Page 127 of How to Fall for the Secret Billionaire
She tries to talk to me again, but I shake my head, managing a smile. “I just want to be alone, Thea. Please.”
She nods and gets up slowly, her eyes scanning my face one last time before she walks out and closes the door behind her.
The quiet returns.
I bury my face in the pillow, trying to sleep, but my thoughts are loud and relentless. Every time I close my eyes, I see him. His face when Thea said his name. The way he looked at me like I was the one thing he couldn’t afford to lose. The same way he lied, day after day, looking me straight in the eyes.
I toss. I turn. I cry into my sheets until the tears run out.
By the time I drag myself out of bed, it’s almost noon. I feel hollow and heavy at the same time. I splash water on my face, put my hair in a messy bun, and force myself to face the day—whatever’s left of it.
Downstairs, the inn smells like coffee and lemon scones. The usual comfort. The familiar hum of guests chatting in the lounge. But it all feels distant now.
Aunt Edie is the first to spot me. She lifts a brow as I pass. “Everything okay, sweetheart?”
I force a smile. “Yeah. Just didn’t sleep well.”
Mom appears from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dishtowel. “You look pale. Are you sick?”
“No, I’m fine,” I say quickly, before either of them can press further. “Just tired.”
They share a look, one of those quiet mother-aunt exchanges I’ve seen a thousand times, but they let it go—for now. I have a feeling they already know what the problem is; otherwise, they would have bombarded me with a million questions. But I’m grateful for their silence.
I pretend to be busy. I walk through the inn like it’s not breaking my heart to stand inside the place where I thought I’d finally found something real.
By two, I’m sitting in the office, pretending to work. My eyes scan the same line of the guest ledger for the tenth time. Nothing sticks. Everything hurts.
Then I hear a knock.
“Come in.” I plaster a smile on my face.
“Margot.” Cal peeks in, voice low, like he’s hoping I’m alone. “Can we talk?”
I lower my eyes back to the book. “I’m busy.”
He steps inside anyway. I don’t have the energy to throw him out.
“I just…” He exhales like he’s been holding his breath all day. “I didn’t come here to lie to you. I came here because I needed something real. I needed quiet. Peace. I needed to be just Cal for a while, not Cal Hale, not CEO. Just me.”
I finally glance up at him. “And you didn’t think I deserved to know who you really were?”
His expression tightens. “I didn’t think it mattered. At the time.”
“That’s exactly the problem.” My voice cracks as I stand. “It did matter. You let me open myself up to someone who didn’t even exist.”
“Margot, please—I’m real. I’m here.”
“No,” I cut him off. “I can’t do this right now. I asked you to stay away. Please respect that.”
When he makes no move to leave, I storm out of the office. Mom and Aunt Edie are standing outside like sentinels—arms crossed, faces pinched.
They definitely heard everything.
I don’t stop. I can’t. I walk right past them, pretending not to see the concern or the heartbreak etched into their aging features.
“Margot—” Mom starts.
“Not now,” I say, my voice breaking.
