Where She Belongs (Dennison Family in Big Sky #1)

Chapter 1

CHAPTER ONE

“I’m only letting you come because it’s your birthday.” The boy was a head taller than her, brown eyes and a mop of brown hair the sun had lightened, and he stood with his feet apart and his chin up. It didn’t work on her. Before she could say so, his brother beat her to it.

“That’s not what you said last night. You said you liked her.”

Rylee shoved her messy blonde hair off her face. Her father had never figured out how to keep it out of her eyes. “I’m faster than you anyway.”

“No, you’re not! I bet I can get to the treehouse before you.”

She wasn’t about to let him set the rules. If she wanted to play with the boys next door, she had to keep up. Half the time that meant running before he said go.

“Rylee.”

Rylee came back to herself. She hadn’t gone digging in her childhood in years, and most of it had gone soft at the edges. Not that afternoon. That one had kept.

“Rylee Margaret Black. There are dozens of guests in that penthouse suite, all here to see you. What on earth are you doing out here?”

Rylee turned toward her eccentric great aunt.

This month her hair color of choice was a vibrant purple.

Her makeup was flawless, and her clothes screamed of the wealth she’d attained through her marriage to a millionaire.

Or was he a billionaire? It didn’t really matter.

It was more than the two of them could have spent if they’d tried, and they never tried.

Roxanne Carter spent her money on her own terms and gave a great deal of it away.

She had no intention of being told what a woman her age was supposed to do or say. High society had given up trying.

Aunt Roxanne adjusted the silk shawl wrapped around her shoulders then pinned Rylee with a disapproving look. “And why didn’t you invite me?”

That got a laugh out of her, and she turned back to the New York skyline. She’d slipped the crowd downstairs to get some quiet. It hadn’t lasted.

“Do you ever wonder if there’s something else you’re supposed to be doing?” She hadn’t meant to whisper it, and she did.

“That sounds like a doozy of a question, dear.”

“Yeah. It doesn’t make sense, does it?”

“Now, I didn’t say that.”

She cut her aunt a look out of the corner of her eye. Roxanne didn’t elaborate, which was her particular talent. They stood at the edge of the roof, neither of them saying anything. Rylee had everything a person could ask for, and lately she’d been wanting more without being able to name it.

She’d lost her father at ten and she still missed him. She couldn’t remember her mother at all. But it wasn’t houses or money that made a person whole. It was who you had around you.

And she had those in spades, if the crowd downstairs was anything to go by.

“Will you be returning to the party?” Roxanne said, not turning to her. “Or shall I send your suitors away?”

Rylee groaned. “Don’t call them that.”

“What? That’s what they are. There are at least six fine young men in that suite, all vying for your attention. One come-hither look is all it would take to—”

“Roxy!” Rylee laughed. “There’ll be no come-hither looks. I’m not dating anybody right now. You were there for the last one.”

Roxanne might have been scowling, but it was hard to tell.

She didn’t do much to alter her appearance, but she did do the occasional injection around her brows.

Smile lines were one thing—something to be proud of because they showcased how much joy she experienced in life.

But frown lines? Those were not permitted on her face.

“Johnathon was a fluke.” She waved her perfectly manicured hand through the air, then tightened her shawl again with a shiver.

“He only wanted to marry me because he’d be associated with you and Uncle Allistair’s money.”

Her aunt huffed. “Which is why I made sure to blacklist him from the country club in the Hamptons.”

Rylee gasped. “You didn’t.”

“I did and it wasn’t even one-tenth of what I’ll do if I find out that another one of those young men is after something other than your heart.”

That made Rylee smile even though she felt like doing anything but.

Her aunt might be one of the wealthiest women alive, but she still believed in love.

She wasn’t trying to help find a marriage match just for the sake of getting Rylee settled down.

She genuinely wanted nothing more than to see her niece happy.

Rylee pushed off the railing and offered her aunt an arm. “Let’s get back in there. I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to mingle and see if anything sparks.”

“That’s my girl.” Roxanne patted her arm. “We’ll find you someone who can bring everything to the table.”

Rylee cocked a brow. “Meaning…”

“Oh, you know. A name. Power…”

“Roxy,” she warned, though she hadn’t stopped smiling.

“Money would be nice but we both know you won’t need it,” Roxanne said with a wink.

Rylee tipped her head back and addressed the sky.

“And a body that makes your mouth water.”

“Roxy!” The name was getting a workout tonight. “That’s shallow. Every item on that list is shallow.”

Roxanne shrugged. But at the door she caught Rylee’s elbow and stopped her. “There’s more to it than any of that, dear, and I’m glad you know it. Find someone who lights you up. Find someone who sees you.”

The back of Rylee’s neck prickled. She reached for the door and Roxanne pulled her up short. “Where in the world are your shoes?”

Rylee looked down at her bare feet. “You know me. I’d rather go barefoot than spend an evening in heels.”

“But those were Louboutin!”

It was Rylee’s turn to shrug. “They’re pretty, I’ll grant you that, but they just weren’t me.”

Under her aunt’s disapproving stare, Rylee gave it up. “I’m fairly sure I hid them in the potted plant by the door.”

Her aunt gaped at her. For all her talk about the right man and not needing money to be happy, Roxanne loved her clothes. A pity, given that most of Rylee’s wardrobe had been chosen by Roxanne’s own stylist.

They went in, and Roxanne swept through the room as though she’d been born to it.

She hadn’t been. Their family came out of farming country.

Then she caught the eye of the most eligible bachelor in New York on a road trip she took in college, and never went back.

No more dirt under her fingernails. No more breaking her back to put food on the table.

When her husband had passed, she’d offered her family money. To Rylee’s knowledge her father had refused. But he’d made sure they stayed in touch. Family had always been important.

