novelraw Chapter 173: She Dropped The Nuclear Bomb On Him
Chapter 173: She Dropped The Nuclear Bomb On Him
Chapter 173: She Dropped The Nuclear Bomb On Him"She’s related to Grace Kelly, you know," James Belford said matter-of-factly. "Her mother is. And how do you know her, son?"
William’s eyes widened. "She is related? Are you? No wonder you resemble her..."
Joanne tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, smiling just enough to keep things mysterious. "That’s what I’ve heard," she said. "But I’m not so sure."
"It’s true," James confirmed before turning to his son with a pointed look. "So, again, how do you know her?"
William cleared his throat. "I follow her page..."
Joanne tilted her head, a little surprised. William leaned in and whispered near her ear, "My favorite influencer."
She blinked. Oh. Oh.
"I wouldn’t call myself an influencer..." she said, taking a small step back, suddenly hyper-aware of Jeffrey’s not hovering presence. Where the hell had he vanished to now?
"And that’s what I love about you more." William grinned. "You have that Midas touch—everything you handle turns to gold."
"There’s no such thing as a Midas touch, son," James interrupted, a tad dry. "It’s called hard work. That’s what pays."
William cleared his throat again. A little pink crept back into his cheeks.
The tension dipped into awkwardness—but William, clearly used to saving moments, recovered with a smile. "So..." he said, glancing toward Joanne with a mischievous glint. "The beloved psychopathic horse Jeffrey Dahmer’s kill count just rose by five today. That brings his total to two thousand eight hundred and seven."
Joanne’s jaw dropped. "Wait—you’ve been following our farm updates?"
He gave her a look. "Since the very beginning. I even tried to name one of our bulls Dahmer Jr., but my dad vetoed it."
James let out a long sigh. "It was inappropriate," he muttered, mostly to himself.
But Joanne laughed—really laughed—and just like that, the conversation smoothed into an easy, magnetic rhythm. William had stories. He had wit. And more than that, he had genuine interest.
Apparently, he had finished his studies in England and was ready to take on the family business. That explained the British accent that curled so smoothly around every word. Joanne found herself smiling more than she meant to.
The conversation turned toward her business. To her surprise, William wasn’t just politely interested—he was genuinely curious. He asked the kind of questions that made it clear he’d done more than skim headlines. He wanted to understand how her logistics company worked, how she rebuilt after the Campbell scandal, what her plans were now that things were on the rise again.
Most men, when they learned what she did, tried to pretend they understood. William? He listened. He asked. He even took notes on his phone.
"You really know your way around supply chains," he said. "Honestly, I’ve been looking into diversifying logistics for our ranches for a while now. But none of the options feel... scalable. Yours? Seems brilliant."
Joanne blinked. "You... re
Just the thunderous pounding of blood in his ears.
"For her sake..." Heather whispered, a tear trailing down her cheek. "We need to be a family."
She stepped even closer, so close he could smell the lingering perfume on her skin—the same one from years ago.
"She needs her father, Jeff. She needs you."