“Here we are.” He gestured to the large room. “This will be our bedroom.”
She noticed the king-sized bed with the white sheets and blue blanket thrown over it in case they were cold. Anna massaged her temples and walked firmly in the other direction of the suite, headed toward the balcony. The sun had already set so there was only moonlight without city lights to illuminate, and she wanted to get the view. She waved for him to join her. “There are a few things I’d like to talk about. Join me on the balcony?”
“What’s going on?” He took a seat at the metal breakfast table outside.
She glanced down. If she fell from here, she’d surely die. There was probably half a mile to the ocean from this balcony.
Anna had always liked heights as it made her feel somehow a small part of a huge world. The visual reminder made her sigh. She turned toward Leo and then settled into the seat opposite him, folding her hands in front of her. “We don’t know each other.”
He tilted his head. “We’ve known each other for a year.”
Fair. But that was as boss and employee. She fetched his coffee, knew how to run his business interests, knew how to pay off women, and not just Francesca. Francesca had been last, but earlier in the year there had been Pavel, and when she’d first started working in the castle, Shannon. Leo dated women he knew would never be an acceptable choice as the future queen and she assumed it was his way of annoying his parents, like how she’d not done her history homework mostly to rebel against expectations.
Either way, unlike her, he clearly got around. She sat straighter. “Not as a couple. We have never been romantic.”
He scooted his chair closer toward her and pressed his hand briefly against her knee. “That will come now that we are married.”
She inched her leg away and shook her head. Without looking at him, she took a deep breath and said, “Look, I’m not ready to share a bedroom with you, Leo.”
He kept both hands on the table, his expression one of surprise. “Why? You married me.”
She checked her wedding ring and spun it in a circle as she nodded and met his stare. His brown eyes were hypnotic and if she was… more experienced, then she’d handle this differently. Her face felt hot and she probably was blushing. “I did. But I want us to get to know each other… before… before everything is consummated.”
He reached out and hooked his pinky with hers. “What’s the matter?”
She sat up and pulled her hand back. Her ring felt like it burned into her but she ignored the sensation as she lifted her chin. “You were just in Francesca’s bed. I paid her off. I don’t want to be a rebound.”
His cheeks tinted crimson but he said, “That’s impossible. We’re married.”
She pressed her palms into the mesh table top and denied the spark that raced through her from a simple touch. How was that even possible? “I get it, but I need time… to adjust.”
He massaged his chin while he studied her. She twirled the huge diamond on her finger. He finally said, “You swear this isn’t forever?”
She let out a small sigh of relief as she realized that he would agree. “I’m hoping we get to know each other and like each other… romantically.”
He gave her an almost tender smile like they were still working together on an office project near to his heart. “Anna, my mother was right. You will be an excellent queen.”
The office. The office didn’t equal romance, and her pulse spiked in warning. Heat rose up her neck to her face. “What does that mean, Your… Leo?”
He brought his chair beside her and their shoulders touched. “It means you’ll get what you want.”
She was glad that he wouldn’t expect sex tonight. She wasn’t just a number in his bed, but his wife. “Perfect.”
“But I’d like to negotiate some terms.” He leaned closer.
The air around her was now warmer and smelled like his almond aftershave she’d bought him. “Like what?”
He motioned toward the open door and the large bed inside. “Like this bedroom. I can’t have servants reporting anything… unusual.”
Fair. She hadn’t thought about anyone else but them. She fixed the diamond to be straight and stopped fiddling with the band. “So you want to share the bedroom, though you agree no sex?”
“I’ll sleep beside you without touching you.”
“How about the couch?”
“You drive a hard bargain, Anna.” He brushed their shoulders together and his nearness made her crave something she couldn’t describe while he said, “Yes. I’ll take the couch.”
Her gaze narrowed with suspicion but she didn’t pull away from his side. “Have you ever slept on a couch?”
