Chapter 9
Channing
I didn’t bring much from my apartment. Since most of my belongings were thrifted and well-loved, it made little sense for me to put them in storage. I’d end up paying more in fees than anything was worth. All I brought with me were my personal effects, a couple of plants I worked hard to keep alive, a handful of beloved books, and a box of sentimental items from my childhood I couldn’t bring myself to part with. I was experienced in moving and starting over, so it took less than a couple of hours to settle into Win’s bachelor suite and claim my place.
The huge room resembled a high-end hotel more than someone’s home, but the black and gray décor didn’t feel overly sterile. I was surprised to see pictures of him and Winnie at various ages and functions scattered around the room. And there were pictures of his younger brother and even a family photo with my sister in it. There were signs of our niece all over the masculine rooms. Her pink hoodie was hanging on the back of a barstool. A couple of her schoolbooks and loose papers were on the expensive coffee table near a tablet covered in glittery stickers. Someone had tucked a cute stuffed animal into the corner of the black leather couch, and the gourmet kitchen was stocked with the kinds of snacks and drinks the average teenager would crave after school. My views of Win shifted slightly askew the more I learned about his relationship with our niece.
I always thought he’d handed the young girl off to his mother and her staff while he was busy making millions. I never pictured Win as someone who was actively parenting the teenager. The two of them were closer than I imagined, and Win’s talk about wanting to do what was best for Winnie, no matter the cost, felt authentic. I wanted to believe this fake marriage was a way to punish his mother and manipulate me, but it was looking like Win’s motives were more cut and dry. He really wanted to give Winnie a stable, regular life. He was willing to sacrifice his time, money, and freedom to ensure she got it.
It annoyed me that a hint of respect for him crept under my skin.
“There’s a guest room. Right now, it’s full of Winnie’s stuff, but I can have it cleaned up for you.” I jumped when Win appeared silently at my elbow.
I shook my head. “I’ll share her closet for now. That’s all I need. I don’t want to kick her out. I think it’s nice you gave her a space of her own that’s close to you. Figuratively and literally. I’m not planning on staying in your room indefinitely, just long enough so that it firmly gets underneath your mother’s skin.” I waved at the fancy sofa. “I can crash there. It’s nicer than the recent bed I’ve been sleeping in. All I need is a blanket and a pillow. I can sleep anywhere. It’s kind of my superpower.”
Win grunted. “That’s ridiculous. There are no less than twenty beds on this property. There is no reason for you to sleep in the living room.”
I laughed and nudged his side. “You can always be a gentleman and offer me your bed. You can take one for the team and sleep on the couch since we’re in this mess because of you.”
He gave me a considering look. His eyes were always intense because of their chilly color and his general demeanor. I didn’t notice hints of blue hidden within the gray until recently. His gaze looked like a storm demolishing a bright, beautiful day.
Win didn’t comment further on our sleeping situation. He walked over to one of the massive windows that overlooked the back garden and the steep cliff that dropped to the coastline. He poked at the plant I’d set on the windowsill and quietly muttered, “I’m not a man who apologizes for much, but I feel like I owe you one on behalf of my mother. This is only the beginning. She’s going to get worse.”
I let out a dry bark of laughter. “Didn’t you concoct this scheme because you have faith that I can hold my own against Colette? Don’t apologize for her actions. You should be apologizing for being such a pushover where she’s concerned.” I lifted my eyebrows at him mockingly. “I never thought I would see the day when someone successfully bullied a Halliday.”
Win’s voice was soft when he replied, “Every living being has a natural predator they fear. The only thing I have to fear in life is my mother. Do you know what it’s like to love and hate someone with equal intensity?” He shook his head, and for the first time since I’d known him, a look of defeat crossed his face. “I’ve never had an actual mother. She’s always been more like a handler or the executive director of my entire life.”
I didn’t want to acknowledge that his words resonated within me. It caught me off guard when Win allowed himself to be vulnerable and show the cracks in his golden armor. Between finding out he had a sweet tooth, a soft spot for Winnie, and learning he wasn’t as immune to Colette’s cruelty as I previously believed, it was hard to ignore just how human he actually was. If anyone asked me a month ago, I would’ve classified Win as someone who was born to be extraordinary. How could he be anything else? However, the glimpses of him being completely ordinary were doing funny things to the reservations and resentments I’d built between us like a wall.
