CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT – LILY
The next week passes in a haze of perfect summer mornings and sweet star-filled nights.
The only cloud on the horizon is the lingering media storm, although when Roberta sends through the transcript from the interview, it’s surprisingly sympathetic.
Otley passes the article outline on to his legal team, and the next day, his investigators confirm that the initial leak came from Tahlia, Ellis’ ex-agent.
She’s quickly slapped with a suit for slander and malice against a public figure, and in less than an hour she drops her own legal case and sends Ellis a long, rambling letter of apology.
The face he pulls as he forwards it to the lawyers, unanswered, sends a bolt of spite-filled joy through me.
With that off my mind, I let myself indulge in everything the ranch has to offer, swimming, riding, and hiking until my calves grow hard as rocks and new freckles pop on my cheeks.
Breakfasts are held out on the deck and dinners around the formal dining table, but the hours in between meander along like one of the creeks snaking through the hills.
Otley and Tristan have to spend a couple of hours each day on their work projects, but Ellis and Logan insist they’re footloose and fancy free.
Most of our activities revolve around the lake and stables, so I’m not surprised when Ellis takes me aside and asks me to ride with him to the old homestead.
It's in the far corner of the ranch, and a place I’ve only seen on the property map.
Tomorrow’s Roses is more than happy to go exploring, and we ride hard for nearly an hour before the house comes into view.
It’s a long, rustic log cabin reinforced with stone, and sits beside a barn with a new red roof covered in solar panels.
Ellis informs me that the road leading to the highway is just over the rise, making it the fastest way in and out of the ranch.
It has its own water source with a bunch of creeks running into a wide, gleaming river, and even at a glance, I can tell the property has been recently renovated.
“Are you thinking of renting it out?” I ask as we walk the horses over to the barn. Ellis’ horse is a large bay thoroughbred called Happy Days, and he doesn’t just move beneath him like they’re part of the same animal, they also share the same sunny, affectionate disposition.
But when Ellis jumps down to open the large double doors, I can smell his nervousness over the scent of fresh hay and the tang of leather. “Not exactly. Do you want to lay out the picnic while I see to the horses?”
I nod, grabbing the blanket and saddlebags and walking over to a huge oak tree on the riverbank.
The mountain bluebirds are chirping, and butterflies are dancing in the wildflowers sprouting in the brush.
It’s a ridiculously pretty view, and I sigh with pleasure as I roll out the blanket and start unloading the supplies.
Everything is packed in sturdy travel containers, and I smile as I catch a whiff of dark, rich cherries.
Ellis comes over a few minutes later, brushing his hair out of his eyes and smiling at the spread. “Lexington’s to the rescue again.”
“I don’t think so.” I tap my fingers on one of the containers. “Those pinwheels are definitely Otley’s recipe.”
Ellis looks puzzled as he lowers himself to the blanket beside me. “Ot’s? What do you mean?”
“Oops.” I wince as I pop the lid and hold out one of the cheesy snacks. “I think he wanted to tell you himself. He’s been taking cooking classes remotely. That’s how he prepared all the food for book club.”
“Seriously? I thought it was just shipped to him, ready to heat.”
I pluck a miniature pie from another container and take an appreciative sniff. “Nope. This is definitely his.”
Ellis leans forward, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. “Cherry pie? So, he’s not just sneaking around the kitchen, he’s trying to horn in on my date.”
I laugh and pop the pie in my mouth, groaning in delight. “I think cooking is his happy place. And if it tastes this good, I’m all for encouraging him.”
Ellis snorts, grabbing a pie and dropping onto an elbow so that he’s looking up at me through his inky lashes. “And what about you? Do you think this could be your happy place, Lily?”
We’re sitting close enough that I can see the flecks of gold in his green eyes, and the way his pulse is beating fast at the base of his throat.
The moment feels a lot heavier than a picnic on a riverbank, and I reach down to brush a finger over his cheekbone.
His skin feels like silk, and I’m not surprised that his face has won him a legion of fans across the world.
“It’s perfect, Ellis. To be honest, I wouldn't change a thing about this ranch.” I flick a piece of grass at him.
