Page 48 of Marrying a Prince

"Everything okay?" he asked.

She nodded. "Yep, just tired."

His gaze roamed over her and he smiled. "My turn." He got out of bed and closed the bathroom door. A few minutes later, he emerged in a pair of pajama bottoms and no shirt. Of course.

She stifled a groan. What was he doing?

He also didn't have her problem with needing to get into bed as fast as possible. Instead, he sauntered across the room as if he knew she was watching him.

He took a moment to stretch and then climbed under the covers after turning off the light.

Either the bed was incredibly small, or Leo was incredibly big. No matter what Marianna did, she couldn’t put any space between them. After the fifteenth adjustment, Leo chuckled.

Exasperated, Marianna glanced over at him. "What?"

"Is this how you sleep? Like a fish out of water?" He imitated her moving around, which only brought her closer to him. She shifted again, trying to keep her distance. "See, you did it again," he said.

"You weigh too much," she said.

Leo gasped. "You never talk about someone's weight, geez."

Marianna glanced over at him. She could almost hear his smile in the dark. Of course, he was enjoying this. She had half a mind to pinch him. But that might start something that she most certainly couldn't finish. And there was no need to rock this squeaky bed. She didn't want to give Bernardo any ideas.

"Let's just go to sleep," she said, turning so that her back was to him.

He let out a breath. "That sounds like a good idea."

They lay in the darkness, silence surrounding them. She could feel the warmth of his body next to her. Well, one thing was for sure, she wasn't going to get much sleep tonight. Thanks a lot, Bernardo.

Chapter Seventeen

After a very long and not restful sleep, Leo woke up to the sound of a rooster crowing. He lifted his head slightly to glance over at the small clock on the wall.

Six-thirty.

He let his breath out slowly as he lowered his head back down. From the corner of his eye, he could see Marianna. She was turned toward him. Her hands were resting by her chin. Her eyes were closed, and her eyelashes sprawled across her cheeks.

He couldn't help but allow his gaze to slip down to her lips. Her full, pink lips. Memories of kissing her filled his mind. It had done something to him. Stirred a feeling inside of him that he hadn't felt for any other girl. And, oh, how he wanted to do it again.

Her dark hair fell across her cheek, and before he knew what he was doing, he reached up and brushed it back. His fingers touched her skin, and zaps of electricity raced up his arm.

She was beautiful, and there was no way he was going to be able to walk away from her at the end of all of this. The way he felt about her was one of those once-in-a-lifetime feelings. The kind that changes you and never lets you go.

He swallowed against the lump that had formed in his throat. What was he going to do now? He squeezed his eyes shut, willing his mind to stop obsessing like a school boy.

Once-in-a-life-time feeling? Was he an idiot? Princes weren't given that kind of luxury. And since he was on the fast track to losing his inheritance, how did he think he could take care of Marianna?

She deserved everything, and he couldn’t give her anything. He needed to keep himself distanced from her. It was to keep her safe. That idiot doctor had already broken her heart, and Leo had promised to help her get over him. Dragging Marianna into his mess of a situation was far from keeping that promise.

She shifted, causing Leo to squint over at her. She was waking up. Her eyes fluttered open. Out of curiosity, Leo kept his lids closed just enough to pretend that he was sleeping but open enough that he could see what she was doing.

Her brow furrowed as she studied him. His skin heated as she ran her gaze over his face. What was she thinking?

Then, she leaned next to him, resting her head inches from his face. She was getting closer to him. Did he dare hope what that might mean?

Paralyzed, he laid there. She let out a small sigh and closed her eyes again.

His heart pounded so hard, he was certain Bernardo could hear it through the walls. Why couldn't he get a grip on his emotions? Having had enough of lying there and trying to interpret her actions, he stretched and yawned—making sure to stay far enough away so she couldn't smell his morning breath.

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