The Coldest Man in the Room Melted Only for Me novel Chapter 13

Usually, after dinner, Riley and Pierce would leave the estate. But today, because Sebastian was visiting, Pierce stayed longer to keep him company. By the time they finally left, it was nearly nine o'clock.

On the drive home, Pierce was behind the wheel when the phone mounted on the dashboard rang.

Seeing 'Manager Walsh' on the caller ID, Riley frowned.

This was the same unknown number that had called while they were eating at The Lotus Room, and it had called several times since.

She had asked Pierce who it was, and why the number wasn't saved.

Pierce had claimed it was a new manager from the planning department, and he just hadn't gotten around to saving the contact.

Lately, this Manager Walsh had been calling Pierce incessantly, often dragging him away late at night. Over the past two weeks, Pierce hadn't slept at home more than half the time. This had never happened before.

But since it was work-related, Riley couldn't really complain. “Should I answer it and put it on speaker for you?”

“No need.” Pierce reached over and declined the call with one hand, then smiled warmly at Riley. “I promised that once your maternity leave started, I'd give you all my time. No one is interrupting us.”

Riley smiled happily, having feared he was about to ditch her for work again.

Back home, they washed up and sat in bed together, flipping through a dictionary to pick a name for the baby.

After Riley selected a few characters, Pierce asked, “Why are you only picking girl names?”

Riley looked down, stroking her heavily rounded belly. “I have a feeling it's a girl.”

Pierce took Riley's hand. “Did you find out what my mother did?”

Riley didn't hide it. “Yes.”

She had arranged all her prenatal checkups at her own hospital. But when she was four months along, Beatrice insisted on taking her to the Landon family's private hospital for an ultrasound. While there, Riley had overheard Beatrice talking to the doctor, confirming it was a girl.

Resting against his chest, a soft, blissful smile graced Riley's lips. She closed her eyes, savoring the rare peace and warmth.

He had been so busy lately that they hadn't even had the time to just hold each other like this.

Suddenly, a ringtone shattered the tranquility.

Pierce picked up his phone from the nightstand. Seeing 'Manager Walsh' on the screen again, Riley's smile faded. “Why is he calling again?”

Pierce hung up the call and turned his phone off completely. “No work tonight. Just you.”

The next morning, Riley woke up to find Pierce still sleeping soundly beside her, and she couldn't help but smile.

For the past two weeks, he had either been sleeping at the office, or he was already gone by the time she woke up. It had been a long time since she had opened her eyes to see him.

The man's handsome face looked so peaceful and gentle in the morning light. This had to be what a perfect life felt like. It felt so good.