Page 35 of Lily and the Billionaire Prince

“I think we should go,” Ethan said.

Lily’s mind gradually shifted from the finality she’d decided on earlier. She couldn’t say she’d mind ending things on a better note than she had the last time she’d been home, especially if she was branching off to change her name and live in Europe.

“What about Henrik?” she asked.

“I told them I want to bring Charlotte and that you had a friend here too. They said they’re welcome to come. If—if that’s okay with you.” Ethan gestured a hand in Henrik’s direction.

Henrik straightened on his stool. He rested his wrist on the edge of the counter. “It is fine with me as long as they don’t broadcast that I’m coming. I don’t want this to turn into something it shouldn’t.”

“Like a news crew or something,” Lily added. At least there hadn’t been anyone covering the Christmas ball.

“I’ll make sure that’s not their intention. So, we go?”

Lily glanced to Henrik. He was her guest here, and if he truly wasn’t comfortable, she wouldn’t abandon him. “What do you think?”

“Do you want to go?” he asked her. Not Ethan. Just her.

Lily’s stomach squirmed. “I would like to. Yes. Would you like to come meet my parents?”

Either not realizing Ethan was watching them or not caring, Henrik’s hand slid to hers and he pressed a comforting gesture against her fingers. “I would love to.”

After a small, traditional Christmas moment where they exchanged gifts—Henrik loved the socks Lily gave him, and he had brought a pair of earrings for her and a platinum keychain for Ethan—the three of them readied themselves for the day.

Lily was a bundle of worries. She had already planned on dressing nicely for Christmas Day, but she was even more relieved she’d decided to bring a flowy white blouse with a bow tied across the waist and her nicest jeans. She spent extra time in the bathroom applying her makeup and curling her cherry red locks so they had the perfect tumble down her back. Remembering her moment in here with Henrik the night before might also have had something to do with her slow pace.

Her entire frame hummed. Every time she touched the counter or leaned against it, memory flooded, letting her relive the moments from last night, having Henrik’s mouth on hers, remembering how she’d leaned against the counter to keep herself stable and grounded because everything about him was topsy turvy. She wanted a kiss like that again. She wanted to get lost in him again just once more.

He kissed like she’d never experienced. Kissing Henrik was like an unplugged device finding its charge. He was live voltage, bringing every part of her to life as she never had been. He knew exactly how to hold her. His lips knew just how to move, teasing and taking and testing. His hands had just the right pressure, and she touched him back like he wasn’t real, like she couldn’t believe she could.

Being around him lifted her to somewhere higher than she currently stood. Could she accept him? Could she go off to Europe with him and become his bride? His princess?

Lily shook away the questions, not wanting to see the answers. She examined herself in the mirror. Was it just her imagination, or were her eyes brighter? Was her skin more luminous? Was this what happy looked like on her?

Henrik was one thing, but couple that with seeing her parents, and this day became less and less real as it went on. She hadn’t been able to get over the accepting way Mom and Dad had acted either. One of the reasons for their earlier fallout had been her failure to secure a celebrity as their company’s spokesman. What would they do when they realized the man she’d brought home was a prince?

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Henrik peered through the windows for a better look. Lily had said her parents were the toothpaste king, or rather, behind the King brand of toothpaste. This was how toothpaste manufacturing treated their owners? If so, they were not doing too badly. The estate was vast, with light-colored stones and varying rooflines settled at the end of a long drive.

The closer they arrived at the house, the more Lily clenched her hands into fists on her lap.

“Are you all right?” he asked, keeping his voice low so Ethan and Charlotte in the front seat couldn’t hear them.

Lily glanced at him. She was ravishing this morning, her lashes long and accentuating the brightness in her celery green eyes. Henrik could stare into those eyes for an eternity.

“I don’t know,” she said. “They were nice enough this morning, but the last time we talked—I mean,talked—things had been a little rough. Are you ready for some family drama?” She added a smile to the statement as if to lighten things.

Henrik waved her off. “You haven’t seen family drama until you meet my parents.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” she said.

Ethan pulled to a stop in front of the main entrance. Henrik exited, closed the car door, and rested his hand on its roof, staring at the grand, snow-covered estate sprawled out before him. Though Lily seemed unsettled, he was sure the afternoon would go well. Her parents wouldn’t invite her and Ethan home after all this time only to be cruel yet again. Not on Christmas.

Charlotte stood beside Ethan on the mat as he tapped the doorbell. A friendly chime rang, and then the door was opened, bringing with it a warm rush and the smell of ham and cinnamon. Henrik’s stomach grumbled in anticipation. Whatever they were preparing for lunch, he was ready.

While Henrik was on new ground, he didn’t take in the elegant settings, warm carpets, or sweeping staircase as much as he did Lily’s reaction to those settings. Was this her childhood home? She gazed around as though the room were laced with spikes rather than comforts. Henrik touched a soothing hand to the small of her back, and she jumped.

“It will be fine,” he leaned in to whisper and received the scent of her coconut shampoo in return. She lifted her eyes to his and he was pleased to find a small dose of relief in them. She reached for his hand and squeezed.

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