Page 108 of Royal Icing

“Even better.”

Her body, which had just gotten used to Eastern Standard Time again, had no idea what time it was. She was simultaneously exhausted yet wired, ready to tackle this challenge.

Leading a public outrage against the royal family was definitely not going to score her any points with Leo’s parents. But if he didn’t care, then neither did she.

“Hopefully that will be enough to take care of the ski resort problem.”

“And the money?”

“You need to call an emergency town hall meeting. Today. All the business owners. Everyone from the library. Your congressperson—or whatever elected officials are called here.”

“And then what?”

“We have the biggest fundraiser this country’s ever seen. An auction, bake sale, karaoke contest, holiday pet parade, storefront decoration contest, gift wrapping, ugly sweater contest, ornament decorating. As many low-cost ideas as possible, as quickly as possible.”

“It sounds like we’ll need a lot of volunteers.” His tone was unsure.

She reached between the seats and squeezed his arm. “People are going to show up for you.”

The truck rumbled to life, and he squared his shoulders. “One last try.”

“One last try,” Emma agreed.

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

LEO

“You moved in already?”Emma leaned forward to peer out the windshield.

Tendrils of red crept up from the horizon as he pulled into his parking space.

Leo nodded. “The landlords agreed to let me move in early and gave me a line of credit until the first. One of the perks of being part of the royal family, I guess.”

“That’s a big step,” she said.

“It’s very small. But it’s nice to have my own place,” he said, staring off into the distance. “I’ll be staying with Sal and Callum, so you’ll have a bit more room. The dogs alone will take up the whole floor plan. You might have to sleep in the bathtub.”

He had a sudden vivid mental picture of her in the bathtub, which did not help him focus on the matter at hand.

She laughed and clambered out with the dogs. “We’re not afraid of small spaces,” she said. “Thank you.”

Smoke drifted up from the chimney, and a small electric candle flickered in the window. Hopefully it would be comfortable enough for them.

Leo ushered them inside. A chorus of mews greeted them, and Emma stopped in her tracks.

“When did you have time to get…four cats?”

Ah, bollocks. He had forgotten to tell her about the fosters.

The chubbiest of the lot, an orange kitten he had nicknamed Marmalade, clawed his way up his pantleg until he sat on Leo’s shoulder. “Sorry, I forgot to mention it. I’m just fostering them,” he explained. “The resident cat at their previous foster home couldn’t tolerate them, and the shelter was out of space. You aren’t allergic?”

“No,” Emma said, holding one finger out for the smallest one—Dahlia—to sniff. “I love them. I’m just surprised.”

The mama kitty had immediately claimed Lisa’s lap, and the last kitten was booping noses with Cooper.

The apartment was small, charmingly out of date, and sparsely decorated with the only furniture he could ferret away from his suite in the castle—a bed, a couch, and a French press.

Lisa had ignored Emma’s protests about jet lag and insisted on a nap before Leo’s promised tour, so he and Emma left her in the company of the animals and strolled the still-empty streets.