Page 73 of A Princess for Christmas

She was wearing a white nightgown. Of course she was. He swallowed a laugh as he assessed it. It went to her ankles, though it was sleeveless. It looked like something Anne of Green Gables would wear, or Laura Ingalls.

Or, you know, the princess of a small Alpine country he’d never heard of a week ago.

“What?” she asked urgently. “What’s wrong?”

Leo forced his face into submission. “Nothing.” Even he knew it wasn’t a good idea to laugh in a situation like this. And he wasn’t really laughingather. She was just so... herself. As much as he didn’t want to be, he was charmed. Really fucking charmed.

What the hell had he gotten himself into?

Marie smiled shyly and gestured him inside. The gown, which he was still examining, laced up the front like a giant shoelace, which suddenly brought to mind herotherwhite lace-up dress, the one she’d been wearing the day they met. An expanse of bare back. Creamy skin damp with sweat and painted with goose bumps.

A coil of desire twisted inside him, sudden and sharp.

Okay, this wasn’t going to be so hard, after all.

She led him toward a seating area near a roaring fire. “We need to do some paperwork, I’m afraid.”

Huh?

She sat on the sofa and picked up a sheaf of papers that had been lying on the coffee table. “I need you to sign an NDA.”

Oh, hell, no. “What?” Also: there went the coil of desire.

“A nondisclosure agreement.”

“Iknowwhat it is,” he said peevishly.

“It’s merely a formality. We have to do them in all sorts of situations.”

“No.”Fuck that.

“I beg your pardon?”

“Wedo them in all sorts of situations? Who is ‘we’?”

That seemed to trip her up. She opened her mouth and closed it again.

“Well, I’m not signing it.” Something was spiraling inside him again, but it wasn’t lust this time.

Marie looked at him for a long moment. The fire had turned the light in the room a warm orange. She was glowing. She was gorgeous.

And he waspissed. Did she know himat all?

“There’s no reason to take it personally.”

“A nondisclosure agreement starts from the principle that I’m going to sell you out in some way. How do I not take that personally?” He didn’t have a lot in this world, but he did have his pride. And he wasn’t giving it up so easily. Even for a princess.Especiallyfor a princess.

She followed. “You’re too honorable, Leo.”

Maybe so. If “too honorable” was even a thing. Regardless, a man had to hang on to what he had, and Leo didn’t have a hell of a lot. “You want me to fuck you like you’re a normal woman. Let me give you a little tip,Princess. I don’t normally sign NDAs before I hook up.”

She blinked. For a moment he felt bad, because she looked hurt.

But he was hurt, too.

He made an effort to gentle his tone, said, “Good night, Marie,” and left.

Leo set out while it was still dark the next morning, thankful that Gabby was occupied for the day.

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