowned. “What are you implying?”

“That maybe you weren’t hired by accident.”

Noah’s breath caught. “You think I’m working for him?”

Ethan’s silence was answer enough.

Noah’s chest tightened. “You have got to be kidding me.”

“Tell me I’m wrong.”

“You’re wrong!” Noah snapped. “I’m your assistant, Ethan. Not your spy, not your father’s boy toy. I’ve been cleaning up your chaos for four damn years—”

“Because it paid well,” Ethan cut in.

“Because I believed in you!” Noah shouted.

Ethan blinked, startled. For a moment, the sharpness in his gaze faltered.

Noah exhaled shakily, voice dropping. “You think I’d risk my job, my life, for a man who’s done nothing but control you? I’ve seen what he does to you, Ethan. I’d never be part of that.”

Ethan looked away, jaw tightening. “Then someone’s feeding the press this information. Someone close.”

“Maybe someone in your father’s camp. Or PR. Or one of your board members who hates your guts,” Noah said bitterly. “Take your pick.”

Ethan paced toward the window, city lights glittering like shards of glass below. His reflection looked almost broken. “This leak isn’t random. It’s precision. It’s a message.”

Noah frowned. “From who?”

Ethan turned slowly, eyes colder than ever. “From my father.”

“You think he’s behind this too?”

“I don’t think,” Ethan said quietly. “I know.”

He crossed the room and grabbed his phone. Within seconds, he was dialing.

“Who are you calling?” Noah asked.

“My father.”

“Ethan—”

He ignored him. The phone rang once before a deep voice answered.

“Son.”

Ethan’s hand tightened on the phone. “You leaked it, didn’t you?”

Richard Cole chuckled. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“Don’t play games with me.”

“Oh, come now. You’ve been playing plenty yourself. A fake engagement? A press conference? Really, Ethan. Even for you, that’s bold.”

Ethan’s tone dropped. “You went after him. That was your mistake.”

“Was it?” Richard’s voice was soft, and mocking. “Or maybe I just wanted to remind you that I still control your story.”

“Not anymore,” Ethan said. “I’m done being your pawn.”

“Careful, son,” Richard warned. “You may not like the next headline.”

Ethan’s pulse spiked. “What does that mean?”

“Ask your little assistant,” Richard said smoothly. “He’s not as innocent as he looks.”

The line went dead.

Ethan lowered the phone slowly.

Noah stared at him. “What did he say?”

Ethan’s voice was barely a whisper. “He said… to ask you.”

Noah’s heart skipped. “Ask me what?”

Ethan walked closer, the air between them thick with suspicion and something darker. “What else are you hiding?”

“I’m not hiding anything.”

Ethan’s jaw flexed. “Then why does he think you are?”

“I don’t know!”

Ethan’s stare didn’t waver. “You better start remembering.”

“I am remembering!” Noah’s voice cracked, frustration spilling out. “You think I enjoy being dragged through this circus? I didn’t ask to be in your stupid family war—”

“Then why stay?” Ethan demanded. “You could’ve quit a hundred times. But you didn’t. Why?”

Noah hesitated, eyes flicking away.

“Answer me,” Ethan said softly.

Noah swallowed. “Because…”

“Because what?”

“Because I needed to protect you.”

Ethan blinked. “What?”

Noah exhaled shakily. “When I interned for your father, I saw things. Documents. Deals that weren’t clean. Your name was on some of them, but you weren’t involved. He was using your signature to move funds under your division.”

Ethan’s blood ran cold. “You’re saying he forged my authorization?”

“Yes. And I couldn’t prove it. So when the agency later sent me a listing for a position as your assistant, I took it. I thought… if I stayed close, I could find proof. Keep him from setting you up again.”

Ethan stared at him in shock, disbelief, and a flicker of something else all warring across his face.

“You knew,” Ethan whispered. “All this time.”

“I tried to tell you before, but you wouldn’t have believed me.”

Ethan took a step back, rubbing a hand over his mouth. “You’ve been protecting me?”

“From your father,” Noah said quietly. “And from yourself.”

The silence that followed was deafening.

Finally, Ethan looked up, eyes unreadable. “So this whole time… you’ve been keeping secrets for me.”

Noah nodded once.

Ethan exhaled slowly, tension breaking from his shoulders. “You’re insane.”

“Maybe,” Noah said, voice barely above a whisper. “But I’m not your enemy.”

Ethan’s gaze softened just a fraction. “You should’ve told me.”

“You wouldn’t have listened.”

“Maybe not,” Ethan admitted. “But I deserved to know.”

For the first time in hours, the sharp edge between them dulled.

Noah stepped closer, lowering his voice. “Ethan… whoever’s leaking this, it’s not just about us. It’s bigger. He’s trying to destroy you.”

Ethan’s eyes darkened. “Then let’s make sure he fails.”

Hours later, long after Noah had gone home, Ethan sat in his dark office, staring at the city skyline.

His father’s words kept echoing in his head.

“You may not like the next headline.”

His phone buzzed again.

One new notification.

From an unknown number.

He opened it.

It was a single image.

A photo of him and Noah asleep on the same couch in his office after a late night of work. Noah’s head rested on his shoulder and hands on his waist.

And the caption underneath:

> Next leak drops tomorrow. Ready for round two?

Ethan’s pulse stilled.

Whoever was doing this…

it wasn’t just about control anymore.

It was personal.