Noah could not stop smiling as Aria repeated what he wanted to hear. They were like music to his ears, and he wished to hear them all the time. Noah cursed under his breath for not recording them. He could have used them as his ring tone, his notification alert as well as his alarm tone. What a lost opportunity!!!

"Noah," Aria mused, waiting for the man to reply to her.

"Hmm," He hummed softly, still recalling how amazing her words sounded.

"Don't you have something to tell me?" She queried, biting her lips and twirling her strand of hair.

"Do I?" Noah sensed what Aria wanted to hear. Yet, he did not say a word, for it was now his chance to tease her.

"Noah," Aria almost whined, wondering if the man was playing ignorant or if he actually had no idea.

"Yes, baby. Tell me."

"Noah," Aria gritted her teeth, ready to explode if the man continued with his act. However, Noah had no intentions of uttering what she wanted to hear from him. She had played him before, now it was his time.

"Baby, you will have to explain. I don't know what you are talking about." Noah could imagine how frustrated Aria would be, her cute face turning red in anger as time ticked by.

"Are you sure because if you prolong your act, I will prolong my stay here, and you can forget your birthday?" Aria threatened blatantly, and Noah raised his eyebrows at her, pondering over it.

'Aria will not deny me my surprise. I am sure she wants me to surrender first.' Noah smiled, his devilish mind plotting a scheme to trap his girl. "Aria, I really have no idea what you are talking about. Would you mind telling me?" His tone changed drastically as though he was accusing her of blaming him while he was completely innocent.

Question marks popped up in Aria's mind, and she wondered if the man really had no idea what she was talking about. Biting her lip, she decided to give him a clue. "Noah, I wanted to hear the three words from you."

"Three words?" Noah almost burst out laughing, finding his girl alluring and cute. "What three words Aria?" He continued to feign ignorance, and now Aria was sure that the man was acting.

"Noah," She yelled on the phone, and immediately she turned back, fearing that her shout had woken up Joshua. To her relief, the man was deep asleep. "Are you playing games with me?"

"Not at all, baby. Why did you think so?"

"Fine. You can go ahead and keep up with your act. I'll take Ian's shift today. See you tomorrow."

Noah realized that he had taken the fun quite far. Although he was in the mood to continue, he could not do so right now. Not to worry, for he knew he had all the time in the world to have his share of fun with his sweet girl. His priority was to apologize to the girl who ruled his heart. "Sweetheart," He stopped her right before she could cut the call. "I love you."

That was all it took for Aria's anger to vanish, and she smiled immediately, her eyes twinkling in joy. "Finally," She sighed, pushing the strand of hair behind her ear. "I thought you would not tell me."

Noah's eyes widened, hearing her words. "Aria, did you just trick me?"

"What do you think?" Aria smirked and walked back to the chair beside Joshua.

"Aria," The man growled. Though there was a slight warning in it, she knew that he was just being playful.

"Yes, Noah?"

"Come back home. I will take care of you thoroughly today." Noah promised, making Aria's heart skip a beat. Subconsciously, she clenched her thighs, recalling the surprise she had prepared for him.

'Oh no. What do I do?' She pondered over it, absent-mindedly listening to Noah's words.

Having no idea about the turmoil running through her mind, Noah continued to blabber everything he had in mind. "Aria, since it is my birthday, I can ask anything from you. Am I right?"

"Umm hmm," Aria answered, his question bouncing above her head. She had not heard a word he had said. She was lost in thoughts, wondering if it was the right time to give the man his present. It had taken a lot of courage to prepare herself for the day, and with Joshua lying unconscious after being shot and after all the chaos that had happened in the past few days, Aria's courage had deflated like a balloon. Now, she was unsure if she wanted to go ahead with what she had planned.

A grin spread on Noah's face, imagining all that he could do with his girl. "I will take it as a promise then. You cannot go back on your words later. Alright?"

"Umm hmm," Aria replied again, and for a second, Noah wondered if Aria even realized what she had gotten herself into. But he shook his head, for that was what she wanted, a blank promise. He would later fill the blank himself.

"Great then. I will hold onto your words." Noah stated, and his excited voice brought the lost girl out of her reverie.

"What?" She quizzed, frowning in confusion. 'What were we even talking about?' She wondered.

"Oh sweetheart, I cannot wait to see you. You will love whatever I have in mind for us, and I will love it even more." Noah's mysterious words increased Aria's confusion even more.

'What is Noah talking about, and what did I even promise him that he is this elated?' Even though Aria tried to replay their conversation, she could not remember a word. 'Did I promise something weird to him?'

Aria wanted to ask him about it. But she gave up, deciding to give into him this once. It was his birthday, and she would give him anything he wanted. He deserved it anyway, after everything she had done to him, after keeping a lot of secrets from him.

"I will be waiting then," Aria added, surrendering to the man she loved the most.

"Although I want to keep talking to you all night, you need to take a rest. I will see you tomorrow. I love you." Noah ended the call after Aria's reply, and he smiled, giddy with happiness. "Aria, you have no idea what you signed up for. But don't worry love. I will make sure you will love every second of it."