Free What a Girl Wants by Kate Perry

his attention. He squinted, leaning in to get a better look.
    A bracelet around her ankle.
    She turned, and the diamond set in it winked at him.
    He frowned. It seemed racy—not the sort of thing a woman her age should wear.
    “Do you need more coffee, Edward?”
    His frown deepened. “No.”
    “Are you okay?” she asked, watching him with polite curiosity.
    No, he wasn’t. “Fine.”
    She arched her brow. “If you say so.”
    “Have lunch with me,” he blurted.
    The moment he heard the bumbling command he scowled. What was wrong with him? This awkward man wasn’t who he’d been. Retirement had broken him.
    Lillian didn’t seem to notice anything wrong. She just smiled politely like he was a stranger and said, “I already ate.”
    He frowned. He hadn’t taken that into consideration. “Tomorrow then.”
    “I have plans already.”
    “Doing what?”
    She arched her brow. “Is this idle curiosity, or is there more going on here?”
    “I don’t know.” He glanced at her ankle. “Is there more going on?”
    Her lovely face went frosty. “I assume you’re done here,” she said, picking up his coffee cup and setting it in the sink. Without another word, she walked out, her back ramrod straight.
    That went well.
    He tapped his fingers on the table. Then he pulled out his phone and called Belle.
    His younger daughter answered her phone on the third ring. “Dad, I just found out that Cosmo is doing a spread on my yoga line in their September issue.”
    “Congratulations, honey.” Some of his agitation dissipated with pride. He’d been doubtful when she’d told him that she wanted to start her own athletic line, but he’d had the foresight to keep it to himself. Good thing, because she’d taken the idea and turned it into an enterprise. She was his girl.
    “Is Mom around? I was about to call her.”
    “I think your mother is busy right now.” He pictured that bracelet-thing around Lillian’s ankle and frowned.
    “Is everything okay, Dad? You sound strange.”
    “Everything is fine.” He hated that word.
    “Did you call for a reason?”
    “No,” he lied. “I was just thinking about you and wanted to say hi.”
    “Oh. That’s nice.”
    “You don’t have to sound surprised,” he grumbled. “I’m not an ogre.”
    “Well, you don’t usually just call. Are you sure you’re all right?”
    “Do I have to be unwell to care for your well-being?”
    “Maybe.” Belle laughed. Then someone else’s voice sounded over the line, muffled in the background. “Dad, I’ve got to go. The magenta Lycra for the fall line isn’t the right shade.”
    “Go ahead, honey.”
    “Love you, Dad! Tell Mom to call me.”
    She hung up before he could reply. Not that he’d be able to tell her that her mom didn’t appear to be talking to him.
    Because he was on a roll not connecting with the women in his family, he decided to call Ariana, too.
    “Your henchman has already harassed me today on your behalf,” she said when she answered the phone. “So if that’s why you’re calling, you’re being redundant.”
    He sat up. “You talked to Sebastian?”
    “Yeah. Great guy,” she said in a fake cheery voice. “Thanks for siccing him on me. What do you have planned next? Sending over someone to infect me with Ebola?”
    Ariana had always been such a dramatic girl. “If you give Sebastian a chance, you might be surprised by what you could accomplish.”
    “I know. What I’ve accomplished isn’t good enough.”
    What she’d done so far, on her own initiative and capital, was nothing short of amazing. He frowned. “I never said that.”
    “Not verbally, but you have with your actions. I have to go, Dad. I have a client in five minutes and I have to prep for her.” Before he could reply, she said, “Talk to you later,” and hung up.
    Exhaling, he tapped his phone on the table and tried to figure out when he’d alienated himself from the women in his life.

Chapter Ten
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    L ooking for the woman