I Want You for Christmas: The Prince's Lost Princess - a Heartwarming Snow-Capped Holiday Romance Read Online Free PDF

shift, but the money was good, and it was nice to watch families enjoy their time together over a meal.
     
    Gaby nodded, squaring her shoulders and pasting her waitress smile on as she exited the kitchen and moved to greet the new party.
     
    “How many today…” she began, launching into her usual questions and stopping short.
     
    The man standing in the doorway wore a smart driver’s uniform under a clean black jacket. He stood straight and tall.
     
    “I’m here to pick up Gabriella Galtieri, miss,” he said, with a slight accent.
     
    Gaby’s heart fluttered, and she panicked. “I am Gaby Galtieri, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to accompany you. I have to stay here and work, you see—”
     
    “Oh no you don’t,” Rosalie said, sneaking up from behind and grasping her friend’s hand. “The restaurant will be just fine for a couple of days without you, Gaby. Go get your bag. I know you packed already.”
     
    Gaby stared down into her friend’s warm, blue-eyed gaze. Her own eyes were wild with repressed panic.
     
    Rosalie gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Go have an adventure, Gaby. Who knows how many you’ll get offered? Do you really want to regret not taking this chance?”
     
    Gaby hesitated, thinking. Then she threw her arms around her friend and held on tight.
     
    “If I’m murdered, I’m going to haunt you forever.”
     
    Rosalie scoffed. “You’re not getting murdered. If anything, you’ll gain a few pounds gorging on pasta and gelato. Now go!”
     
    Gaby grinned as she flew up the back stairs and grabbed her backpack. She had gotten her a passport a few years earlier when she’d considered a study abroad program during college, but had chickened out at the last minute. Rosalie was right—it was something she had regretted. This time she would take a chance, and see where it went.
     
    She threw off her apron and changed into a pair of jeans, a plaid shirt, and her coat. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, her parents were waiting for her. Her mother’s eyes were watery.
     
    “Have fun, baby girl, and look out for yourself, eh?” Gaby’s father said, wrapping her in a fierce hug. Gaby hugged him back just as tightly. She then hugged her mother, who was oddly stiff.
     
    “I want a phone call from you the minute you land, understood? Keep us posted so that we know you’re safe,” Gina said, her voice tight.
     
    “I will,” Gaby promised. She smiled, her eyes watering slightly; her mother seemed so tough on the outside, but Gaby knew she was filled with worry and love for her. She was one strong Italian mama.
     
    Heading back out to the dining area, Gaby hugged Rosalie one last time before nodding to the driver, and they headed out the door. The car that was waiting for her was a sleek black Mercedes.
     
    “This is our car?” Gaby asked, breathless.
     
    The driver nodded. “Yes, miss. May I take your bag?”
     
    Gaby handed the man her beaten old backpack, feeling inadequate as she slid into the soft leather seats in the back of the vehicle. Classical music played on the radio as the driver closed the car’s trunk and slid back into the driver’s seat, pulling away from the curb.
     
    The chauffeur drove in silence, and Gaby stared out the window as the car left Queens and headed towards Manhattan. Gaby assumed that they would be flying out of JFK, but the road for that airport passed them by as the driver continued onward. Gaby’s stomach clenched.
     
    “Where are we flying out of?” she asked, hoping against hope she hadn’t just gotten herself into a scary situation.
     
    “Teterboro, Miss.”
     
    “I’ve never heard of that airport,” she said, trying to sound calm.
     
    “It’s a private airport. Your accommodations are more than adequate, I assure you, Miss Galtieri.”
     
    Gaby pulled out her phone and immediately looked up Teterboro airport. To her surprise and relief, it was a real place. In fact, it was an airport designed solely