by Lori Ryan
Elle felt a little awkward with everyone looking at her. She was used to being on display when she danced, but this was different. “I’m just glad you were able to win an award,” she said to Devlin, hoping to close the topic so they could move on to something else.
“Not just one award,” Devlin said. “I won four with that photo.”
“Four?” Elle couldn’t believe it.
Devlin nodded. “You’re an amazing subject. You realize, I have to have you in my book.”
“What book?” Elle asked, eyes wide.
“The breast cancer survivor book.”
Elle had forgotten.
“You’re gorgeous. And what a tie-in to my old photo, to know you were the model in my earlier photo from Tisch, now a survivor yourself. In fact, we could include that photo, show the journey you went through before and after cancer.”
Elle felt Emmett’s hand on her back.
“There’s just one thing,” Devlin said, leaning in.
“Good, God,” Kayleigh shouted, covering her ears, staring beyond them to the stage. “Can someone please pull the plug on that machine.”
Everyone burst into laughter.
“What is it?” Elle asked Devlin, ignoring Kayleigh’s comment.
“You know what, we can talk about it later,” Devlin said, waving her hand.
Elle nodded. “Okay.”
“And I’ll work on getting you a copy of your photos.”
“Photos?” Elle asked.
“Yes, I snapped several of you actually, back stage that day. I can get them all for you.”
“Oh,” Elle said planning to wave off the offer. She wasn’t sure she wanted any reminders of her days as a dancer. Then again, she thought, maybe she should put them in her dance studio.
“I think I’d like copies too,” Emmett said.
Elle flushed. “Where do you plan to put those?”
He kissed her temple and wrapped his hand tightly around her shoulders. Emmett Sumner felt like home. She sank into his strong body, forgetting the photos and the prospect of posing for a book, for the moment.
Kayleigh looked at Elle. “Don’t get too comfortable.”
“Why?” Elle asked, wondering if Kayleigh could see how temporary this thing between her and Emmett had to be. It was well known Emmett was only here for a short time to help his mother and the lodge. Still, if Kayleigh felt the need to warn Elle, that must mean she wasn’t doing a very good job of hiding the fact she was falling for him again.
“Next up on the stage,” the host shouted from the stage, “we’ve got Maggie Magpie and friends singing “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.”
Elle glanced up at Emmett and laughed to herself. She reached up and stroked his cheek. It was true. She wanted to have fun. No actually, she was having fun, one of the best nights of her life, with her best friend. Even if she had to remember that this feeling couldn’t last.
Emmett pulled her hand away and brought it to his lips, lightly kissing her palm.
“Come on.” Kayleigh grabbed her hand, practically yanking Elle from the chair.
As Elle stumbled toward the stage, she glanced over her shoulder, staring back at her best friend, the only man she’d ever loved.
His face spread wide with a smile, his hazel brown eyes beaming.
How had she ever thought she could survive without him? She needed Emmett like she needed air. He was a part of her, her other half, her better half.
She didn’t know what their future held, but she knew with all her heart, she would never leave him again.
Chapter Twenty
I heard I missed a good party last night,” Shawn said from a ladder leaning against one of the walls of the barn Emmett’s family was restoring.
Emmett glanced up from the far corner where he stood, looking up at the loft.
Shawn was the contractor for the build-out of the lodge and its outcropping of cabins. But more importantly, he was leading the rebuild of the old barn and the cabins they were adding to the lodge property.
Emmett glanced around the massive structure. He and his brothers had their doubts when they’d first seen their mother’s “diamond in the rough” but Shawn and his crew had done an amazing job restoring the dilapidated structure in a short amount of time. They still had a ways to go, but Emmett could finally envision his mother’s dream. Emmett came out to help whenever he had time, but knew most days he was just a nuisance to the crew. Like today.
“Yeah,” Emmett said, “it was a great time. Why didn’t you come?”
