Chapter 2
The man standing behind him was in his early sixties, tall, silver-haired, and dressed in a navy jacket that probably cost more than everything in my suitcase.
But nothing about his clothes was what scared the businessman.
It was his face.
"Mr. Whitmore," the guy in the gray suit finally whispered.
Charles Whitmore didn't answer him.
He looked straight past him.
At the pregnant woman.
"Nia?"
The woman closed her eyes for half a second.
That was when I realized this wasn't just a boss catching an employee behaving badly.
This was personal.
Charles stepped around the businessman so quickly that the boarding lane opened around him.
"Nia, are you hurt?"
She shook her head.
"I'm fine."
"You almost fell."
"I said I'm fine."
The words were calm, but there was something underneath them.
Years of something.
Charles seemed to hear it too.
He stopped reaching toward her.
The businessman swallowed.
"Sir, I can explain."
Charles slowly turned.
"Can you?"
The guy forced a nervous laugh.
"It was crowded. She stepped in front of me and—"
"No."
Nia's voice cut through the terminal.
Every head turned.
She pointed at the suitcase.
"You rolled that over my foot."
The man's face tightened.
"It was an accident."
"Then you shoved me."
"I barely touched you."
That did it.
A woman behind me shouted, "I saw the whole thing!"
Another passenger raised his phone.
"So did I."
The businessman looked around.
For the first time, he seemed to understand that expensive shoes and an expensive watch weren't going to erase what fifty people had just witnessed.
Charles stared at him.
"Grant."
The name came out quietly.
Somehow that made it worse.
Grant straightened.
"Mr. Whitmore, I sincerely apologize. I didn't know she was—"
He stopped.
Nia's eyebrows lifted.
"You didn't know I was what?"
Grant went pale.
Charles's jaw tightened.
"Finish the sentence."
Grant glanced between them.
"I just meant I didn't know she was your..."
He stopped again.
Nia gave a short laugh.
It wasn't amused.
"Your what?"
Charles said nothing.
That silence told me there was a story here.
A big one.
Finally, Charles looked at Grant.
"My daughter."
The terminal seemed to go silent.
Grant's mouth dropped open.
Nia looked away.
Not embarrassed.
Not surprised.
Just tired.
Grant stared at her.
"You're Nia?"
She looked back at him.
"And you're Grant?"
His face changed again.
Confusion.
Recognition.
Then absolute horror.
Nia nodded slowly.
"I guess Lauren forgot to send you a family photo."
That sentence landed harder than the shove.
Charles closed his eyes.
Grant looked like someone had pulled the floor from under him.
I didn't know who Lauren was yet.
But Grant clearly did.
"Nia," he said quickly, "I had no idea."
"Clearly."
"No, you don't understand."
"I understand perfectly."
Grant stepped closer.
Charles moved between them.
"Don't."
Grant stopped.
"Sir, please. Lauren and I—"
"You will not use my daughter's name to excuse what you just did to my other daughter."
There it was.
Lauren was Nia's sister.
And Grant was somehow connected to her.
The answer came seconds later when Grant blurted, "The wedding is in three days."
People in line actually gasped.
Nia stared at him.
Then she started laughing.
It was one of the saddest laughs I'd ever heard.
"So you're him."
Grant's shoulders dropped.
"You've never seen a picture?"
"Lauren sent me one engagement photo."
His brow furrowed.
Nia continued.
"From fifty feet away. At night. You were wearing sunglasses."
Someone behind me muttered, "Of course he was."
A few people laughed.
Grant didn't.
He looked at Charles.
"Please. Don't do this here."
Charles's expression hardened.
"You did this here."
A gate agent approached carefully.
"Is everything okay?"
Charles didn't even look at her.
"No."
The agent glanced at Nia.
"Ma'am, do you need medical assistance?"
Nia placed both hands over her stomach.
For the first time, fear crossed her face.
"My baby is moving."
Grant jumped on the words.
"See? She's okay."
Charles turned so sharply Grant stepped backward.
"Get away from her."
"I'm only saying—"
"Get away."
Grant lifted both hands.
He backed up.
But there was nowhere to go.
Passengers had formed a loose circle.
Phones were up everywhere.
He was trapped in the middle of the consequences he'd apparently never expected to face.
The gate agent asked Nia to sit down.
