Page 18 of His Forever Princess

"Maybe we should get some rest," he offered. "Tonight's been... a lot."

He was right. Of course he was.

But she hated the distance between them as they passed each other, brushing teeth and changing clothes in the bathroom, lying silently in the dark.

She was drifting off to sleep when she came awake with a realization.

He'd never actually said he believed her.

It took her much longer to fall asleep after that.

ChapterFive

"Are you warm enough?"

Alessandra glanced up from watching the sidewalk pass beneath her feet. Gideon was beside her, handsome in jeans and a dark coat over his T-shirt.

She was the only one who knew he'd strapped a shoulder holster beneath his clothing.

"I'm plenty warm." The air chilled her cheeks and neck, but she was bundled up. It was a few minutes before twilight, and the snow had moved off several days ago.

They'd come off the mountain to get supplies, to this quaint, tiny town with a Main Street that reminded her of an American sitcom from the nineteen-fifties. The brick-and-glass buildings were so different from the historical architecture in Glorvaird. And she loved it. There was even a small park ahead, in the town square.

"This way." Gideon guided her with a touch at the small of her back, but she balked at the shadowy indoor stairway between two storefronts.

Gideon was glancing both ways, reading the street around them, and didn't seem to notice.

When he moved forward, she reluctantly went with him. His arm came around her waist, as if they were teenagers who couldn't keep their hands off each other.

"Sorry to be overbearing," he murmured.

"You're not."

Things had been... strange between them these past few days. They hadn't spoken of Ronald again, but there'd been an openness, a hopefulness in the quiet moments spent together in the cabin.

Or maybe that was all on her side.

She didn't think so. Not when she caught the occasional thoughtful glance Gideon directed at her.

She'd been the one caught staring at his lips when she'd been curled up on the tiny sofa, supposed to be reading through the documents for Ambassador Cain. He hadn't kissed her again, but she couldn't stop thinking about his kiss.

At the top of the stairs, Gideon reached past her to pull open a heavy, metal door. He shielded her with his body momentarily. Then light streamed around them.

A familiar scent hit her. Books. A library.

"Thought maybe you'd want to check your emails."

A part of her was happy to stay in the little bubble they'd lived in for the past four days. Without the outside world pulling her in all directions, she'd been reminded of the quiet protector her husband was. The man who worked tirelessly without expecting thanks.

She hadn't asked for her phone, not after that first day. And a part of her hesitated even now as she stepped inside the public library. Once she opened her emails, the real world would demand her time and attention.

Things would change.

She didn't want the world to intrude. She hadn't found a way to say what she needed to say yet, to clear the air fully with Gideon. Because she couldn't see a way forward.

If she admitted she still loved him... then what? They'd tried and failed to keep their marriage together when they both had duties to attend to on different continents.

But there was no putting it off. She sat down at one of the six public computers. The machine was old and shaped like a box. How long would it take to load a browser-based email program?

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