“I was planning to,” Shawn said, slipping his hammer into his tool belt and stepping off the ladder. “I just got caught up in a sculpture I was working on and lost track of time. It happens.”
“I can understand that.” Emmett nodded. “Sometimes I get lost in a book.” He’d had a few more good writing sessions lately and finally felt like things were starting to come together for his latest book.
“Yeah, I bet,” Shawn said, stepping closer. “Creative souls can get lost in their work. Speaking of creative, when can we expect your next book?” he asked.
Emmett drew in a deep breath, holding it for several moments before releasing a heavy sigh. He had yet to discuss his idea with his publisher, fearing they would nix the book he actually wanted to write and demand he give them what he’d promised to write back when he’d signed his contract. Shawn might understand, though.
“I’m thinking of going in a new direction with my next one,” Emmett finally answered.
“Different than your mystery series?” Shawn asked, moving the ladder to another area of the barn.
“Yeah, I think I need a break.” He didn’t just think. He knew it was time for a break from the murder-mystery genre. It was great and afforded him all kinds of creative freedoms, but Emmett’s heart just wasn’t into extending the series. His characters weren’t speaking to him anymore and he knew why. It wasn’t the book in his heart, or in his head.
“What are you thinking about writing now?” Shawn asked, sounding genuinely interested as he leaned an elbow against the wall.
“Promise not to laugh?”
“No,” Max yelled down, pounding on a beam above Emmett’s head.
Shit. How had he forgotten Max was in the barn?
“How long have you been up there?” Emmett asked, glancing up.
“Long enough to hear you talk about leaving your series. Why are you going to do that? It’s a money maker.”
“It’s just…” how could Emmett explain it without his brother totally laughing him out of the barn?
Ever since Emmett had reconnected with Elle, the story that had been in the back of his mind had been niggling away at him, begging to be written. That’s how Emmett always knew he had a best seller. Elle had liked the idea when he told her about it, but that didn’t mean anyone else would.
“Please don’t tell me you’re going to write that froo-froo shit with a half-naked dude on the cover.” Max laughed.
Emmett barely heard him over sounds of construction. Saws buzzed and hammers pounded, machinery beeped as men shouted to talk above the noise. Not exactly where he wanted to have this conversation.
Max came down his ladder, jumping the last few feet to land on the floor with a thud. “Oh, shit, you are, aren’t you?” he asked.
“Not,” Emmett paused, scrubbing a hand through his hair, “not froo-froo exactly.”
“But not like your Birchfield Brown Series? I love a good crime thriller.” Max said.
“You read my books?” Emmett asked, thinking of his series, affectionately named Birch and Brown by his fans.
The series centered around the two main characters, Nathaniel Birchfield and Dr. Vanessa Brown, an unlikely crime-fighting duo. Nate was a seasoned detective with the Chicago Police Department, and Vanessa was the newly hired county coroner.
Each book in his series had reached the best seller list, thanks to the tireless efforts of his agent and publicist, and the huge marketing team at h
is publisher. Emmett was grateful for the series’ success but now the publisher wanted three more books and Emmett just couldn’t find the words for Nate and Vanessa anymore.
“Hell, yeah I do,” Max said. “Don’t look so surprised. They’re good.”
“But, I didn’t…”
“What?” Max scowled. “You didn’t think I can read?”
Emmett laughed. “Simmer down, tiger. I know you can read. I just never thought you’d read my books.”
“Why wouldn’t I?” Max studied him. “You’re my brother, of course I would. Hell, I even bought them new. I could have gone to the half-price store, God knows they were in abundance there.” Max chuckled as he bumped Emmett’s shoulder. “I’m just fuckin’ with you, Em, you know that.”
Emmett glanced up at this brother. “I know.” Max was two inches taller than Emmett and had at least thirty pounds of lean muscle on him.
“I just really liked the series,” Max said.
“Me too,” Shawn added.
“You read my books too?” Emmett asked.
