Page 41 of Lily and the Billionaire Prince

“Easy. We pay her extra to help your favorite ones make their way to Einvar. The others we find new homes.” Henrik splayed his hands before her. “Yes?” he said when she didn’t respond.

Lily released a reluctant laugh. “Okay, fair enough. What about my job? What if I go with you, but it doesn’t work out between us, and I lose my position with Mr. Elir?”

“You enjoy my company, yes?”

“Yes, but—”

“And I know how you kiss me.” His voice dropped. “We have passion, you can’t deny that. You are attracted to me, and I have a harder and harder time keeping my distance from you. In fact, we just might scandalize the flight attendants and other passengers during the entire flight.”

Her cheeks turned an adorable pink.

He went on. “I fully intend to continue testing the depth of that passion between us in a variety of circumstances.”

She chewed her lip while color heightened in her cheeks.

“What else does a relationship need?” he asked.

She dropped her smile and met his gaze. “How about honesty?”

He touched a hand to his chest in false affrontery. “I have been nothing but honest with you, my lady.”

Rather than continue to banter, she stared at the linoleum. “I mean me. I haven’t been honest with you.”

Overhead, the announcement came that the flight to Sweden was boarding in ten minutes. The ticket he’d purchased for her could be scanned from Henrik’s phone easily enough, which was nestled in his pocket. Henrik stroked her arm. He couldn’t fathom what she could be lying to him about—especially since she was apparently being honest about her dishonesty.

“Have you committed a crime?” he asked.

She shook her head.

“Robbed a bank?”

Another shake.

“Kidnapped a small child? Gone to jail for plagiarizing important documents? Stolen someone’s identity and used their credit card to purchase lewd magazine subscriptions?”

Each of his suggestions only heightened the becoming flush of her cheeks and made her fight harder against a smile.

“No,” she said, rolling her eyes.

“Are you already married?” he said by way of suggestion, hoping this wasn’t it.

“No.” She gave him a playful tap. “Nothing like that.”

“Then is it really so bad to keep you from living the rest of your life with me?”

Her eyes met his, and he noted the conflict within them. What could she possibly be so worried about? If only she knew she could confide in him. Part of him considered the money he’d given her when they’d first met. Did her reservations have anything to do with the man who’d demanded such an amount from her?

“I just don’t want you to regret me,” she said.

He drew in a full breath. “Not possible. You keep kissing me with the same abandon you had Christmas Eve, and I’ll never regret a moment of you.” He brushed his lips softly against her cheek. She shivered in response and twisted her mouth into a delicious pout that pulled him in like catnip. He gave in, pressed a full kiss to her mouth, enraptured by her response to him, and kept his forehead to hers.

“There’s more to a relationship than attraction and kissing,” she said.

“We have whatever else that is,” he said, sure that whatever other important factors she was referring to, they could work it out. He’d spent days with her and enjoyed her conversation, he’d found her ideas gripping and captivating, and he’d wanted only her company, even when he’d consented to meet other women. “Do it. Come with me to Einvar. See the palace. See if it is a life you might want.”

“And if I don’t?”

“Then you come back to the U.S.”

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