Sweet Tannenbaum Read Free Page B

them that you married me for my money."
    "Why would a Von Rosen need to marry for money?"
    She tipped her head to the side as though considering. "Then perhaps for my very blue blood?"
    Prepossessed, confident Krystyna Rokiczana had been attractive and admirable. Silly, teasing Krystyna Rokiczana was absolutely devastating. If he were any younger, any less honorable, any less trained to self-restraint, he would already be wooing her in an attempt to take her in this very bed. "We should get some sleep. Leaving early may avoid unpleasantness in the morning."
    "True enough." She removed her shoes and rolled down her stockings as though his being in the room didn't bother her a whit. Soft, thin stockings. Fine wool? Silk? He couldn’t tell without staring. Or touching.
    He sat on the straight-backed chair to remove his boots.
    "Do you need help with those?"
    "It's not the easiest thing, but I can manage."
    "Don't be stubborn." She knelt in front of him and took hold of the boot he had started to work loose.
    "I don't want you to get your dress dirty."
    "Then do a better job of wiping your feet on the way in next time." She plucked the first boot off in a quarter the time it would have taken him to remove it himself. "I used to remove papa's boots. And of course Casimir's, when he was little." The second boot came off just as quickly. "See? All done. And I can dust myself off just fine."
    Watching her dust the flecks of dirt off her bodice as she knelt before him sent a dart of longing through him that he had never experienced before. Not lust, precisely, but a wanting that had a sweeter edge to it. The desire to kiss her made him ache.
    She seemed to sense him watching her and looked up. "What?
    He changed the direction of his thoughts by force of will. "Once you're in bed I can turn down the lantern."
    "Then turn around a moment so that I can take off my dress. It's far too heavy to sleep in."
    He bit back a groan and dutifully stood, turning his eyes to the wall.
    "Are you sleeping in the bed, too?" she asked.
    "No," he said, perhaps more sharply than he meant to. "In front of the door."
    "That can't be comfortable."
    "I've had worse."
    "Do you want the pillow or a blanket?"
    "Keep them. I'll be fine with the cloak." He heard the creak of rope supports. "You're in bed?"
    "Yes."
    "Good night then." He turned down the lantern before he could look at her in the bed. Before he could see her with her hair down, curled under the blankets to sleep. Yes, it would be a long, hard night, but not because he was sleeping on the floor.
     

Chapter Five
     
    Krystyna bit her lip and snuggled deeper under the covers. Good God, she had been  flirting  with Hans Von Rosen. She was lucky that he was as honorable as he seemed. But that tiny bit of playacting had taken her back to a time before her father had died, a time when her talent at playacting had very real, very profitable results. Her father had called her  królewna , princess , but she was so much more than that. She had been his right hand, planning coach robberies or, as papa liked to call it, saving the wealthy from their excess of wealth.
    Hans hadn't needed to tell her that the Von Rosens were wealthy. There had been a time when Krystyna might have known more about their holdings than Hans did himself. Even if she couldn't tell the difference between Hans and Henry on sight, she knew who they were. Knew what they were worth, or likely to be worth when they stood to inherit. Families like the Von Rosens were 'above our touch' as papa used to say. In other words, they weren't just rich, they were rich enough to shake out the woods of Silesia if they took offense to a robbery. But Krystyna had always dreamed that one day her family would be as rich as one of those. That one day she would be above others' touch.
    She tossed over onto her side. Then papa had been taken by the constables and charged with treason. Treason! They had beheaded him before any defense could be sought