~Bonus Chapter for today:
This Chapter is dedicated to "Goldenbooks". Thank you so much for the review! I’m super grateful!
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Nick’s POV
Even though Mom had beaten with her designer bag like it was a weapon of mass destruction, I couldn’t deny it—it was a damn good reunion. Being here with her and Vicky reminded of what I always missed when I was out at sea.
Sure, I’d made a habit of calling them while sailing, but a video call never ca close to this chaos, this warmth.
Mom was practically glowing when I told her I wouldn’t be sailing anymore. She hugged , comforted about losing my license, and then, because she’s my mom, imdiately switched gears and started worrying about stepping into managent again.
Well... not yet.
I haven’t told my father. Everyone thinks I’ll be working in the office, and technically, I’ve let them think that, because deep down, I know he won’t reject my request.
He’s been waiting my whole life for this—waiting for to take the helm of Knight Fleet Mariti and everything else that cos with the empire that I turned down years ago.
The difference now is I finally have a reason to stay. A reason strong enough to chain to land and make face the brutal, unforgiving world outside the sea.
Georgia.
For her, I’ll willingly step into my father’s shoes and build sothing bigger than myself. For her, I’ll stop running from the life I swore I didn’t want.
I will do this not because I don’t have a fallback for my career, but because this is the only way I can protect her and Katie.
I just hope my old man doesn’t decide to ’welco ’ the way Mom did this morning. One beating from a luxury bag is enough for a lifeti.
I tugged on the crisp shirt and tailored pants Mom had laid out for , after she learned that I would have dinner with Dad and the rest of the Knight family.
Of course, Vicky couldn’t resist sticking her nose in, raiding my closet like it was her personal runway. Tie, shoes, hell, even jewelry. My sister might as well have dressed for my own runway.
Mom, naturally, didn’t waste the mont. She crossed her arms and gave that look—the one that could slice a man in half. "If you had a wife, Nicholas, she’d make sure you looked this handso all the ti. Not just when I force you into it."
I smirked, running my fingers over the stiff collar. "So basically, you want to trade yourself in for soone younger who’ll nag daily?"
She swatted with a laugh, but her eyes said she was dead serious. And for a fleeting second, I pictured Georgia standing in this room, fussing over my tie, brushing her fingertips along my jaw before kissing breathless just to ruin the perfect look.
Damn. If Mom only knew how close her wish really was a few days ago. She would kill if I didn’t go through it.
Vicky left early with Mom, dropping her off before making a quick stop to pick up flowers—for . Flowers, I was supposed to hand over later, like so obedient son.
She was thoughtful like that, always trying to soften edges I had no interest in dulling. Unlike , she still believed in pretending, in sugarcoating. I didn’t. If I didn’t like soone, I didn’t waste my damn breath.
I parked a block away from the Knight ancestral estate, watching the mansion loom like a fortress against the dusk. When Vicky’s car rolled past, her horn cut the silence, and I gunned the engine to follow.
The mont we pulled into the driveway, she reached for the bouquet, ready to shove the bouquet into my hands. I ignored it and strode ahead, leaving her to play the dutiful daughter.
The heavy door swung open, and Violet appeared—my father’s legal wife, smiling sweetly at Vicky the mont she spotted the tulips.
"This is for you, Mom. Your favorite," Vicky said warmly, offering the flowers.
Now I hated tulips. Officially.
They hugged, kissed cheeks, shared a little picture-perfect mont. My jaw tightened, and I forced myself not to roll my eyes.
"Nicholas!" Violet’s voice chid with syrupy delight. "It’s so good to see you, dear. How are you holding up? I heard about your license. Don’t worry—I know soone who can help you get it back in an instant."
Fake smile, fake sweetness... but the power behind those words wasn’t fake at all. I knew she could do it. And I knew she’d do it only to get back on the ocean, far away from this family war.
"It’s none of your business," I bit out, my tone sharp as a blade.
Her smile didn’t falter—but before she could respond, a voice thundered from the staircase, deep and commanding.
"Nick! Watch your words. That’s not how you speak to your mother."
My father’s presence hit like a storm, his footsteps echoing down the steps.
I lost control of my eyes. I rolled it like there’s no tomorrow.
"How about we head to the dining room? Reagan and Liam are already there, and the maids have started serving the dishes," Violet announced smoothly, looping her arm around Vicky’s like they were two actresses in a family drama I had no interest in watching.
She tugged her toward the dining room with practiced grace, leaving face-to-face with the storm I knew was waiting.
"Welco back, son," my father said, his voice carrying none of the sharpness he had unleashed just monts ago.
His arms stretched open in invitation, a gesture so genuine I almost forgot he’d scolded like a child from the staircase seconds earlier.
And so, I let him hold .
The embrace was warm, tight, and far too long for a man who never liked to show weakness. It was the sa kind of hug he gave the day Oliver cleared my na in court, when I walked out of jail carrying nothing but bruised pride and reputation.
"I thought I lost you," he muttered into my shoulder, his voice soft and heavy with relief. "I almost had a heart attack."
Sothing twisted in my chest at that. For a mont, I almost believed I was still the little boy who wanted nothing more than his father’s approval.
Then ca the dagger—delivered with his trademark dry humor.
"Good thing I didn’t... or else I’d have to haunt you in your sleep as a ghost."
Ti froze.
And then—bam. His fist landed square on the side of my head.
"What the hell were you thinking?!" His roar echoed through the grand hall. Making everyone in the dining room run to the hallway, including the maids, to watch the commotion unfold. "Jumping off a goddamn moving ship. Not just once—but twice! Disregarding protocols, safety, and your entire crew! Are you trying to kill and your mother with worry, huh, Nicholas?!"
My skull throbbed where he’d struck, but the sting didn’t matter. This was the part I knew was coming—the storm of disappointnt, fury, and love all tangled in one.
And judging from the fire in his eyes, this was just the opening act. There’s surely more to co...
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Thank you Emilee_M_7396 for the Golden Ticket!
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