Chapter 64
NICHOLAS
CJ’s disappearance upset Nicholas more than he expected.
He felt sick at the prospect of losing the property.
Mrs. B loved every inch of the place. Ocean would never find a place half as good for her family, Lily-Ann needed the Cottages for a community, and god only knew what would happen to Hamilton.
Nicholas, however, would be okay. He and Sophie would be fine. At least that’s what he told himself as they indulged in the comfort of burritos from their favorite hole-in-the-wall. But later that night, he couldn’t fall asleep. And when he finally understood why, he was ashamed.
He’d never cared about inheriting the Cottages. He’d told Mrs. B a dozen times that she didn’t owe him anything just because his father had been her cheating husband. Hell, she should’ve resented him for that. And intellectually, he still meant that. Of course she didn’t owe him anything.
Yet apparently he’d started to count on inheriting a valuable, income-producing property a few blocks from State Street. He’d begun to take for granted that money would never be a problem—and then he’d started to believe that he deserved it.
That was the twist in his gut: selfishness.
What if CJ’s disappearance made him lose his property?
He was ashamed of himself for thinking that way.
For caring more about money than his friends’ happiness.
He almost told Sophie, but he didn’t want her to know how petty he was.
So instead, he drifted off to sleep, dreaming of ways to help.
Ways to address Hamilton’s issues, to find housing for Mrs. B, to convince one of Sophie’s philanthropists to cover a single mother / local artist’s rent …