Page 86

“I love you,” I tell him. “And I’ll be here when you get back.”
His eyes turn glassy, and he reaches up, palming the side of my face. “I love you too, Princess.”
He leans over and kisses me tenderly, his tongue licking across the seam of my lips, and I part them, giving him access. The kiss quickly becomes heated, both of us trying to show one another how much we love and want each other through our actions.
When kissing isn’t enough, Nate lifts me out of the tub and carries me over to the bed, where he makes love to me several times throughout the night, like we’re both trying to make up for the fact that he’s leaving tomorrow—only stopping long enough to eat the dinner he ordered. And it isn’t until we’re both satiated and we can barely move that he pulls me into him, and we fall asleep, skin to skin.
When I wake up in the morning, Nate’s side of the bed is empty, and I already miss him. There’s a note in his spot, and even though it doesn’t make up for him being gone, my heart hurts a little less because I know he’s going to miss me as much as I’ll miss him.
Princess,
I didn’t want to wake you since I know I wore you out last night. It was hard to leave this morning, but knowing that the quicker I get this done, the sooner I get to come home to you motivated me out of bed. Behave while I’m gone.
Love you.
Your Prince
chapter thirty
NATE
Eight days.
That’s how long I’ve been gone.
Without Paige.
Without kissing her, making love to her, feeling our baby kick inside her.
It was only supposed to be a quick visit, but then one thing turned into another, and the next thing I knew, I was on a plane to New York, and now, I’m in fucking Portofino, Italy.
“Fuck, where the hell is that tie?”
My phone rings, so I stop my search to answer it and smile when Paige’s face lights up the screen.
“Hey, is everything okay?” she asks, immediately noticing my anxiety.
“Yeah.” I scrub my hand over my face. “I have that dinner tonight, and I can’t find my blue tie.”
It’s my lucky tie. I made my first deal wearing it, so I wore it to another deal and then another. I’ve nevernotmade a deal while wearing that tie, but now, I’mgoing to have to because it’s not fucking here.
“This one?” Paige asks, holding up the tie.
“Yeah, that’s it.”
“It was in your other suitcase, nestled under your gray tie.”
“Thanks,” I say, “At least now, I can stop looking for it.”
Between living in the hotel and spending most nights—well, really all of them—at Paige’s, and still having a house in Dallas, it’s making it difficult to keep track of what I have and where.
I sigh heavily, and Paige’s brows narrow in concern.
“Sorry,” I say, forcing a smile. “Just a lot going on.”
She nods in understanding. “Traveling is part of your job. I get it. I miss you, but I get it.”
My phone dings with a reminder that I need to leave for dinner. “I have to go. I’ll call you when I get back to my hotel.”