Chapter 112

Sylvia's POV The worst of it was finally behind me. The company stock had started to crawl its way back up—slow and cautious, like a cat coming out from under a bed. The online smear campaign that once felt inescapable was now fizzling out, the hashtags dying off like a failed trend. For the first time in weeks, I could breathe without checking headlines. My phone buzzed on the counter, and when Noah's name popped up on the screen, I didn't even have to fake the smile that tugged at my lips. "Hey, Noah," I answered, trying for casual, though there was still a hint of fatigue threading through my voice. "Hi, Sylvia." His voice came through warm and steady, like chamomile tea on a bad day. That familiar, velvety calm that made everything feel just a little less sharp around the edges. "I've been meaning to call… I just didn't want to add to the chaos. You holding up okay?" I smiled, even though he couldn't see it. "I'm fine. Really." I said it with the kind of practiced confidence that c