Chapter 24

In early May, Alexis takes her mother to the Mad Hatter Tea House for their traditional pre–Mother’s Day celebration. Surrounded by reminders of her parents’ legacy, Alexis grapples with the daunting expectations of filling their shoes at Royaume and her uncertainty about what initiatives she would champion as a future leader.

Alexis discusses the chief position with her mother, who offers genuine encouragement about Alexis’s potential impact. Alexis hides her relationship with Daniel, buying him gifts but telling her mother they’re for Bri, knowing her parents favor Neil.

Two days later at the hospital, Alexis and Bri assemble a car trauma kit for Alexis’s frequent Wakan medical calls. While they gather supplies, Bri notices Alexis’s giddy texting with Daniel and confronts her: this “fling” looks like real feelings. Bri warns that distance, family disapproval, and careers will make a future impossible and urges Alexis to end it before deeper hurt.

Alexis admits growing attachment but argues she’s set boundaries. She recounts Neil’s petty sabotage—turning off the power and sulking at work—and resolves to avoid him. She reveals she has officially put in for the chief position, anticipating heavy workload and influence with the board.

After work, Alexis spirals over Bri’s warning and her own readiness after Neil. She recognizes she’s falling for Daniel yet sees no feasible path forward. When Daniel calls, their playful banter turns intimate as he confesses how happy she makes him and that he misses her. Despite believing the relationship is doomed, Alexis tells Daniel she misses him too.