Page 158 of Guarded King

He scoffs quietly. “Really?”

Annoyance flares in my chest. “We’re giving each other space.”

He shakes his head. “Tate, can you talk some sense into this guy?”

I scowl at him and then Tate.

“What the hell are you scared of, man?” my youngest brother asks.

Before I can respond, the elevator dings and the door slides open. I stride out first, then turn to face them, hands stuffed in my pockets. “You think I’m scared? I’m trying to do the best thing for the company. And for Chloe.”

“Don’t lie to yourself,” Cole says. “You’ve finally met a woman you care for and you’re fucking terrified.”

The annoyance quickly morphs into anger. “Terrified?”

His blue eyes are hard when they meet mine. “Yes. There’s nothing more terrifying than love. But seriously, it’s not dad’s shadow you need to step out from under. It’s your own. You don’t owe the company anything. You don’t owe us anything. You definitely don’t owe Ellis or whoever’s reading those damn tabloids anything. Who the hell are you trying to prove your point to?”

Hot knives slice through my ribs. “We’re going to be late.” Without waiting for them, I pivot and stride away.

They follow silently behind me until we get to the hotel’s conference room. Ellis and his lawyers are there and our legal team is as well. Since he’s staying here for the week, he requested that we meet here instead of King Plaza.

I greet Ellis, and after the three of us have shaken hands with him and his team, we sit.

Without preamble, Ellis clears his throat and begins. “Thank you for passing on the information regarding Roger’sunscrupulous dealings. I never seriously considered his bid, but at least I know not to do business with him in the future.” He focuses on me. “I hope Chloe wasn’t hurt by those ridiculous tabloid insinuations.”

I school my expression and smooth a hand down my tie. “She’s fine.”

“Good, good,” he says. “She’s a lovely young woman. She doesn’t deserve that kind of scrutiny.”

“Agreed,” I say. My tone is probably a little too terse, but I’m eager to move on from the topic of Chloe. “Are you ready to nail down these terms?”

Two hours later, Ellis preliminarily accepts the King Group’s offer. I roll my shoulders, expecting them to loosen. Instead, they remain just as tense. “Our lawyers will be in touch when the contract has been drawn up.”

There are handshakes all around, and before we part ways, Ellis gives me a friendly slap on the back. “I’m looking forward to working with you.”

On the elevator ride down, the silence looms between my brothers and me.

“Ellis is right, you know,” Tate starts.

I glare at him, already knowing I’m not going to like what he’s about to say.

The look does nothing to deter him. “Chloe is a lovely young woman. She deserves better.”

“But the acquisition is all but a done deal now, so as long as you’re happy, that’s the important thing.” Cole’s eyes challenge me.

They know the truth. They know that the huge step we took today hasn’t made any difference. I’m still fucking miserable.

Before we step out of the hotel and into the rain, Cole stops me with a hand on my chest. “You’ve been so damn concerned about proving you’re not like Dad. Have you ever thought thatthe best way to do that is to embrace the things he never did? To fight for the stuff that truly matters?”

“Exactly.” Tate rocks back on his heels, his hands in his pockets. “What do you think would make him angrier, the way you’ve elevated the King Group’s status—while spending your life miserable and alone—or your ability to weather a potential scandal in the short-term while being in love and happier than he ever was?”

“Was I this insufferable when I was giving you advice?” I grit out.

“You were worse.” He lifts both brows, a smirk playing on his lips. “But you were right. There’s no double-standard here Roman. You told me to stop defining myself by Dad’s actions. Why not heed your own advice?”

Breath held, I look out, studying the heavy clouds.

Why the hell am I holding back? Dad isn’t even here anymore, and yet, he’s still influencing my decisions.

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