EVER AFTER – LILY
Packing up the farmhouse at Rosie’s Blooms is… bittersweet.
Cathartic, in some ways, but at other times so overwhelming, I have to abandon the boxes and go sit with the flowers. Serenading them, as I like to think of it, although I’ve come to accept that I’m the one in need of musical therapy, and less so the tone-deaf sunflowers.
By the time we’re done, the sun has slipped into the southern pastures, summer fading to fall.
Aunt Maggie has visited from New York a few times, but it’s part of the agreement with Rosie that she won’t officially move in until we’ve left.
Seeing someone else living on the farm – even if they’re family – still makes me too raw, so Rosie and Doc are staying back to help her settle in.
Logan is already in the process of selling his house, but the guys have offered Rosie the use of Willow Manor when we’re not in Knotty Falls.
Leo was excited to think his old friend, Joey the Wrench, will have company, but from the flicker of unease on Rosie’s face, I have a feeling they’ll be spending most of their time on the road, or at Doc’s small apartment.
I’m not sure if Maggie’s magic beans will breathe new life into the farm, but she’s not complaining about the publicity Tristan’s ad campaign is already bringing to Rosie’s Blooms. Della got his goddess of the hunt moment, and while I’m not sure my face will ever grace a billboard – or the Super Bowl, for that matter – the money has gone into an account for Lily's Horse Rest & Refuge, when I eventually get that off the ground.
My first project, though, has been planting a rose bed with Ellis’ mom.
Catherine, it turns out, has quite a green thumb, and while there are more hard days than good ones, she happily splits her time between the stables with Leo and tending the new plants with me.
It’s so good for Ellis to see his mom with a sparkle in her eyes, even though we both suspect that Zander might have a bit to do with putting it there.
Especially when he bought her a stunning white stallion for her birthday, an almost exact replica of Spirit Shadow, the horse she used to ride on Lady Vet.
Our official moving day is coordinated by Otley’s team, although, for the past week he’s been busy with a business deal that kept him in San Francisco.
While I can sense him through the bond – and he checks in via video a few times a day - I’m twitching for his scent, for that gaze that never wavers and hasn't mellowed an inch in three months.
To my surprise, Leo also seems on edge as we head to the ranch, his brow furrowed for most of the trip.
We’ve put a lot of miles on the new Airstream over the summer, although Leo’s first pick for travel is always the pack’s private jet.
Ellis has taken him on a few mini vacations, always in the company of security, and never anywhere that their fame will put Leo in harm’s way.
Their last trip was to watch the Giants in San Francisco.
Leo came home with stars in his eyes, since Carl Becker was out with an injury and joined them in a private box to watch the game.
If I thought he loved baseball before, the only time I can part him from his glove is in the bath and that’s only because Carl had it signed by the whole team.
But the sparkle goes out of his eyes as we pull up to the house. Bobby and George are just riding in from a morning of ranch work, and when they wave, Leo slumps down on the bench seat, staring glumly at the table. The other guys are all close by, and we look at Leo in concern.
“What's up, bud?” Tristan asks, always tuned in to Leo's moods. “Have you and Bobby had a falling out?”
I sincerely hope not, since he’s enrolled to start at a private school with Bobby in a couple of weeks.
It’s a big change for both of them, given that it’s exclusively for the children of public figures and those with enough influence to sway the selection board.
The curriculum is flexible, the teachers first rate, and the campus is in a beautiful canyon only a half hour from the ranch.
Up until now, I thought the boys were treating the new school as an adventure they’d get to experience together.
“Not Bobby,” Leo grumbles, gnawing on a nail. “It’s George.”
He spits the name like it tastes sour, and we all exchange bewildered glances. Leo is wearing a cowboy belt buckle George gave him for his birthday, and he’s spent so much time with the ranch manager over the summer, he’s taken to calling him G, much to my exasperation.
“Hey,” I nudge him, bobbing down and pushing his hair off his brow. “Is this about the reporters?”
Before Leo went on his first trip with Ellis, we told him about the media storm that was shadowing our every move.
Roberta’s article had just come out, and while it helped clear up some of speculation, Ellis’ legion of fans fell in love with our story and was hungry for more.
