CHAPTER 348: TANGLED LIVES

Georgia’s POV

It was almost dinner when Nick finally came back. I had already dismissed the private nurse earlier. I didn’t really need her hovering around while I was just lying in bed binge-watching movies and trying to pretend everything was normal.

The moment the door opened, my chest tightened with a strange warmth. "Nick!" I called out, my face lighting up, until I saw him. He smiled, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes. There was exhaustion written all over his face, like he’d been carrying the weight of the world and didn’t know where to set it down.

I grabbed the small stack of menus the nurses had given me earlier. "Have you eaten? The nurses recommended these places. We can order in, no need for you to go out again," I said, trying to sound cheerful.

He sat on the edge of the bed, flipping through the menus quietly. His lips curved faintly, but the heaviness in his gaze betrayed him.

"Is everything alright?" I asked softly. He looked up, confused, like he hadn’t heard me. "I said, are you okay?"

He gave a small nod, choosing a random menu and handing it to me. "We haven’t tried this one. Do you want anything from here?"

Instead of taking it, I reached for his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Hey... I might have forgotten a lot of things, but I’m still your wife, right? You can tell me what’s bothering you. Who knows, maybe it’ll help jog my memory."

He looked at me, and then I saw the tears welling in his eyes. That silent war inside him, between justice and forgiveness, anger and peace, was written all over his face.

Earlier, I had met Liam, Benjamin, and Prudence. They told me a bit of this and that for the months that I had forgotten. Vicky also told me a lot of things that Ella and Nick hadn’t, especially about their family, so I kind of had a good idea what’s bothering Nick.

Whatever he was fighting, I could feel it too. And all I wanted, in that moment, was to make him remember what it felt like to come home—to us, to love, to warmth.

I don’t know what came over me, but when I saw the sadness clouding Nick’s eyes, something inside me just moved. Before I could even think, I leaned forward and wrapped my arms around him.

He stiffened at first, as if surprised by the sudden gesture, but after a few seconds, his body softened. His arms came around me, slowly, almost hesitantly, and he let out a long, heavy sigh. It wasn’t just exhaustion; it was pain. The kind that sits deep in the bones and refuses to leave.

Then I heard a quiet sniffle. When he pulled away, his eyes were red. He quickly wiped his tears with the back of his hand, trying to hide them from me. "Thank you," he murmured, voice rough. "I needed that."

"Is it about Reagan?" I asked softly, watching the way his eyes flickered with surprise.

"How did you know?"

"Vicky told me," I said with a small shrug. "She called your lawyer earlier, and he said that he was with you after visiting Reagan. And that you also met with Sarah." I raised a brow. "So? What did you two talk about?"

A faint smile curved his lips. "Is that jealousy I’m hearing, Mrs. Knight?"

I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms. "Please. Why would I be jealous?"

Nick chuckled, pinching my cheek in that teasing way that always disarmed me. "She was asking for my help, for Reagan. Begging, actually. She said even my father refused to do anything this time. He’s done playing peacekeeper. He said we should settle this ourselves."

I studied him quietly for a moment, then reached for his hand. "I think he’s right," I said gently. "You’re all grown now. You’ve all lived through enough. And you..." I paused, brushing my thumb across his knuckles, "You’re torn, aren’t you? You don’t know what to do because if you do, then you won’t have that look on your face."

"I’m torn," Nick admitted, his voice low and heavy, like every word carried its own weight. "I want justice... For myself, for your brother, for you, for Katie. But after today... I don’t know anymore.

Reagan has suffered enough. When I looked at him, it hit me, we’ve been sailing the same ocean all this time, just on different boats. We fought the same storms, got pulled by the same currents, and struggled to stay afloat in our own ways. We were too blinded by anger to realize it."

He paused, rubbing the back of his neck, his eyes distant. "I hated him for years, Georgia. For what he did, for what I thought he took from me. But when I saw him today, sitting there in that orange uniform, chained and broken... I didn’t see my enemy anymore. I saw a man who was just as lost as I once was. We were victims of the circumstances our parents went through."

Something inside me softened. I reached for his hand and squeezed it, grounding him back to me. "Alright," I said, determined to lighten the air before his heart drowned in its own guilt. "Here’s what we’re going to do. First, we’re ordering dinner, because I’m starving, and your child inside me is starting a protest."

Nick’s lips curved into a small chuckle, the sound melting the heaviness in the room.

"Then," I continued, tapping his hand playfully, "you’re going to tell me everything, every detail you’ve been keeping inside about you and Reagan. Get it all out. I’ll listen. You don’t have to carry this alone anymore. After that, since your decision affects my family too, I’ll tell you what I think. Together, we’ll figure out what’s right. Deal?"

He stared at me for a long moment, and I could see it, the flicker of relief behind those tired eyes. A small smirk appeared on his lips, soft but sure. "Deal," he said, his voice steadier now.

As he looked at me, I knew he finally understood; he didn’t have to choose between justice and forgiveness alone. We’d face it together, just like everything else in our imperfect, beautifully tangled lives.

******

Thank you for the Golden Tickets!

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