Page 51 of Once Upon an Enchanted Castle

She turned to bid him good night. He reached her, taking her hand in his and bending over it and placing a soft whisper of a kiss on the back of her lace covered hand.

“Until tomorrow, then.”

“Yes.” The response slipped out on a breath.

Behind him, Dickens stiffened waiting for him to return inside the castle. But Leopold stubbornly remained where he was watching her get into the carriage, the door closing behind her.

“Take her to her manor,” he called to the driver.

The man gave a curt nod and then snapped the reins. They clattered down the driveway toward the road.

“My prince, I must insist you come inside at once. The day is late.”

Dickens was right. It took everything in his power to turn away from the disappearing sight of the carriage.

Chapter 22

Thatevening,afterreturningto Hawthorne Hall, Bella stomped up the stairs to her room. Mortification flooded through her as she thought of the way Leopold found her. Sprawled out on the sofa, fast asleep, with the history of the realm on her chest.His realm.He must have seen the book and knew she snooped for it. It was no longer on her chest when she came awake and looked up at him as he kneeled beside the sofa.

The way he looked at her so intently made her pulse race. A tingling took residence in the pit of her stomach. His pale brown gaze was as soft as a caress as he peered at her with a spark of something she had never seen before. A spark that seemed to ignite a longing inside her.

Not just a longing to help him, to break his curse. But longing to feel his arms wrapped around her. Thinking that startled her to the core.

“Oh, miss, you’ve returned.” Emmaline’s voice broke into her thoughts.

She realized she halted at the top of the stairs, the book still clutched to her chest, as she allowed her thoughts of Leopold to invade her memories.

“Will you help me change, Em?” She headed to her room.

Emmaline fell in step with her. “Were you successful today?”

She knew what Bella was doing—that she was translating the book for Leopold. But she did not know why or what was at stake. Bella nodded.

“Yes, I made progress.”

There was so much she wanted to share with the girl, but she felt that Leopold told her the story of his brother and his lost kingdom in confidence. She wouldn’t betray that. She couldn’t. She wanted him to trust her to keep his secrets, though he had never said they were secrets.

In her bedroom, she placed the book on the table by the bed. Since she had started transcribing it more and more, the strange whispers had stopped. She slid off her gloves and dropped them on the bed, then removed her bonnet. Emmaline scooped them up and carried them to the wardrobe.

“Gerald asked after you this afternoon,” she said. “But I told him you were busy in town.”

“Thank you,” she said, her voice hollow and her thoughts distracted.

“I also got a note from Lord Vincent. He said he’d like to call soon.” She turned to face Bella, her cheeks pink and her eyes alight with excitement. “If that’s all right with you, of course.”

“Lord Vincent? Yes, of course.”

Emmaline unbuttoned the back of her dress. As she did, an idea struck Bella.

“Em, I wonder if you could ask him to bring the text I was translating for him? I was never able to finish it before we left for the country.”

“I’ll ask him.”

There was a slim chance finishing the translation of his book would yield any information to help her with the current project. But she wanted to at least try. She had to know how that story ended. If she did, then perhaps she would have an idea as to how Leopold’s story would end.

After she was in her nightgown and Emmaline had turned back the bed, the girl gathered up her day clothes and bid her goodnight. She slid under the cool sheets, pulling the blankets to her chin and tucking her arms underneath as she rolled to her side.

Thoughts of Leopold entered her mind once again. Her stomach fluttered as she recalled all he told her that day. There was a profound loneliness that emanated off him. And yet he tried to conceal that from her.

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