Page 133 of Moonlit Colorado

“Okay.” I pointed at a chair, but my father didn’t sit. So I didn’t either. I waited for the verbal evisceration to begin. For my betrayal of our family, for the damage I’d done to Knightly Global. Though I’d only been the messenger.

But that wasn’t what happened.

“First, uh…” My father trailed off, his face slack with uncertainty. Something I’d never seen in my life. “I’d like to apologize for the way I reacted when we last spoke on the phone.”

Shit. An apology? This had never happened before either.

“When you first broke the news about what Kip had done, the blackmail, the murder, all of it… I was very shocked and upset.”

“Understandable.” I dug my hands into my pockets, not sure of what to do with myself.

My father clasped his hands behind his back. “Kip has decided to take a leave of absence from the company. He’s also going to seek an annulment from Bristol Harcourt, though I’ll let the lawyers sort that out.”

“Makes sense.” But I wanted to go back to the part about this leave of absence. “Did Kip admit to his role in everything?”

My father nodded. “He’s cooperating with the NYPD, even against his own lawyers’ advice. Says he’s deeply remorseful about what happened to…” Dad cleared his throat. “That woman he was seeing.”

I sighed. “Nina Badowski. The woman died because of Kip. Maybe not directly, but I still consider him responsible. The least you can do is say her name.”

My father blinked, some of his pride returning. Here was the infuriating man who had disowned me. Who had never seen me as good enough for our precious family name.

But then he said, “You’re exactly right. Kip does feel responsible for Nina’s death, and he told me he’s committed to doing what’s necessary to get his life back on track. To atone. Including making his own apologies to you and to Grace, for the fact that she got caught up in it.”

I would believe that when I heard it, but it was something. Hell, I hadn’t expected to hear these words coming from my father at all.

“Thank you for letting me know,” I said sincerely. “But I don’t see why you made the trip all the way here. You could’ve done this over the phone.”

“I came here in person in the hopes of mending our relationship. I know we’ve disagreed in the past?—”

I snorted. “Dad, that’s an understatement.”

“So it is.” Was that the hint of a smile on Dennis Knightly’s face? “When you joined the company, you did it for your mother. Not because you truly wanted to work for me. You bought this ski resort and practically moved in because you wanted to get away from our family.”

My hackles rose, though what he was saying was true. “I’ll buy the resort from you, if that’s what you want. You won’t have to deal with this project anymore, since it’s beneath you. You won’t have to deal withmeanymore.”

“No, that is the last thing I want,” he cut in. Dad rubbed a hand over his face and sank into a chair. “I’m here to beg for your forgiveness. And ask for your help. Knightly Global has suffered a serious blow. I’ve been a fool. Failed to see what was in front of me.”

I sat in the chair beside him, resting my elbows on my knees. “I came to Silver Ridge hoping to find what I was missing,” I said. “And I did. I found Grace. She’s the woman I want to spend my life with. I also found a place that feels like home, and it’s partly because Grace is here. But that’s not the only reason. Being here reminds me of the best times growing up. Vacations to the mountains. The times we were happy. When we were a family.”

Dad looked at me.Reallylooked at me. “Those memories are very special to me as well. If you’ll stay on with Knightly Global, then we can consider Silver Ridge a satellite office. You can work from here.” That hint of a smile snuck into his expression again. “Though it’s up to you to discuss the matter with Margot.”

I huffed a laugh. “Yeah, I think Margot is meant for the city, through and through. We can make it work though. If you’re serious about this. If you’ll treat me as a partner and not as an annoyance. I don’t mean my job title. I couldn’t care less what it says on the plaque outside my office. I need to know you’ll respect what I bring to the company.”

“You’ve got my full support. And my respect. You’ve always had my respect, even if I’ve been an idiot about showing it.”

“Thank you.” Though part of me still wondered if my dad had been replaced with a clone or something.

“I hope you’re willing to get started right now,” he said. “Because we have a lot to discuss.”

I sent off a quick text to Grace, letting her know I would be busy for a while, but that all was well. I sent off a similar text to Rhonda at the front desk, though without the heart emojis.

Dad gave me a quick-and-dirty picture of how bad things were. How the board was losing confidence. How investors were threatening to pull out. But after a couple of hours, we had a strategy prepared. I would hold a teleconference with the board as soon as possible to answer their questions and concerns. And assure them that I wasn’t leaving the company.

Hard as it was to believe, especially for me, I was going to stay on with Knightly Global. It had to be different this time. But I was optimistic that it would.

My father leaned back in his seat. “I was hoping we could have dinner tonight. With Grace. I’d very much like to meet the woman you love.”

Geez, was he kidding? “You already met her, Dad. In New York. Did you forget?”

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