“And the people living on it aren’t too bad, either. ”
His lashes flutter, and when he captures my wrist, he presses his lips to my own erratic pulse. In all of the daydreams and fantasies I spun about him over the years, I never let myself believe that I could end up somewhere like here, with him looking at me like this. “Ellis…”
“Lily.” My name is a groan I feel all the way to my toes.
I don’t wait for him to pull me down, stretching my body over his until our hearts are beating in tandem.
I’m wearing a bandana with dancing ducks on it, and he smiles as he gently tucks my hair beneath the fabric.
After a gallop across the ranch, it’s a lost cause, but I love the feel of his hands on me too much to stop him.
“Sometimes I’d wake up in the middle of the night,” I murmur, watching his mouth, “and I’d think I was back in that hotel room in LA. It was dark, but I could hear your breathing, and I knew if I reached out, you’d be right there. Do you know how hard it was to wake up after nights like that?”
“I’m sorry.” His lips crimp, his throat working hard. “If I could go back -.”
I press a finger to his mouth, silencing the regrets and the what ifs. I know he’ll always have them, but they’re part of our past, not our future. “Things worked out pretty well in the end, don’t you think?”
Light filters through the trees and he squints as it falls on his face, illuminating his smile. “I don’t want to cue the credits just yet.”
“Me either,” I murmur, pressing my mouth to his curved lips. His happiness tastes like cherry pie and tomorrows, and I don’t stop kissing him until I’ve had my fill.
“Damn,” he murmurs when I finally pull back, an echo of my hunger in his eyes. “I want to lie here forever and let Lily Percy ravish me.”
“Ravish you?”
“You seen From Here to Eternity? We could roll around on this riverbank like Burt Lancaster and Deborah Kerr.”
I narrow my eyes at him. “Wasn’t that a beach scene?”
He heaves a sigh. “I’m prepared to move the earth for you, sweetheart, but a beach in Colorado is probably beyond my reach.”
“Then I guess we’ll just have to make do with this riverbank.”
He smirks, and we make out some more, rolling from one kiss to the next like we’re charting each other’s mouths.
His hands stroke the warm skin under my shirt, while I nibble at his jaw, and thread my fingers through his hair.
It’s lazy and indulgent, but there’s an urgency building inside me, and I’m not surprised those old-time actors ended up rolling around in the surf.
Just the thought of Ellis in a pair of tight black swim trunks is enough to ignite a burning hunger under my skin.
When it's his turn to pull back, he pushes to his feet, and I give a disapproving whimper. “I swear, you scramble my brains every time you look in my direction.” He grins as he holds his hand out to me, and as much as I don’t like the interruption, I’m glad his lips are now swollen by my ravishing ways.
“Come on, there’s something I want to show you, hot stuff. ”
“Hot stuff?” I huff as he pulls me upright. “If it’s a bunch of haybales, I can promise you, I’ve seen them before.”
He steers me towards the house, and when I raise my brows at him, I realize he’s back to being nervous.
I bite my lip as he opens the door, and the interior is as snug and sturdy as it looked from a distance.
But instead of opening into a living room, it’s some kind of reception area, along with a hand-carved desk and leather chairs around a small meeting table.
The floorboards and roof beams are all a glossy, golden wood, and there are picture frames on the wall, gleaming in the light of a rustic chandelier.
I take a step closer, my mouth falling open when I recognise the horses in the photographs.
Moondance and Tomorrow’s Roses are both there, but Hercules is staring back at me from the third frame, looking impossibly regal. “Ellis?”
“Tristan,” he says softly, pressing something into my hand. “He used his magic on that photograph in the farm office.” I nod, my throat tight, but my breath disappears altogether when I look down at the wooden plaque in my hands. “It goes on the reception desk there, if you want it to.”
I watch my hand tremble around the glossy piece of wood, the words dancing before my eyes: Lily's Horse Rest & Refuge. “What is this, Ellis?”
He cups the back of his neck, his words rushing out in a gush.
“If it’s not obvious, I want this for you.
Your dream. And I guess it’s a courting present, in a way.
Not that I’m going to take it back if you decide I’m too much trouble.
But if you want to make a life here, then this piece of land is yours.
The house, the barn, and whatever else you need to make it work.
Ot even had a separate deed written up.”
“A horse rescue?” I don’t know if I sound terrified or overjoyed, because both emotions are bubbling inside me. “But I don’t know anything about it, really. I mean, it’s just a dream….”