Carefully, I lift my head from his shoulder. "What if I've been approaching this the wrong way?" I ask.
Seeing his confusion, I can't help but grin. He looks adorable when he doesn't know what's happening. "Um..."
"Yes, that's exactly the problem, possibly," I say with excitement. I place the tea cup on the side table and start pacing in front of the glass window. I'm onto something, I can feel it. "Since my return, I've been trying to earn respect atTouch av lyxusing my father's methods."
But I am not my father. I am not a tough businesswoman, and maybe I don't have to be.
Kjell takes a sip of his coffee. "Okay. Interesting."
I come to a sudden stop. "I have to go back to Stockholm."
Yes, I need to show up at the headquarters, approach the employees, and talk to Kahlo. Explain everything, apologize, and ask him to tell me what he needs from me to work well. No condescension. No bossy behavior. No power games.
"That's the only way I have a chance." In the midst of my emotional turmoil, I walk over to Kjell and plant a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you." I smile at him. "How quickly can you pack?"
"But what if the press..." He stops mid-sentence, his face turning pale.
His concern for me is really sweet, and of course, he's right.
The media frenzy is and remains a problem. My father won't approve when he wakes up and finds press reports about me. "If they catch me, it's all over. Just one journalist who knows my story is already too many."
"Oh God..." Kjell exclaims, clearly horrified by the thought.
Still, I have no choice. "If I want to regain my father's trust, I have to go back." Maybe I'll cut my hair? I won't go outside, only move freely in the villa and atTouch av lyx. "I'll hide so well that they won't catch me. Will you help me with that?"
By now, he's as pale as the snow at the front of the sea.
"Are you okay?" I ask, scrutinizing him closely.
"Of course." His lips twitch as if trying to turn upward but not quite succeeding.
