Page 123 of Guarded King

“I like when you call me that,” she says, and I can hear the smile in her voice.

Chuckling, I check over my shoulder to make sure no one’s paying attention to me. They don’t seem to be, thank god. Otherwise they might question the expression on my face.

“I’m still at lunch,” I tell her.

“I know. I’m just calling because I checked your business email to get a head start for the week.Forbeshas reached out asking if you’d do an interview on how the King Group’s strategic direction is changing under your leadership. You’d be on the cover.”

Satisfaction surges through me. I’ve been interviewed byForbesbefore, but not to discuss how things have changed since I took over as CEO. “Can you reply and let them know I’ll do it?”

“Of course, I’ll get back to them and organize a date.”

“Thanks. And Chloe.” I soften my voice. “It’s the weekend. You should be taking a break, not checking my work emails.”

“I just didn’t want to miss anything important. It was just a quick check. I actually spent the morning with Dad at the library.”

“It’s good that he’s getting out of the house more.”

“The hard part is making sure he doesn’t go too hard too fast. I swear, he thinks he’s going to be cycling around Central Park in a few weeks’ time.” She laughs, the light, airy sound setting something free in my own chest.

I lower my voice. “Are you still coming over tonight?”

“Yes. Carol’s going to come for dinner, then stay and watch a movie with Dad.”

The sound of the patio door opening and closing distracts me. I turn and find Peters, the estate’s steward, escorting a man I don’t recognize across the lawn.

“Phillip will pick you up,” I tell Chloe, my eyes on the man who’s now standing next to Mom.

“Tell him I’ll meet him in the usual place.”

“I will. See you soon.”

As I slip my phone into my pocket, I stride back over to the table.

“Roman, you’ll never guess who this is,” Cole says, his usually sharp blue eyes bright with amusement.

The dark-haired man looks to be in his late fifties and is holding a bouquet of wildflowers.

Before I can begin to make sense of the scene, he smiles and reaches out his hand for me to shake. “Roman, I’ve heard a lot about you from Beverly. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’m Miles. Miles Hanson.”

“Miles is mom’s newfriend,” Cole says, with heavy emphasis on the friend part. “He’s joining us for lunch.”

I turn my attention to Mom, whose cheeks have gone pink. “This is a surprise.”

“I didn’t mention it because I wasn’t sure Miles could make it today.”

“I’m a pediatric surgeon,” he breaks in. “I’m on call, but so far, so good.”

Mom looks up at him with a lightness in her expression I’ve only ever seen once before. It hits me then. Miles is the man she was talking to at the gala a few weeks ago.

He holds the flowers out to her, and she blushes even more as she takes them. Then he slides into the seat next to her, and my brothers and I spend the next hour getting to know him. Turns out, he and Mom met a couple of months ago at a benefit to raise money for his hospital’s pediatric care wing. They saw each other a few times after that at various charity galas and struck up a friendship.

Or at least that’s what Mom called it.

Miles is a natural comedian, spinning stories about some of the behind-the-scenes antics at the hospital. It’s incredible how often he makes Mom laugh—hearing it now only underscores how rarely she did it when we were growing up.

I doubt she had much to laugh about when she was married to Dad.

By the time lunch is done, I’m relaxed, and I’ve even started to enjoy myself. The only fly in the ointment is Chloe’s absence.And it’s even more noticeable with my mom’s newfriendhere as well.