Page 92 of The Billionaires' Gamble

“She’s also got a mean right hook,” he says, looking to my brother for sympathy.

Shon laughs. “I don’t know about hook so much as a protective jab. Sorry ’bout that, by the way.”

King slides his hand over my shoulder and clasps the back of my neck. “No worries. I’m glad Wildfire has people who watch out for her.”

“Wildfire?” Ford interrupts, then makes a gagging noise.

I give a little shrug. “You’re just jealous that you don’t have a nickname.”

My brother rolls his eyes and shoves a hunk of cinnamon roll into his mouth. That shuts him up.

“I’ve been thinking,” King says excitedly, angling toward me. “We should go to Greece.”

“Greece?” I laugh.

“Yeah. For our date.”

“Your date?” Ford buts in.

King cuts him a glance, and I swear King’s cheeks turn pink.

“King matched Alex and Gabe’s donation. Isn’t that incredible?” I heap on the praise because I know King is reluctant to use his own inheritance. The fact that he’d make such a generous donation means so much to me.

“Very generous, King,” my father says.

Ford lets the topic drop, glancing over at Dad. “You done with the business section?”

“Here. I’ve got some calls to make, anyway.” He hands over the newspaper and then disappears into the house.

“So… Greece?” King asks, pulling my attention away from the interaction that takes me straight back to my childhood. Dad faithfully reading the newspaper every morning, reminding us that knowledge was power.

“Sounds lovely. I’ve always wanted to go back,” I tell him.

Over the years, I grew to prefer reading the news on my tablet. But a headline snags my attention as Ford folds the paper just so. In the scheme of things, the bold type, maybe a third of an inch high, isn’t the largest I’ve seen. Not even in today’s edition, I’d bet. But the five words might as well be a thousand feet high.

I reach for my phone and open the web browser, typing those same words into the search engine.

“Tech Tycoon Makes Bank Bid”

A handful of articles pop up, pictures included. The headlines vary, but the information is the same, and the pictures are different, but they’re all of the same man.

My man.

Tech tycoon Gabriel Rothburn has issued a surprise bid to buy out the Cort half of one of Manhattan’s oldest banks.

“What do you think?” King asks.

“I think someone’s been keeping secrets,” I say.

Even though I had my suspicions, because of course I did, I know discontent when I hear it, and Hayden Cort was itching to make a move. To get out of bed with Chanler and into something different. Something perhaps less volatile than my mother and the sinking ship my grandfather left behind.

Everyone falls silent, and I realize King was looking at Alex.

“Secrets?” Shon asks as Alex leans in close, arm sliding across the back of my chair.

I’m surrounded. Cocooned between King and Alex, and there’s honestly no place I’d rather be as my worlds collide.

“What’s wrong, Katie Bird?”