The Enticing CEO’s Chosen Bride

Noah’s body jolted, his gaze froze in an instant.

“Come on, Noah, don’t let Ella’s sacrifices be in vain. She wanted you and the Trettons to be okay. Just do it for her.”

“Where did she go?” Noah spoke as if Jon’s words had never reached his ears.

Jon silently stared at him.

Noah clenched his fists, his thin lips quivered, a ring of red encircling his eyes. He persistently repeated those few words. “Where did she go?”

No response came, his hoarse voice repeating the unchanged phrase. “Where did she go?”d2

Jon’s eyes shut almost in resolution.

Noah’s adam’s apple bobbed, “Dad, I’m begging you.”

Jon suddenly shuddered, his eyelids fluttering before snapping open.

“Ella did nothing wrong, it’s all on me. I’ve let things spiral into this mess. How can I live with myself using her life as a stepping stone?

“I can’t do what you call letting go, that’s not letting go. Dad, I can’t let Ella leave. There’s no one else in this world who’ll love me like she does.

“I know I messed up, but letting her go is an even bigger mistake. I need to make it right. I need to take care of her. I can’t stand the thought of her being with anyone else. What if someone breaks her heart?”

Considering the possibility, Noah’s throat worked violently, his voice ragged beyond recognition. “She loves me. She must be heartbroken without me. Dad, she must be crying right now. I have to find her. Dad, please.”

Jon slowly opened his eyes, wincing as if stabbed by the thought. His son, once proud and strong, now knelt before him, a picture of desolation and desperate pleading.

Ella was crying. Yes, she was crying.

Despite her calm expression during their last encounter, her eyes were red, her voice trembled, and every word she spoke seemed to exhaust all the strength in her body to restrain the emotions on the verge of collapse. So, he left just to give her space to vent her emotions.

She must be crying now.

He still couldn’t forget the profound sadness seeping through her stubborn gaze. Nor could he erase the image of her bending over in pain, clutching her chest, as he looked back after walking away. Tears, unstoppable, slid from his eyes.

“It’s all your fault… all your fault…” Jon gripped his cane with all his might, his trembling voice breaking into sobs.

“If only you had shown half of this resolve from the start, Ella wouldn’t have suffered so much. It’s all your fault. You hurt my Ella, forcing her away from me time and time again. You don’t deserve Ella, Noah. You just don’t.”

Tears streamed down Jon’s face, and the butler rushed to his side for support.

Only now did everyone understand that Jon had been holding up all this while.

Worried about the Trettons, concerned for Noah, but even more for Ella, Jon didn’t want anyone to be hurt, yet in the end, that was exactly what happened.

Jon was torn. Back then, he didn’t object to their relationship, yet not optimistic about it either.

Putting aside their familial connection, Jon didn’t think Ella being with his son, a man cold and calculated, concerned only with profit, was a good thing. But who knew Ella would harbor such deep feelings for Noah?

Moreover, the current situation was crafted by his own son, deemed clever by everyone.

“You’re the last person who deserves forgiveness. It’s all on you.” In a sudden motion, Jon raised his cane, striking Noah again and again with unforgiving force.

Noah’s eyes shut tight, teeth clenched, silently bearing the relentless beating.

The commotion drew airport staff, who, after failing to intervene, could only watch as the cane fell repeatedly on the man kneeling on the ground.

The onlookers grew in number, but Jon showed no sign of stopping. It wasn’t until the butler saw blood oozing from the corners of Noah’s mouth, his dark shirt gradually soaked, that he anxiously grabbed Jon’s hand. “That’s enough, sir. If you keep this up, he won’t last.”

Jon thrust away the butler’s hand with a forceful swing, the finely carved boxwood cane snapping in two.

A collective gasp rose from the crowd.

Noah, unable to hold back, groaned, a cough bringing up more blood.

“It’s because of you. All the hurt is because of you. You’re the least deserving to be with her. My Ella, so kind and sweet.”

Jon tossed aside the broken cane, the butler steadying him, his arm trembling uncontrollably. “Get out. Just get out.”

Noah’s throat worked, the metallic taste suppressed, as he staggered to his feet, gripping his knee, his search relentless and nearly obsessive. “Where did she go?”

“I won’t tell you. If you can find her, do it. If not, it just proves your bond was never meant to be.” With those words, Jon had finally spoken his piece.

