Page 4 of Royal Valentine

I half expected him to protest, but he just nodded.

This was all very strange. Lucia left the room, presumably to get ready for her job, and I stood up. “I should go. Back to my hotel. Thank you for not leaving me on the Steps.” If even one of those paparazzi had stumbled over me, I would have shamed my entire family. The headlines would have said I hadsome kind of alcohol or drug problem or something equally horrific.

Not to mention what some random pervert might have done to me, given the state I was in. I shuddered at the thought.

“You’re quite welcome,” he said. “May I walk you back?”

I supposed there wasn’t any harm in that. It felt a bit torturous, given how handsome yet unavailable he was. I tried to imagine how Anne would respond. “Sure.”

I got her purse and put her jacket back on. I wondered which one of them had removed it and put me under a blanket on the couch.

I suspected that it had been him.

He also got a jacket and slung a bag over his shoulder. He called out a goodbye to Lucia, who said she’d see him later. He and I walked down several flights of stairs in silence. When we left the building, I said to him, “I don’t even know your name.”

“My apologies. Callum Stewart. A pleasure to meet you.” He offered me his hand, and after a tentative pause, I took it.

He’d meant for us to shake, but all I could think about were the tingles racing up and down my veins from just the touch of his warm, firm hand.

I hadn’t ever felt this kind of immediate attraction to anyone else. I jerked my hand away, wondering if he’d noticed the way I had started trembling.

I was supposed to be regal and instead I was shaking.

Ridiculous.

“And you’re Anne Smith?” he prompted, and I nodded.

“I am.” Some part of me had worried that he or his roommate might have recognized me. My existence was strange—anyone who read entertainment websites or tabloids knew exactly who I was, but to everyone else I was just aregular person. Given that he was calling me Anne, I seemed to be in the clear.

“On holiday?” he asked as we walked.

It was such a surreal experience to be walking along a sidewalk in the Eternal City with a gorgeous man and not have to worry that someone was about to jump out of the bushes and try to take my photograph. I relaxed and smiled, feeling as if I could finally breathe deeply and enjoy the time I had left on my mini-vacation. It was so freeing.

“Yes. For the next two days, and then I have to go back home.”

“I’m guessing that accidentally knocking yourself out on a national monument wasnae part of your travel plans,” he teased, and I put a hand over my stomach as it fluttered in response.

He was so friendly and charming ... and that smile of his? It made the whole world seem brighter.

“Not quite. I’m hoping to see all the touristy places, though.”

“Hopefully you’ll manage to stay awake while you do,” he said, and I smiled. “I’d be happy to be your tour guide while you’re here.”

“Oh.” His offer was far too tempting and I wanted desperately to accept. “You don’t have to babysit me.”

“I wasnae intending to,” he said. “I love this city and would be happy to share it with a beautiful woman.”

I felt lightheaded, and I wasn’t sure if it was due to his words or the medication. I knew I should put a bit of distance between myself and the very charming man. “Your girlfriend wouldn’t mind if you spend Valentine’s Day with me?”

“Girlfriend?” Callum frowned, as if he didn’t know what I meant.

“Lucia?”

He grinned and said, “Lucia isnae my girlfriend. She’s my roommate and friend. I’m not her type.”

I had a very hard time imagining that Callum Stewart wasn’t anyone’s type. Not only because of how attractive he was, but also how kind and friendly he seemed to be. “Not her type?”

“She isnae into men.”

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