HE’D ALMOST KISSED the wedding planner.
And the only thing he regretted was that they’d been interrupted.
A hectic week had flown by since that very memorable moment and Bianca filled every nook and crevice of Leo’s thoughts. He sighed. He was playing with fire. He was supposed to be choosing a wife in order to announce his engagement after his sister’s wedding, not indulging in a fleeting desire. But, oh, what a desire.
“What are you smiling about?”
Immediately Leo cleared his facial expression. His sister stood in front of his desk studying him. How long had she been there? He’d been so caught up in his thoughts that he hadn’t heard her enter his office.
He leaned back in his chair. “Good morning, Giselle.”
“From the look on your face you must have had a good night too.”
He frowned at her, warning her off the subject. But his sister wasn’t good with warnings. She dared to tread where most people would veer away.
“If you must know, I worked late into the night. And it was a very successful meeting.”
Giselle crossed her arms. “If that’s what you need to tell yourself, then go ahead. But I think it was something far more personal that had you smiling.”
He cleared his throat. “Did you need something?”
“You didn’t show up at breakfast—”
“I was working.”
“And Bianca wondered where you might be.”
He leaned forward and straightened the papers on the desk. “I thought you would be working with her this morning and going over all of the relevant details for the wedding.”
“We are. I’m just waiting for her to grab her things and then we’re off.” He could feel her gaze on him the whole time she spoke. “I just stopped by to see if you would want to accompany us.”
His gaze moved to the stack of bios of potential wives for him to choose from. He’d been dragging his feet long enough. The time had come. It wasn’t just his mother who was pushing for him to move into the role of king. It was the cabinet too. And, truth be told, he’d been allowed his freedom to be young and a bit adventurous. Now, it was time for him to assume his responsibilities. Even if marrying for duty wasn’t something he relished.
He stared blindly down at the papers on his desk. “Thanks. But I have a lot of work to catch up on.”
He’d used the excuse of urgent business to cancel his daily meetings with Bianca. Though he really did have pressing matters, he needed the time and distance to regain a certain level of detachment where the alluring wedding planner was concerned.
“You’re sure? You and Bianca seem to enjoy each other’s company.”
His sister was right, but he wasn’t going to encourage her. “I’ll catch up on the wedding plans this evening.”
Now that Bianca had had a chance to settle in, it was time she filled him in on the progress with the wedding. If there were problems, he wanted them addressed straight away. Nothing would ruin this event for his sister.
Giselle turned to leave but then turned back to him. “How did you get Mother to go along with this plan?”
His gaze met hers. “It’s not for you to worry about. I told you I would work this out so that you could enjoy your wedding and I’ve done just that.”
Giselle rushed around the desk, wrapped her arms around him and pressed a feathery kiss to his cheek. “You really are a great brother. And someday I’ll pay you back for all you’ve done for me.”
“I didn’t do it for payback.”
Giselle pulled away. “I know. You did it because you love me.” She moved to the other side of the desk. “I’m your favorite sister.”
“You’re my only sister. Now go before I disown you.” He sent her a teasing smile.
She smiled back at him. “I’ll tell Bianca you’re sorry you were detained, but you’re eager to see her this evening—”
“Giselle—”
She scurried out of the office, giggling the whole time.
He shook his head. His sister had a good heart, but she could be relentless at times. He just hoped when he did pick a wife that she would be friends with his sister. It’d be nice to finally have some family harmony.
At last, he’d run out of excuses to resume his search for a wife. As the queen had reminded him that morning in the hallway, only six weeks remained until Giselle’s wedding followed by his official engagement announcement. And there was no way he would allow his mother to choose his wife. He inwardly shuddered at the thought.
He reached for the first bio on the rather large stack. As he started to read the page, he found himself comparing the woman to Bianca. He stopped, trying to clear Bianca’s beautiful image from his thoughts. He started to read again. This candidate’s photo had short hair unlike Bianca’s long hair—he stopped again. This was going to take a long, long time.
Was he avoiding her?
Had that moment of attraction unsettled him?
Those were the questions that snuck into Bianca’s thoughts as their dinner meetings had been cancelled night after night. She’d scarcely seen him since that moment in the gardens.
She tried to tell herself that he was a prince and therefore very busy. And that had worked the first day. But she couldn’t lie to herself any longer. Leo was avoiding her. It hurt.
