“About this...” As his voice trailed off, he looked at her with confusion reflected in his eyes.
He wasn’t the only one to be confused. Her heart had betrayed her mind in wanting what it could not have. And now that her feet were once again planted firmly on the ground, she couldn’t forget that she was here to do a job. That needed to be her focus. Not getting swept up in some fairy tale.
“It’s okay,” she said. “You have important work to do.”
“You’re not upset about ending the evening so soon?”
She shook her head. “Not at all. I understand that business must come first.”
As he escorted her back to the palace, he didn’t offer her his arm. And she made sure to keep a reasonable distance between them. Because as much as nothing had happened between them, something most definitely had almost happened.
For a brief moment awareness had passed between them. It had been something genuine. Something not quite tangible but utterly unique. But for both their sakes, it was best neither of them examined it too closely.
CHAPTER EIGHT
HE’D ALMOST KISSED the wedding planner.
And the only thing he regretted was that they’d been interrupted.
A hectic week had flown by since that very memorable moment and Bianca filled every nook and crevice of Leo’s thoughts. He sighed. He was playing with fire. He was supposed to be choosing a wife in order to announce his engagement after his sister’s wedding, not indulging in a fleeting desire. But, oh, what a desire.
“What are you smiling about?”
Immediately Leo cleared his facial expression. His sister stood in front of his desk studying him. How long had she been there? He’d been so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn’t heard her enter his office.
He leaned back in his chair. “Good morning, Giselle.”
“From the look on your face you must have had a good night too.”
He frowned at her, warning her off the subject. But his sister wasn’t good with warnings. She dared to tread where most people would veer away.
“If you must know, I worked late into the night. And it was a very successful meeting.”
Giselle crossed her arms. “If that’s what you need to tell yourself, then go ahead. But I think it was something far more personal that had you smiling.”
He cleared his throat. “Did you need something?”
“You didn’t show up at breakfast—”
“I was working.”
“And Bianca wondered where you might be.”
He leaned forward and straightened the papers on the desk. “I thought you would be working with her this morning and going over all of the relevant details for the wedding.”
“We are. I’m just waiting for her to grab her things and then we’re off.” He could feel her gaze on him the whole time she spoke. “I just stopped by to see if you would want to accompany us.”
His gaze moved to the stack of bios of potential wives for him to choose from. He’d been dragging his feet long enough. The time had come. It wasn’t just his mother who was pushing for him to move into the role of king. It was the cabinet too. And, truth be told, he’d been allowed his freedom to be young and a bit adventurous. Now, it was time for him to assume his responsibilities. Even if marrying for duty wasn’t something he relished.
He stared blindly down at the papers on his desk. “Thanks. But I have a lot of work to catch up on.”
He’d used the excuse of urgent business to cancel his daily meetings with Bianca. Though he really did have pressing matters, he needed the time and distance to regain a certain level of detachment where the alluring wedding planner was concerned.
“You’re sure? You and Bianca seem to enjoy each other’s company.”
His sister was right, but he wasn’t going to encourage her. “I’ll catch up on the wedding plans this evening.”
Now that Bianca had had a chance to settle in, it was time she filled him in on the progress with the wedding. If there were problems, he wanted them addressed straight away. Nothing would ruin this event for his sister.