“Of course, I do,” Shawn said. “We all do.”
“Who’s all?” Emmett asked, swallowing hard.
“The entire town,” Shawn said. “Well, except for Old Man Mac. He said if he wanted to see the shit that goes on inside your head, he’d cut you open and look.”
Emmett cringed. Jasper MacGowen, or Old Man Mac as the town referred to him, was a taxidermist. His house and the woods around it were crawling with creepy animals frozen in time.
Sometimes the man put two or three animals together to make something he thought of as a mythical beast, but really ended up just looking like a twisted Frankenstein experiment gone wrong. The image of being one of Old Man Mac’s creatures was chilling.
“But seriously, man,” Max said, “I’ll miss not reading more Birch and Brown books. Those two cracked me up. So, what’s the new book about? Not mystery?”
Emmett shook his head. “It’s historical.”
“With mystery in it?” Max asked, raising his brows.
“No, no mystery. Well, no crime stuff anyway.” Emmett laughed. “I want to write about Canyon Creek Mountain, about the gold rush and the feud that divided our families. But it will take place in this time.”
Max stared at him, his forehead wrinkled in confusion.
“It will feature a woman going through a tough time. She’s reading the journal of one of her ancestors and drawing on the strength of that woman. There will be big chunks that take place in the past. Sort of weaving their two stories together.”
“Oh, so part of it would be like an old western?” Max asked with excitement.
“Something like that, yeah.” Emmett shrugged. “I might add a romance subplot.”
He’d been reading journals and letters at the library from the early settlers of the town and Emmett definitely felt a spark between the correspondents. It was surprising to discover that romance was what was calling to him at the moment, or at least a story with more romantic elements than he’d ever written before.
“Is there gonna be sex?” Max smirked.
Emmett shoved Max’s shoulder. “Dude, is that all you think about?”
“It is when that Devlin chick is parading around in those skin-tight jeans and low-cut sweater.”
“Devlin?” Shawn asked. “Who’s Devlin?”
“Shit, dude,” Max sighed, sitting down on a rung of the ladder. “Hot as fuck chick with a sassy mouth I’d like to plug up with my—”
Shawn held up his hand. “I got it, Max. Thanks.”
“She’s Maggie’s friend—best friend growing up,” Emmett said. “Her father was military and they moved away when she was young but she and Maggie are still close.”
“Is she moving here?” Shawn asked.
“God, I hope not,” Max said.
Emmett rolled his eyes. “Whether she lives here or not, you can’t screw Maggie’s best friend and then never talk to her again like you do with every hot woman you meet.”
Max held up both hands. “I didn’t do anything. Yet. And who says I can’t screw her?”
Emmett pointed at Max. “Maggie says. She’ll kill you. Plus, Devlin’s only here for a short visit, I think.”
“She said she’s coming back for Maggie and Ben’s wedding in a few months.”
“When did she tell you that?”
“Last night.”
“Seriously, Max?”
“What?”
“You can’t screw around with one of Maggie’s best friends then dump her like you do most of the women who slide into your bed.”
Max glared at him.
“Max, you just said she’s coming back. It will be too awkward, for everyone, if you sleep with her now then blow her off when she comes back for the wedding.”
“Calm down, dude.” Max waved him off. “You sound like a chick. We didn’t do anything.”
“I’m sure it wasn’t from a lack of trying,” Shawn said.
Max turned and climbed up the ladder. “I was in a shit ton of pain last night, and not in the mood.”
“That I cannot believe,” Shawn said. “If she’s as hot as you say she is, I have a hard time believing you walked away.”
“Are you okay, Max?” Emmett watched Max move slowly up the ladder. He knew Max lived with constant pain thanks to ten years in the NFL.
“I’m fine,” Max waved off, shaking out his knees halfway up the rungs, as if to show them he could. He turned and perched on one rung, as though he couldn’t decide if he wanted to stay in the conversation.
“Didn’t the doctors suggest surgery or something?” Emmett asked.
