Page 49 of Marrying a Prince

He pretended to wake up, taking note of the fact that she still pretended to be asleep. He slipped off the bed and tiptoed into the bathroom, where he shut the door and turned on the shower.

Fifteen minutes later he emerged out of the water feeling refreshed. His mind had cleared and all the ridiculous thoughts that he'd allowed to linger were pushed to the very back corner of his mind, where he locked them in a vault.

He couldn't allow them back out. Not if he was going to stay sane.

He opened the door with a towel wrapped around his waist. In his haste to get to the bathroom, he'd forgotten a change of clothes.

His heart sped up as his gaze landed on Marianna. She was sitting up in the bed with her knees brought up and her gaze trained outside of the window. The morning light shone across her skin, illuminating her. Her dark hair fell in waves, framing her face and cascading down her shoulders.

He needed to leave. Right now.

Her gaze made its way over to him, and her eyes widened. His skin burned as she lingered on his chest and then stomach. Her cheeks hinted pink as she pinched her lips together and met his gaze again.

She said everything through that look. Everything that they had been fighting not to say to each other for the last few days. His muscles burned as he fought the urge to cross the room and gather her up, kissing her like a man who loves a woman should.

She tucked a curl behind her ear. "Sleep well?" she asked.

He cleared his throat and nodded—nervous that if he spoke, his voice would expose his thoughts. "Yeah. You?"

She chuckled. The sound was melodious and delicate—just like her. "You snore."

He scoffed. That was not what he was expecting her to say. "I'm sorry," he said as he crossed the room and grabbed his suitcase.

She shrugged. "It's no big deal. I just hit you a few times, and you rolled over." She threaded her fingers together and stretched her arms. "It wasn't anything I couldn't handle."

He twisted his head, cracking his neck. "That's why I feel like I've been in a fight. You were manhandling me in my sleep."

Her gaze slipped down to his chest. As if she suddenly realized she was staring, she reached up and rubbed her neck with her hand.

"Yeah. That's totally me."

He studied her, not sure what to say. What words does one put together to mean,I'm sorry I promised that I wouldn't like you, but my feelings have gotten away from me, and I can't help but feel things for you that I never thought I would for anyone,without actually saying those words?

He grabbed his clothes from the suitcase and disappeared into the bathroom. Avoidance seemed like the best solution here. It kept her safe. And himself? Well, it kept him from opening his heart only to have it crushed.

Once he was dressed, he left the bathroom. Marianna hadn't moved from the bed. She glanced over at him, and his heart squeezed. There was a pain in her gaze that was affecting him, physically. But before he allowed himself to get lost in it, he nodded at her and headed to the bedroom door.

"I'm starving. I'll go find Bernardo and get us some food." He pulled open the door and stepped out into the hallway. When he was safely out of her presence, he leaned against the wall and took a deep breath. They were getting too close. Way too close. He needed to back away. Right now.

"Have a good night?" Bernardo's voice pulled Leo from his thoughts.

He righted his head and glanced down at him. Bernardo was wearing a sun hat and overalls. His smile wrinkled his weathered skin.

Leo nodded, but that felt like a lie, so he just shrugged. "Yeah. It was decent."

"It's not like the castle accommodations," Bernardo said.

"Yeah." Leo stopped. What did Bernardo just say?

There was a twinkle to Bernardo's gaze that made Leo feel like an idiot. Of course Bernardo knew who he was. How could he even think he'd be able to hide out in his own country. Perhaps, he'd just been so desperate to get away that he'd allowed himself to think he was invisible.

He now realized how stupid that sounded. "You knew?"

Bernardo tapped his nose and smiled. "It's hard not to when your face is plastered across every magazine." Bernardo waved at him as he stepped past Leo. "Come with me, and we will get you some food."

Grateful for Bernardo's hospitality, Leo followed him into a modest kitchen. Bernardo pulled out a carton of eggs from the fridge and motioned toward the stove.

"Grab a pan from the bottom drawer."

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