After a very long and not restful sleep, Leo woke up to the sound of a rooster crowing. He lifted his head slightly to glance over at the small clock on the wall.

Six-thirty.

He let his breath out slowly as he lowered his head back down. From the corner of his eye, he could see Marianna. She was turned toward him. Her hands were resting by her chin. Her eyes were closed, and her eyelashes sprawled across her cheeks.

He couldn't help but allow his gaze to slip down to her lips. Her full, pink lips. Memories of kissing her filled his mind. It had done something to him. Stirred a feeling inside of him that he hadn't felt for any other girl. And, oh, how he wanted to do it again.

Her dark hair fell across her cheek, and before he knew what he was doing, he reached up and brushed it back. His fingers touched her skin, and zaps of electricity raced up his arm.

She was beautiful, and there was no way he was going to be able to walk away from her at the end of all of this. The way he felt about her was one of those once-in-a-lifetime feelings. The kind that changes you and never lets you go.

He swallowed against the lump that had formed in his throat. What was he going to do now? He squeezed his eyes shut, willing his mind to stop obsessing like a school boy.

Once-in-a-life-time feeling? Was he an idiot? Princes weren't given that kind of luxury. And since he was on the fast track to losing his inheritance, how did he think he could take care of Marianna?

She deserved everything, and he couldn’t give her anything. He needed to keep himself distanced from her. It was to keep her safe. That idiot doctor had already broken her heart, and Leo had promised to help her get over him. Dragging Marianna into his mess of a situation was far from keeping that promise.

She shifted, causing Leo to squint over at her. She was waking up. Her eyes fluttered open. Out of curiosity, Leo kept his lids closed just enough to pretend that he was sleeping but open enough that he could see what she was doing.

Her brow furrowed as she studied him. His skin heated as she ran her gaze over his face. What was she thinking?

Then, she leaned next to him, resting her head inches from his face. She was getting closer to him. Did he dare hope what that might mean?

Paralyzed, he laid there. She let out a small sigh and closed her eyes again.

His heart pounded so hard, he was certain Bernardo could hear it through the walls. Why couldn't he get a grip on his emotions? Having had enough of lying there and trying to interpret her actions, he stretched and yawned—making sure to stay far enough away so she couldn't smell his morning breath.

He pretended to wake up, taking note of the fact that she still pretended to be asleep. He slipped off the bed and tiptoed into the bathroom, where he shut the door and turned on the shower.

Fifteen minutes later he emerged out of the water feeling refreshed. His mind had cleared and all the ridiculous thoughts that he'd allowed to linger were pushed to the very back corner of his mind, where he locked them in a vault.

He couldn't allow them back out. Not if he was going to stay sane.

He opened the door with a towel wrapped around his waist. In his haste to get to the bathroom, he'd forgotten a change of clothes.

His heart sped up as his gaze landed on Marianna. She was sitting up in the bed with her knees brought up and her gaze trained outside of the window. The morning light shone across her skin, illuminating her. Her dark hair fell in waves, framing her face and cascading down her shoulders.

He needed to leave. Right now.

Her gaze made its way over to him, and her eyes widened. His skin burned as she lingered on his chest and then stomach. Her cheeks hinted pink as she pinched her lips together and met his gaze again.

She said everything through that look. Everything that they had been fighting not to say to each other for the last few days. His muscles burned as he fought the urge to cross the room and gather her up, kissing her like a man who loves a woman should.

She tucked a curl behind her ear. "Sleep well?" she asked.

He cleared his throat and nodded—nervous that if he spoke, his voice would expose his thoughts. "Yeah. You?"

She chuckled. The sound was melodious and delicate—just like her. "You snore."

He scoffed. That was not what he was expecting her to say. "I'm sorry," he said as he crossed the room and grabbed his suitcase.

She shrugged. "It's no big deal. I just hit you a few times, and you rolled over." She threaded her fingers together and stretched her arms. "It wasn't anything I couldn't handle."

He twisted his head, cracking his neck. "That's why I feel like I've been in a fight. You were manhandling me in my sleep."

Her gaze slipped down to his chest. As if she suddenly realized she was staring, she reached up and rubbed her neck with her hand.

"Yeah. That's totally me."

He studied her, not sure what to say. What words does one put together to mean, I'm sorry I promised that I wouldn't like you, but my feelings have gotten away from me, and I can't help but feel things for you that I never thought I would for anyone, without actually saying those words?

He grabbed his clothes from the suitcase and disappeared into the bathroom. Avoidance seemed like the best solution here. It kept her safe. And himself? Well, it kept him from opening his heart only to have it crushed.

Once he was dressed, he left the bathroom. Marianna hadn't moved from the bed. She glanced over at him, and his heart squeezed. There was a pain in her gaze that was affecting him, physically. But before he allowed himself to get lost in it, he nodded at her and headed to the bedroom door.

"I'm starving. I'll go find Bernardo and get us some food." He pulled open the door and stepped out into the hallway. When he was safely out of her presence, he leaned against the wall and took a deep breath. They were getting too close. Way too close. He needed to back away. Right now.