Max had blown out both knees during his career and had already gone through reconstructive surgery and tons of rehab just to be back on the field again. Everyone knew Max lived for football and Emmett couldn’t help but wonder if maybe he was depressed about his retirement.
“Yeah,” Max said, “I’m thinking about it.” He looked around at the barn. “Maybe when this barn is done.”
“Max,” Shawn said, “if you’re in that much pain, you know—”
Max held up his hand. “Don’t.”
And with that one word, Emmett knew the topic was closed. His brother’s expression morphed into his game day face. Max was shutting down and Emmett had to respect the line he was drawing.
“Invasion.” Max pointed toward the door.
Emmett and Shawn turned to see his mother, Maggie, Aunt Sally, and cousin Lily coming around the corner into the barn.
“Good afternoon, ladies.” Max moved down the ladder and jumped to the floor, pushing past Emmett and Shawn. “To what do we owe this honor of your presence?”
Maggie laughed. “Is that how you get all the girls, Max? Gentile charm?”
“I’ll never tell.” Max winked at her.
“What are you guys doing out here?” Emmett asked, coming up beside Max.
“We’re meeting the Nobles out here soon,” Maggie said. “They wanted to see the barn. We need to give them a feel for the space if we’re going to implement some of the cross promotional things we’re planning. We thought we might even host their event staff over here sometime and vice versa, so when one of us is booked we can refer to the other.”
Emmett nodded as Shawn joined them.
“Hey Valerie, Maggie, Sally.” Shawn nodded toward the women. Slowly his gaze moved to his cousin. “Hi, Lily.” It was weird, Emmett thought. Shawn always seemed to single out Lily when they were in a group.
Her eyes moved up and down Shawn’s body before she nodded once. “Hello,” she said quietly, turning her attention to the back wall of the barn.
Shawn’s smile fell. “Well,” he said, “I’ll leave you guys to it. I’ve got some work I need to get the guys started on up in the loft.”
What the hell?
“Oh, Shawn,” his mother called. “Could you stick around? I know Warner will want to ask lots of questions about the reconstruction. He was always int
o building stuff, right Sal?” His mother turned to Aunt Sally, but Sally just shrugged.
“Is Elle coming?” Emmett asked. He hadn’t talked to her since last night when he’d slipped out of her bed just after she’d fallen asleep. She’d asked him to stay the night but he knew she had an early morning and he shouldn’t keep her up, as much as his own body had wanted to.
His mother gave a devilish smile that said she was about to butt into his business. “Yes, she’ll be here. I think their grandfather might be coming as well.”
“Ah, hell,” Sally moaned, throwing her hands in the air. “The only reason that jackass wants to come across the mountain is so he can drop comments about how much he hates the Sumners.”
“What?” Shawn asked. Shawn wasn’t from Canyon Creek, so he’d never been privy to the history of their two feuding families.
“Let’s just say, he’s never been a fan of our family,” Sally said with disgust. “We’ve got history, and it hasn’t always been the good kind.”
It seemed there was a history behind every member of his family, Emmett thought. He couldn’t wait to do more research for his book.
“Knock, knock.”
Elle’s sweet voice rang through the barn, her greeting resounding above the background noise.
Emmett’s body moved on its own, pulled toward her like a polarized magnet, unable to stop himself. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tight, dragging in a breath of her familiar scent.
Her arms slipped around his neck. “We’ve got an audience,” she whispered in his ear.
“So?” Despite her warning, Emmett could feel his jeans tighten, his dick pressing into her, as he lifted her feet off the ground.
“My dad is here,” she hissed.
Emmett dropped her like a hot potato, holding her shoulders to steady her with a grin.
Elle giggled. “I figured that would get you to break away.”
“Emmett,” Warner Noble’s deep voice interrupted them.
“Hello, Sir.” Emmett stepped back and held out his hand.
“Nice to see you,” the older man said.
