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His father shrugged. “If it gets you settled? Yes.”
“No,” he gritted out, tired of this same argument they’d had a million times. A million and one, now. “I’m not getting married. Not yet. I need to focus on this country and learning how to run it. I don’t need anything else distracting me.”
“And yet you still wish to court Alicia?”
Leo barely refrained from rolling his eyes at his father’s outdated term for what he felt for Alicia. “I like her, and I enjoy spending time with her, and want to be her friend. That’s all.”
Well, that wasn’t all.
Every time he talked to her, or saw her, or even thought of her, the desire he felt for her grew more and more insistent. If he wasn’t careful, it would consume him. He’d love to get her in his bed again and see all the ways she’d changed underneath those tantalizing dresses and loose, flowing shirts she always wore. If he regretted anything, it was that it had been too dark to see a damn thing in that hallway.
If he had it to do all over again…
“Then think of what made her like you, and vice versa, and then recreate it,” his father said, interrupting his thoughts. “And after you try again, bring her to me. I wish to dine with both of you tonight.”
“I don’t know if she’ll come,” Leo warned.
“She’ll come. Just tell her I requested to see her…” He pointed a shaking finger at him. His face was ashen, almost gray, and he looked exhausted. “After you do something romantic intended to win her over, that is.”
Leo hesitated, but really, what did he have to lose?
She already hated him, so he might as well try. And he’d agree to pretty much anything his father asked, as long as it got him in bed. “All right. I’ll do my best, but only if you go take a nap while I’m out being ‘romantic.’”
The older man shook his head. “I’m not tired.”
“I don’t care. You nap, or I don’t try harder.” He paused a beat. “And I don’t meet that other princess tomorrow, the one that you slipped into my schedule without telling me, even though you’re clearly pushing for Princess Genevieve.”
Holding his hands up, his father winced. “Very well, then. I’ll nap.”
“Good.” Leo pulled him in for a tight hug, clapping him on the back. “Have you heard back yet from the former head of communications about those letters Alicia received?” Leo asked him.
“No.” King Henry frowned, his face going even more ashen. “Not yet. But don’t worry, we’ll find out what really happened, soon enough, I’m sure.”
He forced a smile. “Thanks, Dad.”
His father stepped forward and winced, pressing a hand to his chest. Leo started to reach out to help him steady himself, but the stony stare he shot his way stopped him. “I’m fine. Stop worrying about me and go get your girl instead. I’m not getting any younger, you know. And I’d like to hold a grandchild in my arms before I die, whether it’s through a princess or an American.”
Despite his worry, Leo rolled his eyes. “I’m not marrying Alicia, Dad.”
“We’ll see, son,” he said, grinning. When he smiled, his blue eyes sparkled, and he looked younger than his sixty-three years. “Now, do something that would impress me. Make this forced nap worth it, or you’ll answer to me.”
As he left, Leo picked up the phone and made a quick call. It was just after five in the evening, so it was a bit of a stretch to pull off what he planned at this hour. When he was done, he left his office, and as he climbed the stairs, he nodded at servants and workers who he passed, smiling at each one in turn and greeting them by name. His father taught him at a young age to learn a man or woman’s name and never forget it, because a man who couldn’t remember his employee’s names was not a man worthy of running a country.
It was a lesson he’d never forgotten.
As he approached Alicia’s door for the second time in as many days, he knocked immediately. The door swung open. This time, when she saw it was him, she didn’t slam the door in his face. She didn’t look happy to see him, either, but still.
Progress.
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“What now?” she asked, frowning.
“We’re going out, that’s what.”
She stood straighter. Despite her casually disinterested expression, he saw the flare of excitement in her eyes before she hid it. Just like he saw the way she checked out his body, her cheeks flushing delicately as she looked at him again. “Where are you taking me?”
“You’ll see when we get there.”