A nearby passenger immediately gave up his chair.
Nia lowered herself carefully.
Charles crouched a few feet away.
He didn't touch her.
He just watched her.
"You shouldn't be flying this late in the pregnancy."
Nia gave him a look.
"You're not my doctor."
"No."
He swallowed.
"I'm your father."
Something cold moved through her face.
"That's debatable."
Charles flinched.
Grant stared at them.
Whatever he had thought he knew about his fiancée's family, he clearly didn't know this.
The gate agent returned with an airport medic.
While they checked Nia's blood pressure, Charles stood in silence.
Grant pulled out his phone.
Charles noticed.
"Who are you calling?"
"Lauren."
"No."
Grant blinked.
"What?"
"You are not calling her until I speak to Nia."
"She's my fiancée."
"And Nia is my daughter."
Grant's jaw tightened.
"You can't control who I call."
Charles nodded.
"You're right."
Grant seemed relieved.
Then Charles added, "Just like I can't control who Halcyon employs."
Grant's face drained of color.
Charles took his own phone out.
"Though I do have some influence there."
Grant's arrogance returned for one desperate second.
"You wouldn't fire me over a misunderstanding at an airport."
Charles stared at him.
"You think this is about the airport?"
Grant said nothing.
"I've ignored complaints about your temper because every time I asked, you had a polished explanation. I've overlooked the way assistants never seem to last more than six months under you. I've defended you when board members told me you treated people differently depending on what they could do for you."
Grant started shaking his head.
"That's not fair."
"No. What's unfair is that I needed to see you shove my pregnant daughter before I finally believed everyone else."
Grant glanced at Nia.
The medic was wrapping a blood pressure cuff around her arm.
He lowered his voice.
"Charles, please."
Charles's expression turned to ice.
"I'm still Mr. Whitmore to you."
Grant looked away.
Then another voice came through the crowd.
"Grant?"
A young woman was pushing toward us.
Blonde.
Designer luggage.
White linen pants.
Her face brightened when she saw him.
Then she saw Charles.
Then Nia.
The brightness disappeared.
"Dad?"
Charles stood.
"Lauren."
Nia's whole body stiffened.
Lauren looked at her.
For a moment, neither sister spoke.
Then Lauren's eyes moved to Grant.
"What happened?"
Grant stepped toward her.
"Nothing. It's being blown completely out of proportion."
Nia looked down.
That sentence told her everything.
Lauren frowned.
"Why are all these people filming?"
Grant reached for her hand.
"A stupid boarding-line misunderstanding."
A man behind me said loudly, "He shoved a pregnant woman."
Lauren stopped.
Grant shot the man a furious look.
The man didn't care.
Lauren stared at Grant.
"You what?"
"It wasn't like that."
Charles spoke.
"It was exactly like that."
Lauren's eyes widened.
Grant rushed forward.
"Baby, listen to me. I didn't know who she was."
Nia's head lifted.
Charles went still.
Lauren blinked.
And Grant realized too late what he had just said.
Nia slowly stood.
The medic tried to stop her, but she waved him off.
She looked at Grant.
Then at her sister.
And in a quiet voice, she said, "You should marry him."
Everyone stared at her.
Lauren looked confused.
"What?"
Nia picked up her bag.
"You should marry him."
Grant looked almost relieved.
Then Nia finished.
"Because apparently the only thing that makes what he did wrong is finding out I'm related to someone important."
Nobody said anything.
Lauren's face crumpled.
"Nia—"
"I came because Dad asked me to."
She looked at Charles.
"He said this wedding could be a fresh start."
Charles lowered his head.
Nia turned back to Lauren.
"I spent two weeks trying to convince myself that maybe he was right."
Her voice shook now.
"But I haven't even gotten on the plane, and your future husband just reminded me exactly why I stayed away from this family."
Lauren's eyes filled with tears.
"Please don't leave."
Nia looked at her.
"Give me one reason to stay."
Lauren opened her mouth.
Grant answered for her.
"Because this wedding isn't about you."
The entire crowd went silent again.
Lauren slowly turned toward him.
Grant's face changed.
He knew.
He knew he had said too much.
But this time, there was no taking it back.
Nia nodded.
"Exactly."
May you like
She grabbed the handle of her suitcase.
And started walking away.
