Page 75 of Once Upon A Royal Christmas
“But it was yours.” Nick’s grip on her hands tightened. “I want you to have it.”
“It’s okay, really. With all the publicity from the trip, business is booming back home. Clara is convinced we’ll have bank officers lined up, waiting to fund our expansion. With all the events we’ve got coming up now, I don’t think we’ll even need a loan to give our princesses benefits. All because of you.”
He shook his head. “Not me. Us.”
Nick’s eyes grew soft, heavy-lidded. Gracie had to concentrate hard on simply breathing in and out, and when she did, she inhaled the lingering aroma of cinnamon rolls. Sticky sweet, with just a hint of oranges and cardamom. It was a fragrance she’d associated with Christmas all her life, but even more than that, it was the scent of home.
In a flash, so quick that Gracie almost missed it, Nick’s gaze flitted upward. She glanced overhead and drew in a sharp breath.
Just like all the other stone archways in the chalet, this one was decorated with a small sprig of mistletoe. It hung from a red velvet ribbon like a timeless promise.
Gracie let her eyes drift back down until they met Nick’s.
The corner of his lips quirked up. When he smiled at her, a question shone in his eyes. “They say it’s tradition.”
“Then I suppose we don’t really have a choice,” Gracie said, her voice dipping low and sweet. Barely a whisper.
Then he leaned forward and ever so gently touched his lips to hers, and Gracie saw stars. They exploded behind her eyes like tiny, crystalline snowflakes. She took a deep gulp of air to steady herself, but the heady scent of the cinnamon rolls was overwhelming. She’d come so far, only to find that San Glacera and Prince Nick—her prince—were beginning to feel like home, like the place she belonged more than anywhere else on earth.
And that’s when she knew it was time to say goodbye.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The Trouble With Mistletoe
“I can’t do this, Nick.”
It broke Gracie’s heart to say it. She’d thought she could protect herself by ending things right here and now. She’d thought she could spare herself the awful feeling of being rejected. But somehow, choosing to be the one to say goodbye felt far more painful than she could’ve imagined.
“I just… I can’t.” She stood up, promptly hitting her head on the stone archway above the alcove.
“Gracie? Are you okay?” Nick reached for her, but then drew his hands back as if she’d suddenly changed the rules on him, which she supposed she had.
She stood in the center of the kitchen, away from their cozy little hideaway, wrapping her arms around herself. A shiver ran up and down her spine. She felt so cold all of a sudden, like she was standing on a snowy mountaintop without a thing to keep her safe and warm.
Nick dipped his head and stepped out of the stone nook. The mistletoe swayed behind him as he tucked his hands in his pockets and faced her. He didn’t talk for a long while, instead choosing to give her the time and space to articulate her feelings.
“I don’t live here,” she finally blurted.
“I know that,” Nick said quietly.
She threw her arms in the air. “And you’re a prince.”
“I know that too.” He nodded with a calm that drove her nuts.
Was he really going to stand there and make her connect the dots for him?
“So.” She cocked her head, as if that single word was a complete sentence.
“So. I have feelings for you, Gracie. I don’t care about the rest. We can figure all of that out, just like we’ve been doing everything else all week.” He gave her the tiniest shrug imaginable. “Together.”
No. No, no, no. She couldn’t let him distract her like this, no matter how wildly her heart started beating in her chest the moment he’d said he had feelings for her.
“Please don’t say that.” She shook her head. “Please, Nick.”
His eyes flashed, even as his body remained perfectly still. It was the first hint that she’d managed to crack his regal composure. “Why not? It’s true.”
“Well, it might be true, but it’s not…sustainable.” Sustainable? Really? Was she giving a speech at a climate control conference or trying to break up with a prince?
