The closer the shark got, the louder the crowd screamed-and the more terrified Trayson became.

    Joshua noticed Allison had spoken up. His point had been made, so he gave a small nod. "Alright."

    He signaled for someone to toss down a small intable raft and a life jacket, then lowered a rope. Two bodyguards moved quickly to haul Trayson out of the water.

    It had only been a few minutes since he''d been thrown overboard, but for Trayson, every second felt like a lifetime of pure panic. He''d stared death in the face and barely made it back.

    Even after he was pulled onto the deck, the fear didn''t let go. He was a shaking mess, shouting things like, "Help! Please don''t feed me to the sharks! I swear, I''m sorry!" over and over, lookingpletely out of his mind.

    Lottie was frozen with fear. Her legs had gone numb, her whole body trembling. All she could think was: If she hadn''t agreed to Allison''s way of making peace, would she be in Trayson''s ce right now? Would Joshua have thrown her into the ocean too?

    Around them, people who''d never liked Trayson and Lottie in the first ce were already pulling out their phones, snapping photos and recording videos. The whole thing was just too wild to miss. Moments like this didn''te around every day.

    Not everyone found it entertaining. Carolyn''s heart felt heavy with guilt. She looked at Allison, eyes red from holding back tears. "Allison, I honestly had no idea there was anything between you and Trayson or Lottie. I swear, I never would''ve let them on board if I''d known."

    Allison gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "I believe you."

    Carolyn stared at her in disbelief. "You really do?"

    It hurt-she''d spent over seven years loving a man who didn''t trust her, but her supposed rival actually did.

    Allison nodded. "You''re not that kind of person."

    She''d thought it through carefully. Sure, Carolyn had let jealousy get the best of her when she arranged separate rooms for her and Joshua, but inviting Trayson-knowing he held a grudge-just wasn''t her style. If Carolyn really wanted to make trouble, she wouldn''t have let Trayson and Lottie insult Allison in front of everyone. That would''ve been too obvious. If she wanted to hurt Allison, she''d have done it behind the scenes.

    After getting to know Carolyn these past few weeks, Allison had realized that, while she was a fierce CEO at work, she was surprisingly easy to get along with in private.

    "Allie, thank you for trusting me." Carolyn was so touched that tears slipped down her cheeks.

    Allison''s tone softened. “Don''t cry. It''s your birthday, remember? If you keep this up, your makeup''s going to be a mess for the party."

    Carolyn sniffled and nodded.

    Joshua caught the head bodyguard''s eye, and without a word, Trayson was promptly escorted away.

    One of the cruise ship''s senior managers came over and whispered something to Joshua. Joshua

    nodded, then the man called ours

    "Alright, everyone, show''s over! Go grab some food, have a drink, enjoy yourselves!"

    People started to drift away, leaving just Joshua, Allison, Carolyn, and a few of Allison''s friends on the deck.

    Still wiping at her eyes, Carolyn apologized again. "I''m so sorry, Allie. I never wanted you to go through all this."

    Allison smiled gently. "You didn''t do it on purpose. Don''t beat yourself up."

    Carolyn''s voice was shaky. "Even if it wasn''t intentional, it was careless. Someone like Trayson never should have been allowed on board."

    "He''s already paid for what he did,"

    Allison said. Come on, stop crying. Go wash your face and freshen up your makeup. The party''s still on tonight Don''t let this ruin your birthday. You deserve to celebrate and have a good time."

    With another sniffle, Carolyn managed a small, "Okay."