Page 44 of Marrying a Prince

After a minute, she spoke. "What's the plan?"

He leaned back, letting his wrist rest on the wheel. "We're going to drive to our summer home, a few hours north of here. I'm going to put in a call to Sean, my buddy from university, and hopefully he has a car we can borrow. Then we'll just travel. See the countryside."

When she didn't respond, he glanced over at her. Why was she so quiet?

"And then what? Return when—what was his name?"

"Ermes?"

"Yeah, when Ermes is king? And you'll be free?"

"Exactly." Why did he detect a hint of annoyance in her voice?

He scrubbed his face as he studied the road. "You don't understand what it's like to live your whole life where everything is planned, down to the very second. You're told what to wear, what to eat, who to love." His gaze slipped over to her.

When she caught him looking, her gaze snapped down to her hands. "But, Leo. It's you. It's what you were born to do. Do you really think Ermes could rule better than you?"

His stomach squeezed at her question. He knew what she was trying to do—appealing to his sense of duty. A duty bred into him since he was born. He'd served two years in the military. He’d studied foreign relations at university. Everything he'd done since he was a child had prepared him to rule.

Why couldn't he accept it?

A small tug pulled at the back of his mind. He knew why. He was scared. He'd seen what a wealthy man had done to his parents. They saw what his wealth could do for them, so they had caved to the point of selling off their son to him.

Suddenly, he wasn't the prince they'd groomed, but a pawn to be used in their game. And he didn't want to be a pawn.

He blew out his breath. Stress was rising up from his gut and settling at the base of his neck. He twisted his head, hoping the relieve the tension that was building. He didn't want to talk or think about this anymore. They needed to get to the summer home, and then he'd figure out the rest of the plan.

All he knew right now was that he needed to get away. What he was going to do after that didn't matter. Distance between him and the castle was his top priority. Then he'd face her question.

Chapter Sixteen

Marianna studied the road as Leo drove quietly next to her. She wanted to ask him more questions, but he didn't seem in the mood to answer them. Every time she brought up what his plan was, he changed the subject.

Maybe he wasn't sure about what he was doing. Running off when things got hard wasn't something she was a stranger to. She'd done it many times in the past. He'd talk to her eventually, he just needed time.

The sun had disappeared behind the horizon, and darkness surrounded them. She felt a little disappointed that she wasn't going to see any more of this beautiful countryside. All she could see now was the patch of road in front of them that was illuminated by the headlights.

They must be getting farther out into the country. Only a few cars had passed them in the last ten minutes. She settled back. Leo had said it would be a few hours until they got to his summer home, so she might as well get comfortable.

Leo leaned forward and switched on the radio. "Music?" he asked.

She nodded. "Sure."

A man's soft voice filled the car. He sang in a language she didn't recognize, but his tone and the music soon relaxed her. Just as her eyelids drifted closed, a bang sounded from outside. Instantly, the car veered to the left. Leo grabbed the wheel to compensate.

He pulled over to the side of the road and let the car idle.

Marianna glanced over to him. She knew what this meant. A flat tire.

"You okay?" he asked, glancing over at her.

She nodded. "Yeah. You?"

He unbuckled and pulled on the door handle. "Yes. Wait here. I'll go check."

The trunk opened, and she heard him rustling around. A few minutes later, he returned, slamming the door shut and grabbing the wheel. He did not look happy.

"Everything okay?"

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