Roxanne never had children of her own. It didn’t stop her from taking in her nephew’s daughter when he died.

Rylee owed her everything.

Someone came up behind her and she stiffened before he said a word.

Alexander King.

“Where did you run off to?” He said it warmly, and his face was kind with it. None of the hard edges she’d come to expect from the men who ran in her uncle’s circles. There was almost a boyish charm to him. He was also eager, and the eagerness didn’t charm her like he probably expected.

Johnathon had done a number on her instincts. She pushed the feeling down and turned to Alexander with a smile she had to build from scratch. “I needed some air.”

His pale blue eyes sparkled as he lifted a glass to his lips and took a sip.

His hair was blond and perfectly styled.

Not a strand out of place. He looked like a model in the fitted suit he wore.

Any other girl might fall to her knees if given his attention.

And yet she simply couldn’t bring herself to feel the same way.

He smirked, probably noticing the way her eyes swept over him.

He did look like a slightly less buff version of Captain America.

For all intents and purposes, she should have been at least a little weak in the knees when he smiled like that.

“When are you going to go out with me again?” he murmured.

Alexander even had that husky voice down.

She smiled weakly. “I’ll have to check my calendar.”

“You make sure you do that. Otherwise, I might just have to go over your head.”

Rylee frowned. “What is that supposed to mean?”

He nodded toward her aunt. “I’m sure Roxy wouldn’t mind a little espionage if it meant getting you out of the house.”

On the outside she stayed calm. Fifteen years of instruction in what a woman in high society is and is not permitted to do will buy you that.

Roxanne claimed the rules had stopped applying to her, what with her age and her money.

Rylee was single and her inheritance wouldn’t come through until her aunt died, so Rylee played her part.

Inside?

She bristled.

Then she smiled as saccharinely sweet as she could. “My aunt doesn’t control my calendar, Alexander. I do that all on my own.”

His confidence appeared to waver. Whatever was coming, excuse or apology, she’d stopped being interested. There were other people in that suite. He could stand there and think about it.

Assuming he could go over her head! Ridiculous.

And yet the worst part was that her aunt would probably be on board with such a thing.

Rylee wanted nothing more than to escape to the roof again.

Heck, she wouldn’t mind slipping off to her room if she knew she’d be successful at avoiding people for the rest of the night, but, alas, that wasn’t going to happen.

She was bombarded by three men next, swarmed and corralled like the lost sheep she imagined herself to be.

This wasn’t where she belonged. There was something else out there calling to her. But figuring that out felt nearly impossible.

After enduring the brain-melting conversation from the trio, she managed to slip out of the room.

Instead of escaping to her bedroom, she took a left and darted into her uncle’s study.

Roxanne had left it alone after his passing.

She only allowed the housekeeper to keep it free of dust. But otherwise, it remained frozen in the state her uncle had left it in.

There was even an empty glass on his desk that had once contained his favorite kind of brandy that he only drank when he celebrated something.

She put her face down on her knees and breathed in, and it didn’t help. Birthdays were the worst of it. She wished he were here, and there wasn’t any more to it than that.

The office door clicked shut and her head came up. Then the glittery gown registered. “Okay, okay. I know. I shouldn’t be hiding on my birthday. I’ll go—”

Roxanne held out an envelope. “I’ve dismissed our guests, dear. I think you’ve had enough.”

Rylee stared at the envelope then lifted her eyes to her aunt. “You… what?”

Her aunt’s smile went soft. “You weren’t enjoying yourself, however much I hoped you would. I think you need this more than I thought.” She wiggled the letter.

Taking it with shaking fingers, Rylee whispered, “What is it?”

“It’s from your father.”

That couldn’t be right. Roxanne wouldn’t have sat on a letter from her father, not through fifteen years of birthdays and every night in between when Rylee had needed him. Then again, there’d never been a better night to hand it over.

She hugged the letter against her. “Thank you.”

Roxanne nodded. “Let me know what you decide.” Before Rylee could ask her what she meant, her aunt slipped out of the room.

Rylee stared at it a long while, then worked her finger under the flap. The tearing was the only sound in the room. She unfolded the letter and read.

Ry-Ry,

If you’re reading this, then I’m gone. Know this, baby girl.

I would never willingly leave you. You’re my whole world and my purpose for waking up every day.

I have never regretted a single day being your father.

I wish I could have been there for you, walked you down the aisle, and taught you everything you need to know to have a happy life.

I guess we’ll have to trust that Roxy is up for the job.

I chose her to be your guardian because I know she’ll do right by me.

This letter is supposed to be delivered to you when you turn twenty-five.

By then you’ll either have your life sorted out, or you might need a little push in the right direction.

Either way, I know you’re going to do the right thing with the farm.

She blinked. The farm? Memories flickered across her mind like the film of an old movie.

Snapshots and images of the two little boys, a treehouse, farm animals, and rolling fields that swayed in the breeze.

Rylee closed her eyes, her heart thumping hard in her chest. She could almost smell the countryside where she’d spent her childhood.

When she opened her eyes she had to blink again to clear them from the tears slipping through.

Ry-Ry, the farm is yours. It always has been.

When I bought that property, I pictured you raising your own children on it.

I pictured laughter, and a man who deserves you.

But I can also see a reality where you choose the lifestyle your aunt has chosen.

So listen well when I tell you that I only want you to be happy.

Chase the dreams only you can create. A farm girl or a city girl.

It doesn’t matter as long as you’re happy.

Be happy, baby girl. I love you always. Dad.

“I take it you’ll need a plane ticket?”

Rylee jumped and looked over her shoulder. Roxanne stood in the doorway, smiling. She wiped her face and nodded. “Yeah. I think I do.”