Bianca nodded. “As per our agreement.”
He opened the door for her. She moved past him, leaving a wide berth between them.
“Good night,” she said.
“Till tomorrow.”
His words sent a wave of excitement fluttering through her chest. Was that some sort of promise of more delicious kisses to come?
She kept moving down the hallway, not trusting herself to slow down and have one last backward glance. Because she’d been listening for the door to close behind her and it hadn’t. Leo was standing there, watching her walk away.
It wasn’t until she turned the corner that she stopped for a moment to gather herself. Had that really happened? She touched a finger to her well-kissed lips. Oh, yes, it had.
The moment though sweet and spicy must be a thing of the past. It was a memory she would hold dear. But now that she could once again think straight, she knew the knock had been her saving grace. Because to have a fling with the prince was to risk her entire future, which had enough uncertainty already. It was best that it ended here.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
HE’D BARELY SLEPT.
And he had no appetite.
In the two weeks since that earth-shifting kiss, Leo had taken every precaution not to be alone with Bianca. What was wrong with him? He’d never had a woman get under his skin the way Bianca had done. When he was around her, he longed to pull her into his embrace.
And that’s exactly why they didn’t dine alone again. They’d had their business dinners in the village a few nights, another night he’d invited Giselle and William to accompany them. Yet another night they’d had a working dinner with Sylvie. He’d even considered dining with his mother just so they wouldn’t be alone, but he wasn’t quite that desperate—yet.
Now, he sat alone in his office with two stacks of paper in front of him. They were the bios of candidates for his future wife. He’d been through the pages countless times. With his sister’s wedding now only four weeks away, he had to get serious about his search. With a large portion of bios cast into the not-a-chance pile, it was time to meet the remaining women face-to-face.
A frown pulled at his lips. Why had he agreed to this? Oh, yes, so his mother would go along with his plan to let Bianca coordinate his sister’s wedding. And now he had to hold up his end of the agreement.
The task left a sour feeling in the pit of his stomach. No wonder he’d skipped breakfast. Who could eat when they had to pick a marriage partner from a stack of biographies of strangers? Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Some of the women he’d met on formal occasions. However, he hadn’t dated any of them. He knew if he were ever to indicate a liking for someone his mother deemed appropriate, he would be formally engaged by the end of the day.
Maybe that would have been better than sitting here playing Russian roulette with his future. But there was something he’d rather be doing. He’d rather see how the wedding plans were progressing. Judging by the glance he’d had at dinner of Bianca’s to-do list, she was hard at work.
He’d never met a person who ran their life by lists. He wouldn’t be surprised if Bianca had lists for her lists. He had a lot of things to do as the next King of Patazonia, but even he left room for the unexpected—for a chance to enjoy life. He wondered if Bianca ever let herself enjoy spontaneous moments.
“Sir, your lunch date is here,” Oscar said, standing in the open doorway of his office.
He checked the time. She was a half hour early. Normally he appreciated a visitor being prompt, even a few minutes early, but thirty minutes early. That was too much.
“Please tell Miss Ferrara that I?
??ll be with her shortly. I have a few things I must finish up.”
“Very well, sir.” Oscar nodded and then backed into the hallway and walked away.
He liked Oscar. The older man was very good about keeping his thoughts to himself, unless Leo pushed for an answer. Other than that, the man did what was asked of him without causing any problems. The queen could take a few lessons from him.
“What are you doing in here?” came a familiar voice from the hallway.
He glanced up as his mother strode into his office. She didn’t smile, but then again, she rarely smiled so that wasn’t unusual. But by the etched lines across her forehead, she did have something on her mind.
“Mother, this is where I work.”
“But you have a guest.”
He arched a brow. “How would you know?”
She sighed. “Leopold, I thought you’d realized I know everything that goes on within these palace walls. Just like I know you’ve been spending far too much time with that...that person.”