Noah nodded, silently moving past his father, weaving through the crowd, and entering the airport lobby. His steps went from shaky to erratic, then purposefully striding, searching desperately for something in the vast hall.

His assistant caught up from behind, and Noah grabbed his arm like a lifeline, his voice tinged with urgency. “Help me find her, quick. Help me find her.”

The assistant was inwardly shaken; today’s Noah was something he couldn’t have fathomed. “Mr. Noah, please, take it easy. I’ll check the counter for Ms. Ella’s flight. Just please calm down.”

Noah paused, a moment of

Ms. Ella’s whereabouts.

and the assistant noticed a bloody imprint where his arm had

The dark fabric of Mr. Noah’s shirt

that moment, but one thing was crystal clear to him. Ms. Ella’s words

beating his son, his pride and joy, to death for someone

did the man, who supposedly fell victim to her calculations, would rather be beaten to

had likely taken on the mantle of

on Ella’s flight. The country she was headed to was nowhere near where

hop to another nation upon landing, switch to different means of travel, or perhaps even end

Noah’s frantic panic was not without

Country, the plane had taken off just ten minutes ago. The assistant relayed this to Noah, who

Noah’s face, the pool of crimson below, and the blood still dripping

it.” His expression was

sigh, the assistant pulled out his phone

*

Jon had everyone in a tizzy. In the era

conference – admitted to a sordid affair with her uncle

his father confronted him outside

on video, adding fuel to

like the Tretton family’s adopted grand-daughter wasn’t telling the truth at

another video surfaced, this one of Ella’s conversation with Paul at a diner before she met with Rebecca. Linking the timing and

180 from how she acted at the coffee shop with Rebecca. Was she pretending to be a saint in front of a man, but showing her true

deliberately provoking Rebecca

the Tretton family and her uncle, considering the family had already been under a

the adopted grand-daughter isn’t the heartless traitor she was made out

*

on her hand, her slender fingers tapping idly

over his bleeding arm and settled on the calm, handsome man opposite him. Her brows arched slightly. “If this keeps

eyes glanced down casually before returning to Cicely’s delicate face. His lips

looking down at her cup and pushing it away with

the airport coffee? All this way for just

owe you more for the trek here? Should I drink it

cup, holding it gently in his, a

exactly has Chloe been feeding

just thought you’d prefer being bothered by me than threatened

lips curled into a half-smile. “In truth, her antics barely

his palm playfully. “You think we’re close? Then perhaps you should do her more favors

this the world’s

even need

brandished an unpublished expose to coerce him into meddling in the Tretton family affair, even dragging Cicely into the mix to increase the pressure, Seth’s temples began to

had merely used her artist’s social media influence to stir the pot for the Tretton family, and now she

tugged at the corner of her mouth. “I see you look troubled. You really would’ve stayed out of it if she hadn’t

“Is that so wrong?”

I said I didn’t believe you’d stand by

broadened. “I’d be quite

him, trusted him, and that was more than enough to make him

“And?”

a plane to B Country, but he

didn’t say

*

Country was fully booked, and not even Noah, with all his wealth, could convince a single passenger to give up their seat

paced back and forth, his complexion shifting from a pale, sweaty pallor to a flushed, sweat-drenched red—a

wasn’t until his assistant mustered the courage to touch his forehead that the scorching heat transferred to the palm sent a shiver

me. Keep an eye on the departure board. Make sure they keep looking. I need

assistant’s hand away, but his strength was waning, his voice

no news of a canceled ticket

budged, no matter how outrageous

people in B Country to monitor

reached the car when

*

in a single day. Before Noah was whisked from the terminal to the emergency room, Rebecca had reached out to

herself, or maybe looking for a reason. When Rebecca found the answer, she laughed mockingly, yet

faced the media that afternoon, Rebecca addressed the same

you all know, my engagement to Noah was a merger of interests. There was no love between us. I was escaping a failed romance, and he was avoiding someone he shouldn’t be involved with. Our mutual self-assurance

once told me that if I ever had regrets or found true love, I could leave anytime. He even gave me the right to initiate the annulment. Because of this generosity, I found him tolerable at our first meeting. Unfortunately, I never

necessity. He feared the consequences of his feelings so much that he was willing to use marriage as a

love me, especially when I know he loves someone else. He simply found his love before me. If it wasn’t him today,