“I don’t know what it feels like to be caught between love and hate. I do understand the need to go to extreme lengths to save someone from themselves, though.” I glared at him. “The only reason I have to help you manage your mother is because you threatened mine. Let’s not forget how all this came about.” I ruthlessly squashed the tingle of sympathy I had for him.
“I won’t forget; you remind me every five minutes.” He shoved a hand through his hair. The silvery strands in the front stood on end, giving him an endearing appearance. “I leave for the office around six in the morning. Earlier, if I’m going to the main office in the city. I’ve delegated most of our international work as Winnie has gotten older, but there are times when I’ll be away for several days, maybe even weeks, at a time. Winnie’s driver takes her to school around seven. She has extracurriculars after class most days. When she gets home, she usually comes here and does her homework. I try to be back in time for dinner. My mother was making a big deal about eating as a family the last couple of months. What she actually cared about was finding me a wife. I told Winnie she didn’t have to sit down for a formal dinner anymore if she didn’t want to. I have a personal housekeeper who monitors her when I’m unavailable. There’s always someone around to make sure she eats and gets her schoolwork done. She used to have her own suite on this floor. But ever since she started claiming that the house was haunted, she’s been sleeping in her room here. You’re familiar with the contract terms. I won’t dictate how or where you spend your time, as long as it doesn’t negatively affect our niece.”
“I’ve lived in a lot of places. I’ll figure out a schedule and how to best benefit Winnie while I’m here. You don’t have to change anything to accommodate me. Save that consideration for when you have a real wife.”
He looked like he wanted to reply, but Winnie interrupted us by bounding into the room. She dropped her designer backpack on the floor and rushed to me. She threw herself into my arms for a tight hug. Her small body was practically vibrating with excitement. Her eyes were bright, and her face was flushed.
I squeezed her back as she told me, “I’m so glad you’re here, Aunt Channing.”
I smoothed my hand over her reddish-brown hair and soaked in the moment. I never thought there would be a day when I would be able to welcome Winnie home from school. I’d missed out on so much of her childhood because of a pointless feud.
“I’m happy to be here with you, Winnie.” I truly was. Joining forces with my archenemy was worth it if I could stockpile warm memories like this.
Winnie zipped around the elegant suite as if she owned the place. Win directed her to change clothes and clean up after herself, then forced her to sit down and work on her homework, even though she was too excited to sit still. While the two of them bent their heads over math problems, I quietly slipped away to finish putting my things in Winnie’s massive walk-in closet. I couldn’t help but laugh when I saw all my no-name clothes hanging next to her designer wardrobe. I couldn’t fathom a situation in which Winnie would need an authentic Chanel tweed blazer. It was ridiculous that the thirteen-year-old had two of them.
I made a mental note to take her thrifting when I got an opportunity to take her to the city with me. Someone needed to show Winnie how to make ends meet and survive on a realistic budget. It was unlikely that she would ever financially struggle, but the girl needed to cultivate some average life skills.
Winnie begged Win to order pizza for dinner, and he relented, but of course, it wasn’t a greasy to-go pie. It was a homemade pizza, straight from a brick oven somewhere on the property. The ingredients were fresh, and the smell was divine. I couldn’t argue that it was a good pizza, but it wasn’t better than the giant messy slices you could pick up at any pizzeria in the city. I added taking Winnie for an authentic slice to the list of experiences I wanted her to have before my deal with Win ended.
Win and Winnie kept up a steady flow of conversation throughout the evening. They were noticeably comfortable in each other’s company, and I was jealous of the connection they shared. I was glad Win wasn’t as uptight and authoritarian as I imagined. It put the way he dealt with me in sharp contrast. He treated me more like a wayward child than the actual child he cared for.
After we ate, Winnie went off to her room to talk to a friend and get ready for bed. Win disappeared into what I assumed was his office, leaving me to my own devices.
I walked to the big Oriel window and looked at the ocean that seemed endless in the dark. People would kill for a view like this. There were only a handful of homes on the highest point of the cliff. Builders constructed these homes a hundred years ago when houses were made of stone and had ornate stained glass in the windows. They looked more like castles than family estates. They were the legacy that was handed down from generation to generation. The only way to own one was to be born with the proper last name.
