Page 71 of That Prince is Mine
“And if I’d been wearing my crown—if I had been Prince Michel—I don’t know if I would’ve sent over those madeleines and paid for your check.” When she sat hesitant and torn, he reached over and took her hand. “The only reason I had the courage to do that was because I was just Michel Chevalier.”
“With or without the crown, you will never be just anything.” She didn’t pull her hand away. “The Michel I know is kind, generous, and funny. He’s someone who finds joy in the simplest things. Someone who is good down to his bones. The Michel I know is a wonderful man.”
“That is all I ever wanted.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, then gently cupped her cheek. “I wanted you to see me—want me—for the man I am without my crown interfering.”
“I see you.” Emma leaned into his touch. She was still angry with him, but it was imperative that he understood he was more than his title. He was wanted for who he was. He was enough. “I want you.”
“Thank you,” he said huskily, and pressed his forehead against hers. “I’m sorry I deceived you. I know it was wrong of me, no matter my reasons.”
“You bet it was wrong of you.” She drew away from him. “I don’t like secrets and half-truths, Michel. Promise me you won’t lie to me again.”
“I promise.” His warm brown eyes were open and vulnerable. “Never again.”
She felt the last of her anger melt away. But she crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. It wouldn’t hurt for him to grovel a little more.
“Do you forgive me, darling Emma?” She melted a little at the endearment. It made her feel cherished. She ducked her chin because she couldn’t hold on to her frown for obvious reasons. He came to kneel at her feet to hold her gaze. “Please?”
Oh, what the hell.
“Yes.” Her heart fluttered like a silly thing. “I forgive you.”
With a smile like starlight streaking across his face, Michel lunged forward until his lips were a mere whisper away from hers. “May I kiss you?”
“So polite,” she teased breathlessly. “Kiss me alrea—”
He closed the gap between their lips before she could finish her sentence. Emma couldn’t say she minded at all. She had questions—so many—but they could wait. For now, this kiss was enough. They were together, and that meant… everything.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
“Here’s the game plan,” Emma said on their drive over to her godmother’s place. “Jeremy is infuriating at times but undeniably charming. His fiancé, Steven, is supposed to be an absolute sweetheart according to my infuriating but charming godbrother. So they’ll be double-teaming to charm the hell out of Auntie Soo.”
“Mm-hmm.” Michel nodded so he appeared to be paying full attention to the words coming out of her mouth—instead of remembering how that mouth had been wrapped around his cock just an hour ago. “I see.”
“All we have to do is deflect most of the attention to them and quietly coast through dinner.” Her eyes narrowed as she studied his face. “Michel, are you listening?”
“Absolutely.” He pinched his chin and pursed his lips to show how invested he was in the game plan. Sophie scoffed in the driver’s seat. He ignored her.
Emma’s makeup was immaculate, and there wasn’t a single strand of hair out of place. She did not look like a woman who’d been thoroughly ravished three times in the course of one afternoon. She presented this perfectly put-together version of herself to the rest of the world, but he got to see her completely undone. He loved that.
“I can barely see any brown left in your eyes.” She leaned close and whispered in his ear, “You’re either very turned on by our game plan or your mind is elsewhere.”
“The game plan is extremely scintillating.” He trailed the tip of his nose down her cheek and breathed in her intoxicating scent where her neck curved into her shoulders. When she shivered, he met her gaze with a cocky grin. “And don’t worry. I’m well versed in dealing with even the most difficult people with utmost diplomacy. I doubt your godmother is an exception.”
“Oh, you poor, poor man.” Emma shook her head with a sad pout. God, he wanted to kiss that pouty mouth of hers. But he’d promised not to ruin her makeup. “My godmother will eat you alive if you don’t go in prepared.”
His royal bodyguard covered her laugh with a cough. She and Emma shared a grin through the rearview mirror.
“You have my attention.” He felt a frisson of alarm run down his spine. “What should I do?”
“Auntie Soo is shrewd and doesn’t miss a thing, but there are two ways you could soften her up,” Emma said, all business. “One, she’s a Korean mom, which means she loves feeding people, so make sure you eat well. No nibbling. Full plates and big bites.”
“I can do that.” He was starving, actually. He’d ordered room service for their lunch, but they got too distracted to eat much of it. And they had expended quite a bit of energy in their non-lunch-related activities.
“Two, my godmother loves me. Whenever you feel cornered, change the subject to wax poetic about my many virtues.”
“That also won’t be difficult. Gabriel will be the first to tell you how very accomplished I am at singing your praises. Although…” He arched an eyebrow and lowered his voice. “I’m not sure virtuous is the adjective I would use to describe you.”
Her dimple flashed with wicked depth by her mouth. “I doubt you’ll earn many points from Auntie Soo by listing all the ways I’m a bad, bad girl.”
