Chapter 11
CHAPTER 11
G abe woke up to sun streaming in the window. He eased his arm out from under Genevieve's shoulder and crept quietly to the window. The world sparkled white as far as the eye could see. He smiled. We made it . Before too long, the road would be plowed, and they could get out of the cabin. He glanced at Genevieve. She looked peaceful, still curled up on her side. I’m no better than Tim . He’d led her to believe he was the owner of a shipping company. She had no idea that he was the Prince of Delnovia. Why didn’t I just tell her last night? I had the opportunity.
He padded to the kitchen and poured a glass of orange juice. He flicked the light switch for good measure but still no power. He wanted to tell her the truth . But will she believe me? And if she does, will she hate me for lying to her? The bedroom door opened. He turned to see her standing there with ruffled hair and sleepy eyes.
"Good morning." She yawned. "Looks like it stopped snowing."
"Good morning. I think we are in good shape. Looks like the storm wasn’t as bad as they thought. Now we just wait for the roads to clear, and the power to come back on.” He sipped his juice. “Did you sleep all right?"
She smiled shyly. “Very good." She blushed. "Thank you for last night. For listening and well... just being there."
He couldn’t make eye contact with her. I’m lying to her too. “You're welcome. I'm glad you trust me enough to tell me what happened."
She sat down on the sofa and wrapped a plaid throw around her. "I guess so much for coffee this morning, huh?"
He raised his glass of orange juice. "No coffee, but orange juice, if you want some."
“I would love some." He poured her a glass of the orange juice they’d squeezed the night before in preparation for the power being out. He handed her the glass and sat down beside her on the sofa. "I really enjoyed you being here. It would've been so lonely without you.” She smiled her radiant smile. His heart fluttered.
"I'm glad I was here, too." Genevieve looked at him with those big brown eyes, and Gabe leaned forward. His pulse beat in his ears. He touched her cheek; his thumb stroked the hollow of her neck. She tilted her head back, looking up at him with slightly parted lips. He hesitated only a moment before pressing his lips to hers. Kissing her felt easy, as if they’d done it a million times before. He ran his hands through her long dark hair and breathed in the smell of peaches from her shampoo. Pulling her closer, Gabe deepened the kiss, until she placed a hand on his chest and pulled back.
“That was a bit of a surprise." Genevieve smiled. "But a good surprise."
“Yes, a very good surprise.” He tried to clear his head. He took a deep breath. Now, if only I could tell her the truth without her hating me for lying. He took her hand in his. “Looks like we’ve got a while before we can go anywhere. How about I fix us a fancy breakfast of granola bars and apples?”
Genevieve laughed. “So fancy.” She squeezed his hand. “Sounds good. And after breakfast, if you’re really nice, I might let you challenge me to a rematch of gin rummy. You know, so you can redeem yourself.”
“Redeem myself?” He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. I think you may have cheated yesterday.”
She threw her hands up in the air. “Cheated? I didn’t even have to think about cheating because you are so bad at the game.”
Gabe smirked. “I just let you win. Trying to be a gentleman and all that.”
Genevieve’s face reddened. “If you let me win, I...” She stopped. “You are such a liar.” She swatted his arm. “Why don’t you fix my breakfast, and then we’ll see who wins again?”
She turned and walked back to the bedroom. She thinks I’m lying about a card game. What am I going to do when she finds out that I’m lying about who I am?