Page 53 of Kinks of a Billionaire

“Oh, does it have a name?”

Royce’s gaze roved over the trail and into the surrounding bush, and for the first time, I realized he seemed hyper-vigilant. “It’s private, so I’m not sure.”

My eyes widened. “Please don’t tell me it’s your island.”

“No, but I’m thinking I might buy it.” He raised a brow. “Make him an offer he can’t refuse.”

“W-what? Who’she?”

His expression remained the same. “I think it belongs to Winston’s buddy, Asher. The guy I bought the boat from. I like this island, and it’d be a good place to raise a kid.”

My brows furrowed. “I don’t want to be too far away from my family and friends.”

He grinned. “Ditto.” When I gave him a confused look, he explained, “I was joking, but I would like to teach Asher a lesson.”

I glanced around, marveling at this world where one human owned the entire freaking island.

“How… how does one even buy an island?”

“It’s easier than you’d think.”

I side-eyed him, poking his shoulder with my free hand. “It’s far too remote for us. We’ve been walking for an hour and we’ve yet to see a single soul.”

A smile broke free across his beautiful lips.

“You’re right, wife.”Phew.While I loved visiting exotic places, I preferred city life. Bouncing between Lisbon and D.C. did that to a girl. “I think we should be close to your family.”

“And yours,” I reminded him. Royce was close to his siblings, and while they didn’t often see eye to eye, they were a unit.

“Huh.”

I bumped my shoulder against him playfully. “Just like your brothers, you’re an overbearing control freak when it comes to your family. It’s an admirable trait.”

He gripped my hand, his eyes finding mine. “I’m starting to wonder something.”

“What’s that?”

“Why didn’t I marry you ages ago?”

A strange type of warmth engulfed me, and something about his words and soft touch, even his unreadable features, communicated his meaning. I understood.

“I’m starting to wonder the same thing,” I joked. “But I’m glad you’re willing to be close to my parents.”

“Of course. If my father was half the man yours is, I would have probably spent more time around him.”

None of the Ashford brothers dwelled on their difficult relationship with their father, but I knew from Aurora that theyblamed him for Kingston’s kidnapping. Though, with how deep their disdain ran, there had to be more to it.

“You don’t talk about your mom much,” I noted softly. In all the years I’d known him, he’d rarely spoken of the late Mrs. Ashford.

“No.” The answer was curt, which he must have sensed because he squeezed my hand gently. “There isn’t much to say, honestly. She was good to us, loved us unconditionally, but Father demanded a lot of her attention. She made it work, and whatever time she had left over, she tried her best to shower us with it. Byron and Winston saw more of the shit going on between her and our father, so she tried to compensate for that with them. The rest of us were happy to take what we could get.”

Being an only child and witnessing my parents’ wedded bliss, I couldn’t relate, but I understood how hard it would be not to feel slighted.

“Do you hold it against her?”

Royce’s brows scrunched. “No, never against her. Against Senator Ashford, absolutely.”

“And now he’s dead,” I whispered softly.