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Cyro gave her a nod, confirming he was okay with taking Seven back home. Seven let her husband know she would be home later before being assisted into the SUV by Cyro. Seated next to Britain, Seven glanced over at her daughter. "Thank you for letting me do this. Your forgiveness means a lot to me, Mocha."

Britain pursed her lips as she eyed her mother. "Why do we have to go through this entire process for us to come to an understanding?" she asked. Everything was always so difficult with her mom, and Britain just never understood why.

A short sigh escaped Seven's lips as she motioned her shoulders in a light shrug. "This won't justify my actions, but I tend to cling to you more than I do your brother and sister. Mostof that is due to the history I have with your father and how I wasn't the best to you when you were young. I'm hard on you because the slightest thing you do that reminds me of me when I was with Jeremy or what I wish I did when I was with him, I try to correct it immediately or jump down your throat about it," Seven explained, shaming herself with a shake of her head.

"I always said I was okay being the bad guy when it came to parenting between me and both of your dads, but I realized that being the bad guy won't really solve anything. In fact, it’ll only cause you to resent me.”

"I will never resent you, Ma," Britain clarified.

Seven smiled lightly, happy to hear that. "I know, but I don't want us at odds all the time. Y'know, after we had that argument at my house, Jeremy called and let me have it. That man is nothing nice when it comes to you, and I learned that the hard way." She laughed as she thought back to the heated phone call she shared with Jeremy just a week before. "Despite how disrespectful he was, he did say something that stuck with me."

Britain knew how protective Remy could be of her, so she was sure he didn't hold back from saying anything to Seven. "And what was that?"

"He said—" Seven cleared her throat, trying her best to pull off the best imitation of Remy she could. "Seven, if you want to get credit for being a good mother, you have to be a good mother throughout Britain's adulthood too, not just her childhood."

"Remy told you," Britain scoffed jokingly.

In laughter, she agreed with Britain. "He sure did, and as hard as it was for me to accept what he was saying, I knew he was right. When I became your mother, I vowed to be there for you from the minute I gave birth to the second I died and even after that. I realize that I have to let go eventually and be confident inhow I raised you. You know what you’re doing at the end of the day." Seven placed a light kiss on the back of Britain’s hand.

With a smile on her face, Britain reached over, wrapping her arms around her mother. She was glad Seven had put the stubbornness to rest, making it a lot easier for them to come to an understanding. She loved her mother wholeheartedly. She was relieved that she didn't leave behind unresolved tension with her mother.

For the rest of the car ride to the ramp, Britain and Seven talked to each other just like they would in old times. They shared laughter, and Britain caught her mother up on all the details of her life in Italy, showing her the estate and even showing her the memories she and Priest made while in Spain. Eventually, Cyro pulled the vehicle to a smooth stop, indicating that they had arrived at the ramp.

The door to the jet was left wide open as the pilot and flight attendant awaited Britain. A tight-lipped smile surfaced on Britain's face as she looked over her shoulder at the jet. Cyro busied himself with taking Britain's bags to the aircraft, giving Britain and Seven a minute alone. Seven cupped Britain's face in her hands just like she used to do when Britain was a kid. "Stay safe, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am," Britain chuckled while nodding her head.

"I love you, and I'm so proud of the woman you are today." Seven wrapped her arms around Britain, engulfing her in a hug.

"Thank you, Ma. That really means a lot to me." Britain rested her head on her mother’s shoulder.

They remained in a hug for a little while, Seven not wanting to let go because she wanted to do more than just apologize to her daughter for the way she handled the situation. With the current circumstances, an apology would just have to do for the moment, so she let Britain go so she could board the jet.

Britain offered her mother a final goodbye wave before she boarded the jet and set out to return to Italy.

SARDINIA, ITALY

PROVINCE OF SASSARI

Britain managed to sleep for the majority of the flight. She had ridded herself of the fancy gown and dressed herself in a sweatsuit instead so she would be comfortable. For the remainder of the last straining hour of the flight, she fought with herself so she wouldn't resort to calling Priest out of boredom. Instead, she finalized the final draft of her magazine. Once she finally landed, a great sigh of relief aired out of her. She could never get used to the seven-hour flight and wasn't sure when she would ever commit to it again.

