A Princess By Christmas. Jennifer Faye

had a hard time attracting people to The Willows and now she was having to turn away this obviously affluent guest because of a clerical error.

      She really did feel bad for him. Then a thought occurred to her. The least she should do was help this man locate some other reasonable accommodations.

      Armed with the check and her address book, she returned to the foyer. Upon finding her mother and Mr. DeLuca conversing in lowered voices, she paused by the staircase. Neither of them seemed to notice her presence. What in the world was her mother saying that was so engrossing? The man rocked back on his heels and laughed. The sound was deep and rich.

      When she stepped off the carpeted runner and onto the dark, polished wood floor, her boots made a sound. Both her mother and Mr. DeLuca turned her way. Reese’s hold on the sizable check tightened. It was best to get this over with quickly.

      The man caught her gaze with his deep blue eyes. She was struck by their vibrant color, but beyond that they told her nothing of the man’s thoughts. Talk about a poker face. What sort of things did this international hunk keep hidden from the rest of the world? And what twist of fate had brought him to her doorstep?

      The rise of his brows had her averting her gaze, but not before her pulse spiked, causing her heart to flutter. Why was she so intrigued by this stranger? So what if he came from another land and had the sexiest way of rolling his Rs? He was still just a guy and she wouldn’t let herself want something that she knew could never be. Her attention needed to remain on the mansion and keeping it afloat.

      “Ah, there’s my daughter.” Her mother leaned toward Mr. DeLuca as though they were old friends. “I’m sure she’ll have cleared everything up for you. It was nice to meet you. I hope we can talk again.” Her mother’s eyes twinkled as a mischievous grin played across her lips.

      Once they were alone, Reese pulled her shoulders back. “Mr. DeLuca, I’ve verified your reservation and I must apologize for the inconvenience this has caused you. My mother made a mistake when she gave you the reservation. She didn’t realize that we already had a prior commitment.”

      The man remained silent, not appearing the least bit interested in helping her out of this awkward situation. She held out the hefty check, but he didn’t make any attempt to accept it.

      “This is the full amount you paid. I double-checked.” When he still didn’t move, she added, “The check will cover your full deposit.”

      “I don’t want it.”

      “What? Of course you do. That’s a lot of money.”

      Tired of playing word games, she stepped up to him and stuffed the check in his hand. For the second time in less than an hour, his touch caused a jolt of awareness to shock her nerve endings.

      Her gaze lifted and she noticed his eyes were bloodshot, as though he’d been up all night. Then she noticed the lines bracketing his eyes and the dark shadow of beard trailing down his squared jaw. She was tempted to reach up and run her fingertips over the stubble.

      She clamped her hands together. “If you’d like, I have the phone numbers of other facilities around the city that might be able to accommodate your party—”

      “That won’t be necessary,” he said firmly. “I am staying here as arranged.”

      “But—”

      “There are no more buts. I am staying.” He pressed the check back into her hand. “And don’t tell me again that there is no room. Your mother informed me otherwise.”

      “She did what?”

      He sent her a knowing smile. “She told me there’s a bedroom available. It’s in some private apartment until one of the guest rooms opens up.”

      What in the world had gotten into her mother? Sure, she used to be impulsive back before the disaster with Reese’s father, but since then she’d been so reserved, so quiet. Now she was getting active in the inn, which was great, but why in the world was she handing out her daughter’s bedroom to this total stranger?

      Reese shook her head, trying to dispel the image of this tall, dark, smooth-talking stranger in her bed. “She shouldn’t have done that, not without talking to me.”

      His voice softened. “She seemed certain you wouldn’t mind. After all, it’s only until the other guests check out.”

      “But that’s days away. They aren’t leaving until Monday.” And the apartment was so small that they’d be bumping into each other, day and...night. She swallowed hard.

      At that moment, approaching footsteps sounded on the stairs. Relieved at the interruption, Reese turned away. Sandy, in her blue-and-white maid’s uniform, descended the steps with her dark brown ponytail swinging back and forth. The young woman’s eyes lit up when they landed on their latest guest. It would appear that being left in the lurch by the father of her child wasn’t enough to make Sandy immune to Mr. DeLuca’s charming smile.

      “Do you need something, Sandy?” Reese asked, hoping the girl would quit openly ogling the man.

      Sandy came to a stop next to them. “I...uh...finished cleaning all of the rooms.” She tore her gaze from Mr. DeLuca and turned to Reese. “Do you need anything else today? I don’t mind staying longer.”

      “Thanks. But we’re good. Enjoy your evening off.”

      “Um...sure. Thank you.” Sandy almost tripped over her own feet as she kept glancing over her shoulder at Mr. DeLuca.

      Reese turned back to him, refusing to let his tanned features, mesmerizing blue gaze and engaging smile turn her into a starstruck teenager. “Where were we?”

      “We had just resolved my accommodations until the wedding party checks out. Now, if you’ll show me to my room.”

      She pressed her lips firmly together, holding back her response until she gave it some thought. The truth was most women would probably stumble over themselves to have this hunk of a man sleep in their bed. But she wasn’t most women. Men couldn’t be trusted—no matter how well you thought you knew them.

      But this arrangement was all about business—nothing more. What was a few nights on their old, lumpy couch? As it was, she didn’t sleep all that much anymore. The concerns about meeting this month’s payroll on top of the loan payment kept her tossing and turning most nights.

      “I must warn you that the room is nothing special. In fact, it’s rather plain.”

      “Is it clean?”

      She nodded. The linens had just been changed that morning. “But I’m certain it won’t be up to the standards you’re used to or even the normal standards of The Willows. And...and—”

      “And what?”

      She shook her head. “Nothing important.”

      She couldn’t bring herself to let on that it bothered her to share her tiny apartment with him. And no matter how much she reminded herself that it was business, it still felt personal having him slide between her sheets and lay his head on her pillow. Her pulse picked up its pace. Her gaze strayed to his bare ring finger before she realized her actions and refocused on a nondescript spot just over his left shoulder.

      Maybe if he wasn’t drop-dead gorgeous she wouldn’t be overreacting. But for the first time since she’d started the inn, her hormones were standing up and taking a definite interest in a man. Not that he’d be interested in a college dropout like herself—even if quitting school hadn’t been a choice but rather a necessity.

      He looked pointedly at her. “If you have something else on your mind, you might as well get it out in the open now.”

      Heat crept up her neck as her fingers tightened around the check. No way was she confessing to her nonprofessional thoughts. “I was just concerned about where the rest of your party would be staying.”

      “There’s no one else coming. I am the only guest.”