When I was younger and I begged Willow to bring me along when she delivered to this house, it felt like a fairytale whenever I stepped on the immaculate grounds. It was easy to picture a princess running through the flowers in the gardens or a prince strolling down the majestic staircase. It was fun to pretend that the estate was a magical place. As an adult, it felt cold and empty. The house was stunning, but it was hollow. Aside from this little hideaway where Win and Winnie lived, there was no life or love anywhere within the stone walls. It was more like a prison than a fantastic wonderland. I began to understand why Win was so detached from everyone and everything. How could anyone who grew up in a place that felt so barren know what it was like to be surrounded by warmth? Weren’t we all a byproduct of the foundation we’d been given? Win’s was rigid and unforgiving.
As the night wore on and it seemed like Win wasn’t going to reappear from his office, I gathered what I would need for a shower and poked around the extensive suite until I found the main bathroom. I tossed everything haphazardly onto a marble countertop and reached out to fiddle with the brass knobs in the shower. I giggled a little when I noticed the levers looked like little swan heads. Rich people’s aesthetic was both atrocious and adorable.
I hummed under my breath and stepped into the shower. The water rattled in the pipes but heated fast. I closed my eyes and tried to wash away the earlier encounter with Colette. There was little doubt that I needed to brace myself because the battle had just begun. Now that it was the end of the day, my reservations were piling up.
I was tired. It was exhaustion that made your soul ache and had you questioning every step you took that led you to this point. There was no going back but going forward felt overwhelming.
I let the water rush over me and tried to loosen some of the tension in my neck and shoulders. I lost track of the tune I was humming and let my mind drift away, making a mental note of potential job opportunities in the Cove and the surrounding areas. I wasn’t sure I could emotionally handle stepping back into the bakery where I’d grown up. Though it would be nice to see what had changed since my mother left her career behind. The last time I remembered her smiling was in that bakery. While she was highly emotional and unpredictable, she always seemed to keep it together and mask her more debilitating traits when she was elbow deep in dough.
The pipes squeaked and rattled again when I turned off the water. As I pushed open the glass door and stepped out of the steamy enclosure, I paused and tilted my head. A faint sound seemed to whisper underneath my feet. I looked down at the custom tile and shivered as I wrapped a large towel around myself. I couldn’t tell whether Winnie’s ghost stories were getting to me, but I swore the song I was tunelessly humming minutes ago was whistling back at me through the floor. I screwed up my face and pressed my ear against the wall. It was warm from the steam of the shower, and my skin slipped against the surface. As soon as I touched the cool marble, the sound disappeared. I chalked it up to my being mentally drained and overstimulated.
I did my skincare routine and brushed my teeth. By the time I was done, I was fighting to keep my eyes open.
The lights in the suite were dimmed, and a blanket and pillow were on the couch. I popped my head into Winnie’s room. She was curled in a ball, clutching the pink stuffed animal that was in the living room earlier. I was taken aback by the sudden burn of tears in my eyes and the tangle of emotions at the back of my throat.
My sister was robbed of the opportunity to experience simple and quiet moments like these, it didn’t feel fair.
I whispered, “Sweet dreams,” and went to set up camp on the couch. I had no idea if Win found me a blanket and pillow. If he did, I had no intention of thanking him. The light was still on in the room where he’d locked himself away earlier. He probably had a pile of stuff to catch up on since he’d been juggling our marriage arrangements and dealing with his mother the last couple of weeks. He worked tirelessly at a job he detested, making him a better man than most.
I thought I heard the faint tune trickling through the ancient walls, but I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. I was so out of it; I didn’t even move a muscle when I was forcibly picked up and moved into the primary bedroom hours later.
When I woke up the next morning, fully refreshed by myself in Win’s massive antique bed, I felt like I’d sleepwalked into an alternate reality. Like a romance novel where the average, relatable girl suddenly caught the eye of a handsome billionaire.
I should’ve known that regardless of how prepared I was for the upcoming challenges, this house and the secrets hidden inside the walls still had the ability to surprise me.