And for that reason, Bianca had kept herself busy from first thing in the morning until she’d passed out from utter exhaustion late at night. Planning a national event was not for the faint of heart.
This morning, Giselle was giving her a tour of the cathedral. Its soaring arched roof was jaw-dropping. The stained-glass windows were stunning works of art. And the suspended lanterns were absolutely charming. This church would provide the most stunning backdrop for the wedding. Bianca made a list of items she’d like to address later, after she’d given them some thought.
At lunch in the nearby village, Bianca tried her best to catch everything Giselle said. However, the princess was the opposite of her brother. Where he was reserved and spoke only when he had something substantial to say, Giselle rambled on about this, that and another thing.
The princess was like a sunny ball of energy. And Bianca could easily imagine them being lifelong friends. Not that it was possible. When the wedding was completed, her time in Patazonia would also be completed.
But would Leo avoid her until then?
“What’s the matter?” Giselle asked as the chauffeured car whisked them back to the palace earlier than expected.
“Um...nothing.” Bianca lied. There was no way she was discussing Leo with his sister. If Giselle didn’t approve of the match, she would fire Bianca on the spot. And if she did like them together, she would just make the whole situation even more awkward.
“That frown on your face says you have something on your mind,” Giselle said. “You can talk to me.”
“I was just thinking about the wedding.” She needed a diversion. “You’ve told me what you want for the wedding and now I have to speak to your mother and her planner to find out what they expect.”
“Do you have to?” Giselle’s voice carried with it a slight whine.
“My goal is to give you the best day of your life. A day you can look back on and smile. If you’re fighting with your mother throughout the whole ordeal, you aren’t going to enjoy your big day and you definitely won’t want to remember it.”
“You’re right.” Giselle looked down at her skirt and picked a piece of lint from it. “You know, William and I have even talked about eloping. But please don’t tell my brother and certainly not my mother. She would explode and then lock me in the tower until the wedding.”
“My lips are sealed. But is that what you really want to do?”
Giselle shrugged her slim shoulders. “It’s better than fighting about everything, even down to the table linens.”
“Then it’s a good thing I’m here. You don’t have to fight anymore. I’ll be your go-between.”
“Thank you. I feel so much better with you here.” The car pulled to a stop at a side entrance to the palace. “Now, let’s get you back to your office.”
“That would be nice. I have so much to do.”
“And I believe someone will be waiting for you.”
Bianca’s heart raced with anticipation. She couldn’t wait. Her steps were quick through the maze of hallways until Giselle stopped outside the door. “I won’t keep you any longer.”
“Thank you for everything. I won’t let you down.”
“I know you won’t. I can see why my brother hired you on the spot.”
Bianca sent her a reassuring smile. “I’ll send you the questionnaire I use for the details of the ceremony. If you could get that back to me right away, it would be helpful.”
“I will.” Giselle took a few steps down the hallway before pausing and turning back. “You know this is the first time I’ve been truly excited about the wedding. I just know with you here it’s going to be extra special.”
Once Giselle was gone, Bianca opened the office door fully expecting to find Leo waiting for her. Instead, standing behind an oversized dark wood desk was a beautiful young woman.
“Hi.” The young woman straightened. “You must be Bianca.” She moved from behind the desk. “I’m Sylvie. I’m your assistant for the wedding.”
The young woman appeared to be about her age and she had the friendliest smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Sylvie. Have you ever arranged a wedding before?”
She nodded her head. “I work for a wedding planner in town. The prince—” just the mention of him had the young woman blushing “—hired me to help you.”
“I hope he didn’t take you away from anything important.”
Sylvie vehemently shook her head. And then with a perfectly serious expression, she said, “Nothing could be nearly as important as the royal wedding. I just can’t believe I was chosen over all of the other more experienced people.”
Bianca couldn’t help but smile at Sylvie’s sense of awe. “I’ll tell you a secret. I was surprised too when the prince hired me.”
“You were?”
Bianca nodded. “I’ve done a lot of big weddings but nothing this big and not on my own.”
“You aren’t alone. You’ve got me.”
“And together, you and I will give Giselle and her fiancé the wedding of the century.”
“Let’s do it.”
They sat down and went over what Bianca had sorted out so far. They made lists because nothing got done in Bianca’s world without detailed lists. Sometimes she even made lists of lists. But her curiosity of when she’d see Leo again was a constant distraction.