Leo, to my surprise, took it all in stride, letting it slip that Cody had already sent him a reel of the juiciest rumors, including a meme of Kaysie tossing a chocolate sundae on a nosy reporter.
“It’s not that,” he puffs, jutting out his chin. “I’m starting a new school real soon, and if you’re gonna change my name, then I should have a say.”
“You mean Percy?” We won’t have an official pack name until our bonding ceremony next year, and even then, it will only be for official purposes.
“Noooo,” he sighs, rubbing the back of his neck before looking up at me with hot cheeks. “I need to know if you’re gonna date George.”
He says it so fast, I blink, and while I can hear the other guys sniggering behind me, I keep my gaze firmly planted on my son. “No. Never. George is a friend and won’t ever be more. But what makes you ask that, hun?”
He studies me for a moment, eyes narrowed but hopeful. “You swear?”
I throw up my hands. “George is great, but he’s not for me.”
I glance up at the guys, looking for inspiration, but Leo suddenly pops to his feet, snatching up his baseball mitt and giving me a dimpled grin. “Then I’m gonna go see Moondance.”
“Wait up!” I grab his arm before he can make his exit. “Can you tell me what just happened, please? What is all this about?”
“My name,” he repeats as he twitches from foot to foot. “No one’s gonna take me seriously at that school with a name like Lego.”
“Lego? What the heck are you talking about?”
“Logan. Ellis. George. Otley. LEGO.”
I slap my hand on the table. “Oh, my God.”
“But if you’re gonna mess up my name, can we work out something for Tristan? He deserves a letter as much as the rest of my dads.” He beams at my sweetest mate, while he fist bumps Logan and gives Ellis a high five on the way out of the trailer.
“Sometimes I forget he just hit double digits,” Ellis muses, “and then he comes out with something like that.”
“You can’t really blame him,” Tristan laughs, nudging his way under Ellis’ arm. “And here’s my son,” he says in a deep voice that probably won’t ever pass for our mate’s. “Lego Castle, a chip off the old block.”
Logan snorts. “Yeah, those weird kid names might fly in Hollywood, but not so much in Eagle County.”
I just shake my head, but as the other guys head out of the trailer, I pull Logan aside. “You’re sure about this?” I nod out the window, indicating the ranch, but he knows I mean more than that. “I still feel bad about dragging you away from your dream.”
He clucks his tongue, tucking a curl under the baseball cap Leo brought me back from San Francisco.
“I could be corny and point out that you’re my dream, but there’s no comparison.
The gym was a way to give myself a goal and put a roof over our heads.
Besides, I’m not giving it up altogether.
The guys are coming in as part-investors, and if it takes off, they can buy me out.
In the meantime, Ellis has hired me as his bootcamp instructor.
” A slightly sadistic grin splits his face.
“Not sure he knows what he’s signed up for, but it’ll be fun watching him find out. ”
I swat his arm. “Don’t break him. I like him just as he is.”
Especially since he’s decided to give acting a break for a while and try his hand as a film director.
He’s been talking to Becca, Otley’s public relations expert, ever since Tahlia was run out of LA after her role in the media storm came to light.
Becca has connected him with some independent film producers in Denver, and they’re looking to start a project together in the spring.
“No promises on going easy,” Logan grins, his hand drifting down to squeeze my butt. “But I’m open to bribes, just so you know.”
I give him an arch look. “I’d check the fine print on the employment contract Otley drew up. I’m pretty sure breaking Ellis is off limits, even for a mate.”
Logan huffs, but I can see the humor lurking in his eyes. “That guy needs to loosen his tie a little.” He leans forward, his arms caging me against the counter and his lips hovering over mine. “Unless he’s using it on you, of course.”
I groan, so tempted to kiss that smirk off his face I can feel my toes curling in my boots. “Which reminds me,” I murmur, husky with arousal, “if I don’t scoot, I’m going to be late for my meeting!”
I duck under his arm, smirking at the way he adjusts his jeans as I dash out the door.
As soon as the butterscotch air hits me, I take a hungry gulp, my eyes roaming over the view.
We’ve only been gone a couple of weeks, but I shiver with excitement to be home.
I’m tempted to stop by and see Tomorrow’s Roses, but the pull towards the house is too strong to ignore.
I love my horse to bits, but seeing my mate is a primal need that leaves me breathless by the time I reach his office.