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“You seem to be doing a good job.” I chuck the boy’s cheek as my chest expands.
I’ve never been one to like kids. They’re too…soft. Slobbery. Innocent. I guess a part of me realized I’d never meet anyone who would want to have kids with me, so I just closed that part of my brain down. I thought I didn’t have a parental bone in my body—it’s not like I had good role models. I was shipped off to boarding school as soon as I was old enough, and my entire adult life has been a long exercise in witnessing my father’s disappointment whenever he looks at my scars.
But this feels different. Rowan and Wolfe have so much love for their baby boy that it makes me think I might have missed something in this life. Maybe I’ve shut myself off from a type of happiness I didn’t even know existed.
All three of us turn when there’s a noise at the entrance. Prince Wolfe stands in the doorway, his eyes softening when he takes in Rowan and Wren. He crosses the room in three strides, takes his son in his arms, and tosses him high in the air.
“Careful, Wolfe!” Rowan’s eyes widen, and Wolfe just laughs. Their son giggles and giggles and giggles, globs of spit falling from his mouth onto the rug.
I feel like I’m intruding. This feels…intimate.
Wolfe catches his son, tucking the kid into his arm as he nods to me. “How are you enjoying your time here?”
“It’s amazing. I never even knew this palace existed. Feels like another world.”
“You should see it in winter,” Rowan says, eyes gleaming. “It looks like a foreign planet.”
“Our planet,” Wolfe says. He places a kiss on her temple, and I watch as she melts against his chest. The three of them make such a perfect image that it makes my chest ache. My heart seems to grow as I watch them, and my thoughts shift to Penelope.
Would she ever want that? She’s been so clear about her responsibilities as queen, about her duty, that I wonder if she ever considered she could have a modest kind of happiness, too. The kind of happiness that comes from a good relationship and a child.
Heart dropping, I glance away. Of course she gave that up—her husband died and she was told she couldn’t bear children. I see the pain inside Penelope’s heart, and all I want to do is take it away.
A buzz comes from my pocket, and I excuse myself, leaving the happy family to look out the window together. Moving to the far corner of the room, I pull my phone out of my front pocket and stare at the screen. Sighing, I swipe the screen to answer. “Hello, Father.”
“When are you back in Farcliff, Asher? We need to finalize this acquisition. Donovan’s been rumbling about sabotaging it, and I want to get this done.”
“I’m great, thanks,” I reply sardonically. “Thanks for asking.”
“Asher, I don’t have time for this. Get on the next plane and get down here. We need you here to make sure Reginald doesn’t try anything funny. The shareholders know about the diamond mines in Nord, so now is the time to act. You know the Nord project better than anyone, and there are important things I want to talk to you about.”
“Like what?”
“Just get down here,” he snaps. The phone clicks, and I lift my eyes to the ceiling. If I had a nickel for every time my father hung up on me, I’d be nearly as rich as he is. Taking a deep breath, I count to ten. It helps the anger inside me simmer down slightly, enough for me to feel like I have control over my emotions.
Not once did my father thank me for this project in Nord. He’s never congratulated me on my efforts or told me I did a good job. Even now, he just called me to chew my ear out and tell me to come, like I’m some sort of dog.
Maybe Reggie Donovan was right—I’m just my father’s pet. I was a fool to think he’d ever offer me the company. He’ll never put me in charge, no matter how good a job I do. My father doesn’t see me as someone worthy of his legacy. He just sees me as a burned, broken boy whose body is grotesque.
And for years, I believed him. I looked in the mirror and saw something ugly…until now. Penelope has shown me another side of myself. She’s opened my eyes to everything I ignored—everything good and true about me. All the things I thought were unlovable. All the things I tried to lock away.
As I put my phone back in my pocket, I know what I have to do. I’ll go to Farcliff to see my father, but it’ll be the last time. I’ll tell him I can no longer work for him. I’ll finalize this last acquisition and make sure Donovan behaves, then I’ll hand in my notice.
I’m quitting my father’s company and crawling out from under his shadow. I want to be the kind of man Penelope sees when she looks at me. I want to make her proud, and I can’t do that if I’m the Gerhard Corporation’s attack dog.
As if she can hear my thoughts, Penelope enters the sitting room. Her face is pale, jaw clenched. I fly to her side, smoothing my fingers through her hair. She closes her eyes, letting out a low groan.
“Is everything okay?” I ask quietly, leaning my forehead to hers.
“Depends who you ask.” She lets out a dry, humorless laugh. There’s something in her eyes I don’t recognize. They shine with unshed tears as a watery smile tugs at her lips. Her brows draw together, as if she’s trying to read my face.
“What did the doctor say?”
“I’m…healthy,” she answers cryptically.
Sliding my hand down her cheek, I wrap my fingers around the nape of her neck. She hooks her arms around my body, resting her cheek against mine. Her body is tense, and I run my other hand up and down her spine. “Why don’t you lie down for a bit, babe?”
Inhaling deeply, Penelope pulls away. She stares at the center of my chest for a moment before forcing her eyes to climb up to mine. “No, I’m okay. I need to talk to you.” Turning to glance over my shoulder, she wrestles her lips into a smile. “Hi, Rowan. Wolfe. Wren.”
