Chapter 15

When Nick saw the article pop up on his phone, he wanted to beat the shit out of Billy. He would have, too, if Sharon hadn't intervened.

Nick understood better than anyone what the pain of losing a child can do to your life, but he was tired of Billy using his grief as an excuse to screw with his family with no consequences.

He almost lost Faith the way he did Cassie because of Billy's need for vengeance and his complete lack of awareness of the consequences of his actions.

Fortunately for him, Sharon intervened before he could. Nick had a nasty propensity to act before he thinks, but Sharon was far less hotheaded. When she went in for the kill, most people never saw it coming. Her big heart, compassionate nature, and girl-next-door personality often led people to misjudge her. Just because she didn't have a quick temper didn't mean that she didn't have one at all.

Nick watched in awe as she blackmailed Billy into giving up his stake in Chancellor Communication in the span of just ten minutes. No muss. No fuss. Just quick, cutting efficiency.

Sharon knew that Victor and Adam's hatred for Billy meant they would go along with her plan to buy out the company. She was also right about Phyllis, who, despite surface level protests, would jump at the chance to get back into journalism. Nick had no doubt that Sharon, Phyllis, and Lily could run that company easily. Even though Phyllis' ethics could be as questionable as Billy's, she would be kept in check by Sharon and Lily. As unlikely of a partnership as it would be, it had potential to be great.

Sharon loves being a therapist, but she does it because she wants to, not because she has to. Sharon had taken their divorce settlement and invested it wisely. Between that and whatever other money and assets she'd come into since they parted, she could afford to invest in a stake in Chance Comm. If Nick had to venture a guess, he'd surmise that Sharon would leave the day-to-day operations to Phyllis and Lily and install Noah, who was still in town and likely not leaving anytime soon, into a management position to oversee her stake.

After Sharon dismissed Billy, she went over to Faith and gave her a hug. As Faith gushed about how awesome that was, Rey claimed he had to go to the station and walked out of the restaurant. While he was the new police chief now that Paul had retired due to his injuries in the shooting, Nick didn't believe him. Nick knew that Sharon's marriage was on life support and that tonight was probably the final nail in its coffin. For, in defending Faith, Sharon defended Adam, too. Aside from her unequivocal belief in his redemption, she basically preempted Billy from ever writing another article about Adam's past because pretty much any mention of his past would involve writing about Faith, too. That had to infuriate Rey.

Nick was actually fine with it all. He knew he would never survive losing Faith the way he did Cassie. And it was Billy, not Adam, who was responsible for her recent accident. If he had just let sleeping dogs lie, none of Faith's trauma over the last few months would have occurred. Billy didn't care about how his vendetta affected Faith.

Nick didn't particularly care about how any of this affected Adam. He just wanted his children to be safe and happy, which is why he stopped Billy on his way out the door.

"Take Sharon's offer or her sharing your dirty little secrets with Adam and dad will be the least of your problems," he advised in a no nonsense tone. "You're lucky she got to you first or you'd be leaving with more than a bruised eye and ego."

All Billy did was nod.

When Nick turned his attention back to the room, he saw Sharon receive a "Well done," and a pat on the arm from his father, a smile from his mother, and a hug from Noah.

Adam, however, didn't approach her. He simply nodded in thanks on his way out the door.

Nick had a feeling that Billy's night was about to get worse given the rage on his brother's face when he read that headline. Adam probably would have killed him and stepped over the body if he could have. He was that angry.

Billy deserved whatever was about to happen and then some.