Alan walked toward the stage as if there weren't a hundred phones pointed at him.
The crowd parted without thinking. Security hesitated, caught between blocking him and getting out of his way.
He didn't look at them.
His eyes stayed on Emily.
She stood near the ribbon, scissors abandoned on the cushion. In front of her, Victoria knelt on the red carpet, hands clasped, tears glinting under the cameras.
When Alan reached the rope, the head guard stepped forward. “Sir, this is a private—"
“Kingsley," Alan said.
The guard froze. “Mr… Kingsley?"
Whispers shot through the staff. “He's that Kingsley." “The Kingsley heir—"
Alan stepped past the rope and onto the low stage.
He stopped beside Emily.
Up close, he saw the tight set of her shoulders, the way she held herself too still.
“You
