Page 25 of A Princess for Christmas

Goddammit. It was nearly quarter to one. He had to get up to Gabby’s school. He was cutting it close, but if he left right now, he’d be fine. Probably. Thankfully, Dani was on Toto chauffeur duty today, so he didn’t have to stop home first.

“Of course.” Marie pushed back from the table. Leo felt bad that she’d barely made a dent in her sandwich, so he hustled to the counter for a take-out container and boxed it up for her. Outside, he paused, trying to think what the most efficient way was to get her back to the hotel. Uber there, drop her, and then go back for his car? Or go to his car first?

His indecision must have betrayed his anxiousness, because she said, “I’ll get a cab from here.”

“No, you won’t.” It wasn’t her fault he’d gotten carried away rambling about Fitbits and age-inappropriate Halloween costumes. “Come on. The car’s on our way. I can drop you and probably still make it.”

“Probably?” she echoed. “No, thank you. You can’t miss this play.”

Her bossy tone was sweet but also a little irritating. “I won’t. Come on.”

Marie dug her heels in as Leo tried to take her arm to get them moving.

So much for sweet. In fact, she was back to radiating that entitled snootiness she’d been wrapped in when she first got into his cab. He rolled his eyes. “Listen, Princess McRolex, unless you want to attend an extremely amateur production ofThe Wizard of Ozin whichallthe actors are Munchkins, do me a favor and—”

“I do.”

Huh? “You do what?”

“I do want to attend an extremely amateur production ofThe Wizard of Ozin which all the actors are Munchkins.”

He hadn’t actually been inviting her. She must have realized that.

“I have no competing engagements, and it sounds like a delightfully normal way to spend the afternoon.”

He opened his mouth to argue, but closed it. Fuck it. It was easier to just take her. Faster. Plus Gabby would love it.

“Well, then.” He held out his arm and she took it. “We’re off to see the wizard.”

Chapter Five

They pulled up in front of the school with five minutes to spare. His phone rang—again—as he parked haphazardly.

“Hi,” he said, picking up Dani’s call as he held the passenger-side door for the princess. Dani had been calling for the past twenty minutes, but without a Bluetooth system in the rental, he hadn’t been able to pick up while driving. “I’m here, I’m here.”

“Okay, good. I was starting to fear you weren’t going to make it.”

“I’ll be there in two minutes.”

“I’ve saved you a seat. On the left about halfway back.”

He glanced at Marie, who was looking around like she was a tourist in Times Square instead of on an unremarkable street in the Bronx. “I need two seats.” He was met by silence, so he added, “I, uh, brought a guest.”

“Oh my god, you brought the princess of Eldovia, didn’t you?”

“I did not,” he said as he grabbed the very same princess and started towing her toward the entrance.

“Oh mygod!” Dani went on. “I can’t believe—”

He hung up, turned to Marie, and said, “Remember when you were running for the boat?”

She nodded.

“This is my version of running for the boat.”

And bless her, she nodded again, more vehemently this time, and took off ahead of him toward the door.

Inside, Leo spotted Dani right away. She was standing near the back—she must have moved from her original spot—guarding three chairs. The silver lining of their late arrival was that he didn’t have to do more than quickly introduce the two women before the lights went out. And even that he didn’t really have to do because after he’d said, “This is my friend, Daniela Martinez,” Marie preemptively stuck out her hand and said, “Marie Accola.”

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