Page 11 of Trapped with the Undercover Prince

Marc cleared his throat. “I’m going to sleep for a few hours.” He nodded at them again. “Sir, Mademoiselle.” He crossed the room, went through a doorway, and closed the door.

Anna didn’t allow his departure to distract her from the question she needed to ask Zar, because his answer was important. “What do you think?”

“I think that is what we strive for as a society, but we often fall short.” Zar’s gaze heated as he stepped closer and cupped her cheek. “I also think you’re generous, selfless, and wonderful.”

A wave of heat rolled up her face. It would be so easy to let the sensuous wave warming her wash away rational thought and wallow in sensation “I wasn’t talking about me.”

“I am.” He stroked his thumb across her bottom lip. “You’re also,” he said, his voice low and husky now, “very beautiful.”

Her lips tightened a fraction. Could his admiration be actually genuine, or was this a demonstration of European manners? “Have you considered glasses? I’m exhausted, I’m not wearing any makeup, and I’m not magazine-cover slim.”

His smile was crooked. “Beautiful,” he said with certainty a second before he kissed her again. This time there was no hesitation. He gathered her up, held her close, and kissed her like they had all the time in the world. His hands slid across her back. One pulled her hair out of its not-so-tidy bun, while the other stroked and petted her from her neck to her butt.

He pulled back as he played his hand through her mass of long curls. “So beautiful.” His expression was lit with adoration. What was she supposed to do with that? The spike of uncertainty cleared some of the haze of pleasure from her mind.

She wasn’t...

He was too...

She must have made a noise because he met her gaze, sighed, then kissed her forehead, her cheek, her ear, and on down her neck, all while whispering, “Shh, don’t worry, my beautiful one, ma belle. I won’t hurt you. I promise.”

There were so many ways she could be wounded, so many wounds she had yet to recover from.

She shivered, but didn’t try to push out of his arms. He kept kissing her and whispering how much he admired her, how intelligent she was, how kind.

Eventually, she relaxed enough that he just held her close.

“I’m sorry, I overwhelmed you, yes?”

Okay, yes, he was hot, but he also knew very well how attractive he was. She was tempted to knock some wind out of his sails, but another yawn hijacked her.

The energy to mess with him wasn’t in her. “I’m so tired I can’t process anything more, especially something as unexpected as you making a pass at me.”

He paused. “I apologize. Perhaps the lack of sleep has affected my manners,” he said, his gaze as warm and sensuous as ever, but there was a note of humor in it as well.

He stepped back, held out a hand, and asked with a mischievous gleam in his eyes, “Would you, Dr. Anna, sleep with me?”

That surprised a laugh out of her. He wasn’t shy, this policeman. “And by sleep, you mean...?”

“Rest, recover, rejuvenate.” There was something in his posture that made her believe he was safe. Was he making a pass at her?

This was a first. “Are you a cuddler?” she asked.

“I very much want to cuddle you.” His voice was a purr. It soothed those hurts deep inside her that sometimes kept her from sleep.

Her panic from earlier dissolved away, leaving only delight in its wake. “That sounds...nice. Yes, please.” She put her hand in his.

Grinning, he tugged at her, picked up her bag from where he set it on the floor, and led her to another open doorway. He closed and locked the door behind him.

“Shall I put your bag in the bathroom?” he asked.

She followed his gaze to a door at the other end of the room. “Sure, thank you.”

The bedroom was huge, with a sofa and chairs placed in a comfortable sitting area off to the side of a king-sized bed. She walked into the bathroom, saw an absolutely massive footed tub, and groaned out loud.

“Anna?” Zar asked from the bedroom. “Everything okay?”

“No, everything isn’t okay. I want to spend a week swimming in this tub.”

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