Chapter 164: Things
Nolan yawned as he rose early, dragging himself to the kitchen to start his day with a coffee.
Last night, he had stayed up waiting for Ashley. He planned to accompany her in case she needed someone to listen to her. But when she returned, she and the crew were so drunk they were swaying.
Seeing that they were safe and surprisingly "getting along," Nolan entrusted her to the guys.
I hope they carried her back, he thought.
Nolan reached for the light switch when he got to the ground floor of his home, switching on the lights in the dining room. Much to his surprise, a figure was seated quietly at the dining table.
"Oh, good lord!"
Nolan jumped, hand clutching his chest as his heart almost leapt out of his rib cage. His eyes went wide for a moment before he finally recognized who the person was.
Lucian.
"Master?" he stuttered, shock and confusion mixing on his face. "Master, what are you doing here?"
The lines on Nolan’s face deepened as he approached the dining table where Lucian was seated.
Lucian was staring at the surface of the table, still in yesterday’s clothes. It didn’t look like he had slept at all.
"Master —"
"Nolan," Lucian cut in without lifting his eyes. "How do I make it up to her?"
The question came a little too abruptly and too early for Nolan, who would normally need coffee first. Even so, Nolan cleared his throat and straightened his back.
"Master, did you sleep last night?" he asked, rather than answering right away.
He walked toward the kitchen to make something warm for both of them. As he stood before the coffee machine, Nolan lowered his head slightly while Lucian began talking quietly.
"When I came home last night, she had been drinking with Red and the others," he said. "And they kept saying things. I’ve never seen those five look so disappointed in me."
If anything, those five had been the most loyal people around Lucian. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that if Lucian formed a cult, they would be the first to follow him. Gustav would be the president.
But last night, even those five had dared call him names.
"I thought I was being considerate," he whispered, thinking about how alone Ashley must have felt these past few days. "That this wasn’t something she should concern herself with, and that she could focus on herself."
His eyelids drooped. "It makes me wonder... how much more will I hurt her, even when it’s never my intention?"
That thought had been in his head all night.
Nolan pressed his lips into a thin smile before turning to face him. He studied Lucian, and the disappointment he had felt the night before instantly vanished.
Of course he wouldn’t have known, he thought.
What others considered abnormal might be perfectly normal for Lucian. And sometimes, what was normal for others wasn’t normal for him — or for most of them, especially those who had grown up in the kind of environment they did.
In this situation, both Ashley and Lucian were simply trying to be considerate of each other. Afraid that their feelings and thoughts would only burden the other, they held everything in and took each other’s words at face value.
"How about an apology?" Nolan suggested with a warm smile. "An apology is a start — along with clear communication. It may not erase the past few days, but clarity and resolution go hand in hand."
He nodded. "Just like how you run Dominion and handle every hurdle we come across — only this time, it is your heart you have to offer."
"My heart?"
"Yes," Nolan nodded. "Otherwise, it’s not going to work."
He turned and picked up the coffee, setting it on the table. Nolan dragged a chair and sat down, facing Lucian squarely.
"Master, I never truly understood why the madam was the way she is until... I saw her in that corner, when she learned that the woman who had come was the young master’s mother," he muttered, glancing toward the corner where Ashley had hidden.
His eyes softened as he pictured her there.
Meanwhile, Lucian followed Nolan’s line of sight until he was staring at the same corner. Like Nolan, he imagined her slumped there, hiding.
"It was not your intention, but you drove her back into that corner," Nolan said, lifting his eyes to Lucian.
As much as possible, he didn’t want to rub salt on a wound Lucian was already aware of. Even so, he felt it was his responsibility. If not him, then who else would say it?
When everyone in Dominion only listened to the boss and followed his every order, who would teach him this? As someone with more experience, someone watching this marriage from the front row with a view of both sides, Nolan steeled his heart.
"An apology is the first step, and if forgiveness is not given, then you will have to work hard for it, Master," Nolan continued sincerely. "Even if you have to grovel at her feet. Unless... you truly want to drift apart from her. In that case, do nothing."
A moment of silence settled between them as they looked at each other.
Nolan let out a slow breath and nudged the coffee toward him. "You don’t want that, do you, Lucian?"
Lucian was quiet for a moment before he reached out for the mug. The corners of his lips curled into a subtle smile as he nodded.
"No."
Nolan picked up his own mug with a smile and took a sip, satisfied. Now that Lucian understood, his worries eased a little. He was confident that Lucian and Ashley would clear things up and that everything would go back to normal.
As for Emma, Nolan didn’t ask anything further. Whatever they planned to do was up to them, as long as the line was drawn.
Even so, a question suddenly crossed his mind.
"By the way, Master," he said, clearing his throat and tilting his head to the side. "You said Gin and the others said things to you."
He paused, curiosity twinkling in his eyes. "What did they tell you?"
Things that would make Nolan choke on his coffee.
Lucian shrugged and lifted the mug to his mouth. "Things."