She arranged car service for herself just to keep her surprise return a surprise for Priest. Once her bags were placed in the car, Britain thanked the pilot and flight crew and was on the way to the estate. Being back in Italy brought back a sense of relaxation for her. She felt less on the defense and finally felt like she didn't have to constantly look over shoulder with the paranoia of not knowing what could happen next.

As she sat in the back seat of the SUV, her leg bounced lightly as anxiety took her over. As much as she tried to hide it, she was eager to get to Priest. She had missed him immensely and was longing for one of his hugs and most of all, one of his kisses. Instead of micromanaging the driver by watching how far she was from the estate, she spent the drive calling her family to let them know she had landed in Italy safely and was heading home. Due to the time difference, it was going on six in the morning in The States, so she couldn't reach most of her family and opted to leave them voicemails.

She turned her attention to her phone, letting the duration of the drive home pass her by. She eventually looked up and realized she was approaching the gates of the estate. A hopeful and excited smile etched her face at the thought of finally being back home with Priest.Gaining entry through the gates, she sat through the drive up the lengthy pathway that led to the home. Finally pulling into the driveway, she noticed that a vehicle was missing from their lineup of cars. That was a clear indication that Priest wasn't home, but she was hoping that maybe he parked the car in one of the garage spaces instead of the driveway. She knew that wasn't likely, but she really wanted him to be home so she could see him.

She didn't even bother to wait for assistance to get out of the car. She opened the door herself, hopping out swiftly. Reaching into her tote, she shuffled toward the entry door of the home, grabbing her key in the process. Britain wasn't at all surprised at how spotless the home remained. It looked as though barely anyone lived in it. Her bags were brought in by the driver, and she thanked him and handed him a tip. She shut and locked the door before setting out on a search around the home. She knew Priest probably wasn't home, but she was still going to look around just in case so she wouldn’t ruin the surprise.

Britain headed up the staircase, navigating to their bedroom. She opened the door, taking a quick glance around and noticing that Priest wasn't there. She went ahead and checked his designated man cave as well, which turned up empty.

She gravitated back downstairs, trudging toward her office area. She entered the study, a light smile etching her face. Over the two weeks she had been gone, Priest had made himself useful by hanging up the rest of her photos, something she had been procrastinating about doing. Britain couldn't help but laugh at his placement of the photo of them together at her mother's all white birthday celebration front and center in thestudy, causing it to be the first photo anyone would see once they walked in.

Trekking over to the desk, she took a seat in the chair behind it. She leaned back and spun the chair around so she could admire the rest of the photos he hung up for her. Rotating around, she faced her desk. Her orbs gravitated down to the memory card reader, noticing there was a memory card inserted into it, ready for viewing. She furrowed her brows at the memory card. Since she wanted to work while she visited the city, she was under the impression that she had taken all of her memory cards that carried her portfolio of portraits for “Humans of New York.” She never realized she left one behind.

Her finger tapped on the trackpad of the desktop computer, awakening the screen. Immediately, the files of images and videos that were stored on the memory card were on full display, giving clear indication that the contents of the card had been viewed. Her eyes gravitated to the assortment of photos and videos that were compiled in the file. Upon taking notice of the first video that caught her eye, she felt a sudden dryness scorch her throat. Just to confirm she wasn't seeing things, she tapped her finger on the trackpad, pressing play. The video showed her with her rounded stomach on full display as she sat in front of the crib that she had spent hours on end building. Not giving the video more than a minute to play, she quickly stopped it, yanking the memory card out of the card reader. She didn't care if her hasty actions of carelessly pulling it out caused her to lose all the videos and photos that were on it.

She had an odd relationship with the memory card. She had compiled it a few years back when she was at a low place in her life. At some point when she began her healing process, she no longer could even bear looking at any of the photos or videos that were on it. The memory card went untouched for years. A heavy breath filtered out of her as she frustratedly threwher head back against the seat. It didn't take much for her to conclude that Priest discovered the memory card and spent time looking through it. A part of her felt a sense of anger broil and churn within her, while another part of her was far too ashamed and embarrassed to even think about confronting him about it.