Page 85 of Protecting his Heart

The guards let them through, and he parked in the usual spot. His stomach fluttered—he was as excited about seeing her reaction as Evan was. They climbed out, and Owen stopped in front of her and put his hands on his hips.

“Now, are we going to have a problem if I bring the wheelchair with us?” He raised his eyebrows, opting for the big brother demeanour.

She glared at him, working her jaw, but sighed. “No, bring it along. I won’t use it yet, but I might need it.”

“Good girl,” he said, and he heard her gasp.

“Good girl, indeed,” she muttered, though she smiled.

He grabbed the wheelchair, meeting Evan’s gaze and seeing the gratitude in his eyes. He pressed a kiss to his lips as he passed, and Evan grabbed him and held on a little longer before letting go.

“You two are far too cute,” Jessica said.

They headed towards the doors Owen and the royal family usually used, and almost immediately, someone was upon them. And he might’ve guessed it would be Randall.

“Good morning, Randall.”

Randall beamed. “Morning. I hear we have a special guest today.” He held out his hand to Jessica. “Randall—”

“Metcalfe, the king’s personal assistant,” Jessica breathed with wide eyes.

If this was how she was with the people who surrounded the royal family, she might need the wheelchair to keep herself from fainting when she met the real deal.

“Nice to meet you, Jessica. I know you have these twobuffoonsto show you around, but would you care for one more tagalong?”

Jessica laughed, and Owen gasped. “Buffoons! I’m telling Dominic.”

Randall rolled his eyes and tucked Jessica’s arm through his, patting her hand. “He already knows what I call them. The three of them are like pre-school kids when they get together.”

“I can imagine.”

Randall answered Jessica’s questions as they wandered through the halls, Evan and Owen walking silently behind them while Owen pushed the empty wheelchair. He caught Evan’s hand in his own and squeezed.

“You okay?” he whispered.

Evan nodded. “I am. Thank you for doing this for her.”

“It’s the least I can do.”

They reached their first destination, and Randall opened the door, gesturing for Jessica to go first. Silence followed, and Owen peeked around the door to see Jessica standing there with her mouth open, staring at the royal family. All of them, except for the king.

“Oh my god,” she whispered.

Randall took over again. “Come on. Let’s find a seat and we can introduce you.” He guided her over to what Owen thought of as an old-fashioned armchair. But they were surprisingly comfortable depending which one they sat on.

“Everyone, this is Jessica. Jessica, this is everyone,” Randall said.

Freddie came closer and crouched in front of her, stopping her from rising. “It’s very nice to meet you, Jessica.”

“T-Thank you, Your Highness. You, too.”

“Please call me Freddie.” He gestured to Damon. “This is my husband, Damon.” Damon rose and held out his hand, and Jessica shook it.

“I can’t believe you’re all here,” she murmured.

Freddie grinned. “We always try to meet up as a group when we can. Meeting you gave us an excuse because we’ve all been really busy lately. So thank you for giving us this chance.”

“You’re thanking me?” Jessica breathed. “This is incredible.”

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