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He held up his hands. “That’s fair. It’s my job to show you that I’ve changed, not just to tell you. I know we can work together to keep Mom’s dreams alive.”

When she shrugged, it was precise and pointed. “I’m having no trouble doing that alone. The mall is bootstrapped. I never ask for a penny from August.” She decided that mentioning August would make it clear that Kian hadn’t had anything to do with her mall for years, so there was no need for him to stick his nose into it now. He was going to, but she would only let it go so far. The mall might be part of Van Adler Holdings, but Van Adler Holdings had nothing to do with its funding. She never asked August for a penny because she didn’t need it. Her mall was fully funded by its own revenue.

“I can’t argue with that,” he said, stirring sugar into his coffee, almost as if he needed something to do. “August updates me regularly on all the malls, and yours is always at the top of the list for everything.”

“Which is why you’re here, right?” she asked, and he nodded. “Perfect.” Joy held up a finger, pulled a set of keys from her purse, and set them on the table. “It’s all yours.”

“What’s all mine?” The confusion in his voice made Joy a little giddy, if she were honest. She lived to confuse Kian.

“Management of the mall. There’s no better way to get a feel for your property than by spending a day talking with your employees and putting out fires. Tomorrow is Tuesday, the perfect day to take the helm.”

Trepidation flared in his eyes. It took everything she had not to smirk. As a three-sport athlete, Kian never worked during high school. He certainly didn’t have to, but Lorelei often lamented that she should have made him work at one of the malls to give him a taste of how they run before he started managing them. Joy was sure he’d spent plenty of time in the malls over the last 5 years he’d been working for Van Adler Holdings, just not in the trenches. That time had come.

Kian pushed the keys back to her and shook his head. “That’s not why I’m here. We have plans to review the books tomorrow and discuss your initiatives. That’s enough for one day.”

When she pushed the keys back to him, he raised a brow. “We can move that to Wednesday. That information will mean so much more once you’ve seen how the mall runs for a day. Be there at 6 a.m. to prep for opening.”

“You’re throwing me to the wolves?” he asked, his brow raised in challenge.

“There isn’t a chance in hell I’d do that to my employees and store owners, who are also my friends. I’ll be there to assure them you’re in charge for the day. Consider it a ride-along. That’s my spare set of keys. Don’t lose them.”

The look on his face made Joy wonder whether he was relieved she’d be there. Was he that afraid of going it alone? No. He had more business knowledge and more degrees than she did. Surely he could handle a day on the floor of his family’s empire. Another glance at his face told her that might not be true.

7

#Proceedwithcaution

Lifting the keys off the table, Kian swallowed down his nervousness. If managing the mall for a day was what it took to work with Joy for a few weeks without dissension, then that’s what he would do. Did he have any experience running a mall? Not in the slightest. He was less of a hands-on guy and more of a spreadsheet kind of guy, but how hard could it be?

He’d spent a few days at each outlet mall over the last six months, but none of the GMs ever asked him to walk the floor or talk to the employees. Just the opposite. They wanted him out fast.

Then again, maybe that was why their malls weren’t as profitable as Joy’s across the board. As the spreadsheet guy, he saw the ups and downs of retail, but Joy somehow kept her line nearly as straight as an arrow. That was why he was here. He needed to pick her brain to figure out how she did it so he could spread the word. His degrees told him it wouldn’t be that easy. He suspected it had little to do with her bookwork and everything to do with who she was and how she interacted with customers and employees. He’d find out tomorrow, and he actually looked forward to it.

“Maybe you’re right,” he said, tucking the keys away. “Nothing beats boots on the ground when it comes to retail management.”

Joy tipped her head in agreement as she sipped her coffee, a coy smile on her lips. Kian wondered if the smirk meant she thought she’d pulled one over on him. She hadn’t. He knew what she was doing. She wanted to get rid of him too, but her plan was to kill him with kindness and a hefty dose of pushing him out of his comfort zone. Whatever Joy brought to the table, he was ready for it.

He had to wonder if Joy would say the same in a few weeks, when all was said and done. Probably not, but hey, by then, with any luck, he’d have exchanged his tarnished crown for a new shiny one, at least in her eyes. Unlikely, but a guy could dream. Yeah, he knew she called him the King behind his back, but that was on him. He’d been a pompous asshole growing up and had used that line way too often. There was no question he deserved what she handed out, but his goal was to show her he’d become a different person over the last decade.

Joy had become a different woman. And by woman, he meant she was all woman. ‘Gotdamn’ was all he could think whenever he caught a glimpse of her. She was no longer the frumpy girl from middle school in elastic-waist jeans and old flannel shirts. The woman before him knew her worth; there was no question. She dressed for success, but in a classy, understated way. It was as though she knew she had it and didn’t need to flaunt it. And boy, did she have it.

Lorelei rarely updated Kian on what was happening in Snowcap Ridge unless it pertained to the business. Probably because he preferred to meet her somewhere for a long weekend or a holiday getaway rather than come home to Wintercrest Estate. She knew the truth. He was ashamed to return to his hometown, knowing the kind of person he’d been growing up.

When Kian returned to the hospital six months ago to see his mother, he hadn’t done much to change people’s opinions of him, especially Joy’s. The difference was that he’d found a way to apologize to the hospital staff. A large, unexpected donation to the hospital’s new pediatric unit had earned him favor, but money couldn’t fix everything. It wouldn’t repair the wounds his words had inflicted on his classmates over the years. That was why he’d skipped their ten-year class reunion a few years earlier. He’d graduated from a class of 69 and probably alienated all but a handful of them. He didn’t have the courage to face them all.

Joy, on the other hand, was someone he had the courage and determination to confront, if only to convince her he’d changed.

The side door to the kitchen opened, pulling him from his musings. Freya Singleton, the estate’s cook, stood by the counter, laden with shopping bags.

“Oh, Kian! I didn’t realize you had company. I’m so sorry!” she exclaimed. “I’ll just put the frozen items away and save the rest for later.”

Joy turned at Freya’s voice, then jumped up. “Freya!”

“Joy child!” Freya exclaimed, gathering Joy into her arms and swaying. “It’s been so long!”

Joy’s laughter surprised Kian. He wasn’t sure he’d ever heard her laugh so freely. That was probably his fault, too.

“We just saw each other at the mall last week,” Joy said, stepping out of the hug.