"Have a good night?" Bernardo's voice pulled Leo from his thoughts.

He righted his head and glanced down at him. Bernardo was wearing a sun hat and overalls. His smile wrinkled his weathered skin.

Leo nodded, but that felt like a lie, so he just shrugged. "Yeah. It was decent."

"It's not like the castle accommodations," Bernardo said.

"Yeah." Leo stopped. What did Bernardo just say?

There was a twinkle to Bernardo's gaze that made Leo feel like an idiot. Of course Bernardo knew who he was. How could he even think he'd be able to hide out in his own country. Perhaps, he'd just been so desperate to get away that he'd allowed himself to think he was invisible.

He now realized how stupid that sounded. "You knew?"

Bernardo tapped his nose and smiled. "It's hard not to when your face is plastered across every magazine." Bernardo waved at him as he stepped past Leo. "Come with me, and we will get you some food."

Grateful for Bernardo's hospitality, Leo followed him into a modest kitchen. Bernardo pulled out a carton of eggs from the fridge and motioned toward the stove.

"Grab a pan from the bottom drawer."

Leo glanced around and saw a drawer just under the oven door. He pulled it open and found a cast iron pan. He grabbed it out and set it on the grate on the stovetop. "Now what?"

Bernardo laughed. "We need to heat it up."

That had something to do with the burners. Leo knew that much. But cooking wasn't something the crown prince was expected to learn how to do. He glanced down at the black dials and studied them.

"Turn the gas on and grab a match. They're on the shelf there." Bernardo had grabbed some seasonings from a cabinet and was lining them up.

Leo turned the dial to light and then grabbed the matches. A foul smell began to fill the air as he pulled down the bag.

Bernardo was to his side in a second, flipping the dial to off. "Un momento," he said, holding up his finger. "You will explode this place if you light a match now."

Leo widened his eyes as he glanced around. After a few minutes, the air cleared, and Bernardo took the matches from him. "I will do it," he said, motioning for Leo to step back.

Leo obeyed, and soon the burner was lit and the pan was warming up. Feeling like an idiot, Leo glanced around. He wanted to help, but he’d almost destroyed Bernardo's home. How did he think he could ever run a country? It would be better if Ermes did it.

"Crack the eggs into the bowl," Bernardo said, nodding toward the bowl that he'd placed in front of the seasonings.

That was something he couldn't screw up, so Leo walked over to the counter and grabbed an egg. Just as he moved to tap the egg on the side of the bowl, Marianna's voice made him jump.

"Can I help?" she asked.

His body heated from her proximity. She was standing just behind him, peeking over his shoulder. She smelled clean, like coconut and lavender. Her damp hair had been pulled back into a bun at the nape of her neck. And she had on a simple dress. Light blue, accentuating the color of her eyes and her fair skin.

He swallowed, stepping to the side. Just as he did, the egg slipped from his fingers and crashed into the bowl, sending bits of eggshell flying everywhere.

Marianna giggled and moved closer to him. The skin of her arm brushed against his as she peered into the bowl. "We should probably get those out. We wouldn't want crunchy eggs." She reached over and ran some water over her finger. "Watch and learn," she said, lowering her eyelids in a flirtatious way.

Leo's emotions caught in his throat. He attempted to clear them. This was exactly why he'd left their room this morning. It was too confusing—too intoxicating—to be this close to her.

She dipped her finger into the egg and removed a bit of shell triumphantly. She held it up for him to inspect. "Now you," she said, nodding toward the bowl.

"Okay," he said, grateful for the distraction. He needed to focus on something other than her gaze and the way it seemed to pierce his soul.

He reached his finger into the bowl, but then the warmth of Marianna's fingers surrounded his wrist. He glanced over at her to see her studying where their hands touched. As if she was feeling the same reaction.

She glanced up at him and smiled. "Water first."

He nodded, shifting his arm away from her and over to the water. After flipping it on, he ran his finger under it. Once his skin was damp, she motioned toward the bowl. After a few attempts, he was about ready to give up. She giggled and grabbed his wrist again. "Let me help."

She dipped his hand down into the gooey egg mixture and led him over to a piece of shell. She pressed his finger against it and slid his hand up the side of the bowl. When she brought his hand up, she smiled over at him. "You got it," she said.

Even though it seemed so simple, his heart pounded in his chest. She was close. So close. And all of his attempts to push her away were for naught.

He shook his hand out over the garbage and stepped to the side. "You do this so much better. I'll go set the table."

He nodded at Bernardo as he walked by. Not sure where he was going, he picked a doorway and went through it. Thankfully, a small table sat in the middle of the room. He walked over to the china hutch and opened the doors, pulling out plates and setting them on the tabletop.

He flexed his hand as his gaze made its way over to the kitchen. He could hear Bernardo and Marianna's voices as they talked. The soft tones of her voice filled his mind and drove his desire to walk back into that room, take her in his arms, and dip her down so that he could press his lips against hers. Show her exactly how she drove him crazy.

He was in trouble.