of them. “He’s in that store. Right there. Can you believe it? But his bodyguards aren’t letting people in.”
Noemi felt sorry for the guy. As the face of Cattaneo Jewels, she’d had her fair share of exposure to publicity, but the crowd of people forming around the store was extreme even to her. “And everyone is just standing around waiting for him to come out?”
The young woman gave her a look like she’d just grown a second head. “Well, yeah. Of course.”
Noemi nodded in understanding, even though she didn’t. Her arms ached from the weight of the bags. She continued to make her way to her car.
“Excuse me,” Noemi called out, finding it difficult to thread her way through the crowd.
A cheer rose in the crowd. Then the crowd rushed forward. At last, there was room to walk.
Thud!
Someone ploughed right into Noemi. She lurched forward. In an effort to keep herself upright, she lost her grip on the packages. They fell to the ground in a heap. Her arms waved to the side as she tried to steady herself. Suddenly there were strong hands reaching out, gripping her by the waist.
Once she’d regained her balance, she turned and found herself staring into intriguing hazel eyes. It was Max. Her heart lodged in her throat. What was he doing here? Waiting to see the prince?
“Noemi?” His eyes widened with surprise. And then a smile lifted his lips. “I’m sorry. I didn’t see you.”
He bent over and started to pick up all her bags. She hadn’t realized until then just how many packages there were, but Christmas was her favorite holiday. She had to make sure she bought something for everyone. Maybe more than one thing for everyone—especially her young nephew. It was going to be a difficult Christmas without her parents. And she felt driven to do everything possible to make the holiday bearable.
But right now, her thoughts centered around the father of her baby. And here she’d been thinking she would never see him again. She averted her gaze from him as she knelt down next to him. She scrambled to gather her packages.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
He scooped up most of the packages and straightened. “I was planning to go skiing.”
When she straightened, she had to lift her chin in order to look him in the eyes. And that was a dangerous thing to do because every time she gazed into his eyes, she forgot what she was about to say.
Just then a flash went off. And then another. And another.
“What’s going on?” She glanced around as everyone was looking at them. And then the lightbulb went on in her mind. “You.” Her gaze met his again. “You are the prince?”
His jaw flexed as his body stiffened. “Yes. I am Prince Maximilian Steiner-Wolf.”
Her mouth gaped. Realizing that everyone was watching them, she forced her mouth closed. How was this possible? Was she really that out of touch with reality that she’d missed the father of her baby was royalty?
She had so many questions for him, but they lodged in her throat. This wasn’t the time or the place to rehash the not-so-distant past.
“Come with me,” he said.
Not waiting for an answer, he took her hand and led her to a waiting black SUV. With the help of two men, they reached the vehicle without people stepping in their way.
She wasn’t sure it was wise being alone with him, not when he still filled her dreams, but it beat being in public where everyone was watching them and eavesdropping. Once inside, she turned to him. She needed answers. She needed to know why he’d kept his title from her. She needed to know so much.
“Not now,” he said as though reading her mind. Turning to the driver, he said, “Go.”
“My vehicle is back there,” Noemi said.
“Don’t worry. We’ll come back for it. Later.”
The driver, as though used to driving through crowds, safely maneuvered the SUV past the sprawling mass of people.
She turned to the window and stared blindly at the passing shops. This had to be some sort of dream. Perhaps she’d fallen back there and hit her head. Yes, she thought, grasping at straws. She’d hit her head and this was all a dream. Because there was no way that she was pregnant with a prince’s baby.
“Noemi?” Max’s voice cut through her thoughts.
She had absolutely no idea what he was asking her. She turned to him. “What?”
“I asked where you are staying.”
“Um...” She thought about returning to her vehicle and decided that Max was right. Later would be better to pick it up. “Take a left at the next intersection.”
His dark brows rose. “Those are private residences.”
She nodded. Her neighbors were some of the most prominent actors and actresses, athletes and notable figures in the world. Since she’d been coming here all her life, she took it all for granted. But now, seeing it from a stranger’s perspective, she realized that it might be impressive. But to a prince? Nah.
He was probably wondering why she lived in such an exclusive neighborhood. Apparently she wasn’t the only one in the dark. He didn’t recognize her even though her face had been plastered on every glamour magazine as well as television promos for a number of years.
She gave the driver directions to her family’s chalet. When they reached the gate to the exclusive community, she put her window down and assured the guard that it was okay to let them through.
“I’ve never been to this part of Mont Coeur,” Max said. “I’ve always preferred to have my accommodations close to the slopes.”
As they passed the large and impressive chalets, she noticed that most displayed Christmas decorations. Some sported a door wreath while others had a bit more. Normally their chalet was the most festive of them all—but not this year. Her father had always taken care of the outside decorations. However, this year Noemi had done it by herself and the twinkling lights weren’t quite as spectacular as prior years.
Her palms grew damp as her heart raced. She couldn’t relax, not with Max next to her. She didn’t know what made her more nervous—the fact that they’d spent the night together or the fact that the man she’d slept with was royalty. When Maria heard this, she was never going to believe it.
He longed to kiss her berry red lips.
The memory of their sweetness taunted him.
Max gave himself a mental jerk. Now that he’d found Noemi again, the last thing he wanted to do was scare her off. What were the chances of them running into each other again?
Slim.
Had she figured out his true identity and planned this reunion? Not possible. He hadn’t decided on coming to Mont Coeur until last night. Even then, he’d only told his trusted staff.
Max
