Page 234 of Modern Romance Collection March 2025 (1-4)

He wished he could make her look like that all the time. He wished he gave her more…than he took.

Funny because he would have said he had. Because she was a peasant and he was…him.

His feelings on the matter had changed.

There were places to sit all over the grand room. A chaise lounge by the fireplace.

“Should you wish to use this room, and have amenities brought to you, all you have to do is ask.”

“So if I wanted to… I could ask for a cheese platter and the blankets and some hot chocolate?”

“Yes. And then another. And another. Being a princess is not only about the work you can do, or about etiquette. It can be about this too.”

He felt something in him soften. “This is not just for your sisters.”

She nodded slowly. “Thank you.”

“Of course.”

Except there was noof course, because he hadn’t made sure that she knew about this before.

But he was in control of himself now. He had recognized where he had failed her, and he wasn’t going to do it again.

That was what mattered.

He had dominion over these rogue feelings for her. And if the library could make her happy while he continued to withhold the physical, then all the better.

He had fixed it. And now it was done.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Shefeltalittle bit guilty. But it was noon the next day after he had shown her the library, and she was in her pajamas lying on the chaise by the lit fire. She had a pillow, a blanket, and she’d had a basket of pastries and some coffee, and was now enjoying cheese and hot chocolate. She had read three books so far. She couldn’t remember the last time she had been this relaxed.

And yes, she was still engaged to a man who had hurt her feelings yesterday. Yes, her father was still dying. And yes, her future was still uncertain.

But she felt like there was at least some happiness to be carved out here. Not just for the sake of her sisters, but for herself. This at least was a slice of happiness.

She snuggled deeper into the blanket, and heard footsteps on the stairwell. She thought it might be Miriam coming to check on her. But her heart gave a great jump when the figure came into view.

It was Adonis.

He was wearing a white cable-knit sweater, and a pair of dark jeans. He looked…incredibly sexy. And it made her ache.

Because the romance in the books was tame compared with what she had experienced with him. Except that was physical, wasn’t it? Emotionally, he was proving to be elusive, slippery.

But she thought about what he had said yesterday. About how he had talked about his own identity, and the way the world owned a piece of it. How he had hidden his name from her because he wanted to be…himself.

And that made her wonder how much of himself he kept hidden.

Had she even truly gotten to see the depths of him? She suspected not. The whole world thought that he was a shallow playboy. But was that even the truth?

“Hi,” she said.

“Hello.”

It was so funny. Him greeting her like he wasn’t a prince. Like they weren’t getting married. Like he hadn’t seen her naked. Like he hadn’t taken her to heaven in a way no other man ever had, and then…

Here they were.

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