A rush of affection for her parents rolled through her, and she reached for her father’s hand. He cut away from his conversation—and she loved him for that, for always being there for her. “I love you, Papa.”

“I love you, my sweet girl.”

“I’m so glad you’re all right.”

“Me, too. I want to live to see my girls become the women they’re meant to be. Whatever that means.” He tipped his head toward Brodie. “We’re about to retire to the parlor for after dinner drinks, so it’s a good time to whisk your mountain man out of here.”

“Thank you. I’ll do that.” She gave Brodie a look that said, Ready to go?

He didn’t even hesitate. Just popped up, balled his napkin, and tossed it on his chair. With a hand on his suitcoat, he gave a short bow to the people around him and excused himself.

She met him in the hallway. “You looked like you were dying in there.”

“Nah. I’ve suffered through plenty of fundraisers and galas in my time.”

Reaching for his hand, she led him toward the staircase. “I doubt they had so many rules.”

“You’d be right about that. Where we going?”

“As gorgeous as you look in that suit, I want to strip you out of it and see what’s left of that six-pack you used to have before Chef got you fat on her croissants. Follow me.”

He barked out a laugh, and she couldn’t help glancing at the portraits lining the hallway. She’d pushed through revolutionary changes in her country, and she didn’t know what her ancestors would think of them. But it didn’t matter. Her generation would lead the nation into the future, and she wasn’t the least bit apologetic.

“Anywhere, Princess.”

“What do you say tomorrow we blow off everything and go hiking? We can bring a picnic.”

“You’ve got your first board meeting for the apprenticeship program.”

“Right.” She wouldn’t bail on the committee. “It’s at eleven, so we can leave right after. We’ll have a picnic dinner.”

He shook his head. “It’s your father’s first day back on the job. I think he’d like you to be around to fill him in on things.”

“You’re right.” She stopped at the bottom of the staircase and placed a hand on his chest. “Okay, then, let’s go right now.” She needed him to be happy here. He couldn’t live the way she once had—off duty alone. Lord knows she hadn’t been able to do it, and he was an outdoorsman who needed to be active. “We can hike up to the cirque lake. It’s an amazing view at night.”

“Sounds good.”

“Great.” See, we can find a balance. “Let me get it set up.”