Trey strode to the little man and gave him a brief side hug. “She’ll come to a game. I promise.”
Austin looked up at him, his big, dark eyes brimming with trust. “You do?”
Trey’s jaw hardened as determination coursed through his veins. Ella wasn’t going to walk away from Austin, or from him. “Yeah, I do.”
Gavin walked out of Mama and Papa’s house. He saw Trey and lifted a hand. “Sorry I didn’t answer. We were having a prayer with Papa.”
“Is he doing better?” If they were able to visit him again, he must be better.
Gavin nodded. “The cough’s getting less violent. He’s just upset because he didn’t see Ella.”
“Join the crowd,” Trey muttered. “Did she tell you why she left?”
Gavin shook his head. “She’s so stubborn. Cassie I can talk sense into. Not Ella. What did you do?”
Trey lifted his hands. “I don’t know. She’s probably so upset over being attacked by Marcus. You shouldn’t have let her go.”
Gavin folded his arms across his chest. “You try and stop her. She almost ran over my foot with her car tire. Maybe it was Marcus, but I think you messed up somehow. She didn’t like you going to talk with Kaytlyn. A few hours ago, she would’ve been hugging you instead of driving away.”
Trey grunted in frustration. He wanted Ella hugging him, but how could he have just sent Kaytlyn away? “How long ago did she leave?”
“Half an hour.” Gavin shrugged. He pinned Trey with a gaze. “Are you going after her?”
“You bet I am. Do you have her address?”
Gavin nodded.
Trey smiled, a plan swirling in his mind. He was going to find her, he was going to get to the bottom of why she’d run, and then he was going to hold her until she pushed him away. Maybe if he prayed hard enough, she wouldn’t push him away.
Chapter Sixteen
The seven-hour drive to Salt Lake had been absolutely miserable. Ella had alternated between wiping away tears and ignoring her phone buzzing in her purse. She’d turned the ringer off, but it still buzzed obnoxiously. Her heart fell further when it stopped buzzing. She didn’t even know who was trying to call, but she’d bet on her family and she was praying for Trey. She probably should’ve confronted him about breaking her heart and kissing another woman, but she’d been a wimp and run. Now if she saw him again it would be awkward, but she doubted she would see him anytime soon. He’d probably be relieved that he was able to have some fun, get another fangirl to fall for him, and move on to the next willing victim.
She pulled into her apartment complex in South Jordan. It was clean and only a ten-minute commute to her job. Darkness was just falling as she pulled into her parking spot and grabbed her small suitcase and purse. Clinging to her keys with her pepper spray on the key ring, she had flashbacks to Marcus pushing his disgusting tongue into her mouth. So gross.
Her eyes darted around as she hurried toward her apartment, and she wished she’d left the outside light on. A man stepped out of the shadows, and she gasped and drew back. Her heartbeat roared in her ears. Not again. Marcus was in custody, but her apartment wasn’t in the safest neighborhood.
“Ella.” Trey breathed out her name.
Ella’s fears for her physical safety disappeared, but her emotional well-being was in grave danger. “What are you doing here?” she demanded, clinging to her suitcase handle. Her heart should be calming down since she wasn’t in danger, but it thudded harder with Trey close.
“I chartered a plane from Vail,” he said simply. “So I could come get you and bring you back home.”
“This is my home now.”
Trey’s eyes took in the simple apartment complex. “No. Your home is in the valley with Mama, Papa, Gavin, Austin, and me.”
Ella’s brow wrinkled. What was he talking about? He didn’t live in the valley.
“Why’d you run?”
Ella glared at him. “None of your business.” She walked toward the door, but he stepped in front of it. “Please move. It’s been a crappy day, and I just want to sleep.”
“Not until you talk to me.” Trey took a step closer, his large form overshadowing her. “Why’d you run?”
Ella wrapped her arms around herself so she wouldn’t reach out to him. She was too tired to think rationally, and that must have been why she admitted, “I saw you with Kaytlyn, okay?”
Trey’s brow jumped as if he was surprised that was what bothered her. “You saw me comforting her?”
“Comforting.” She snorted. “If that was comforting, I’d love to hear how you describe our kisses.”
Trey’s eyes registered understanding. Finally. She’d never thought of him as a stupid, thick man before. He leaned in closer and said in a husky voice, “Our kisses are incredible, earth-moving, all-encompassing.” He paused and gave her a significant look.
Ella was so drawn to him she wanted to kiss him right then and there. She stood her ground and hoped her eyes didn’t reflect her desire.
“What happened between Kaytlyn and me was a comforting hug, because she’s going through something so hard she couldn’t even tell me about it.”
“She kissed you. Don’t lie to me and say she didn’t.” She felt bad for Kaytlyn, but the tough guy she’d been with seemed more than willing and capable of taking care of her. Did she need Trey like Ella did? It didn’t matter anyway. Ella had to be strong so Trey didn’t hurt her further.
He arched an eyebrow. “She kissed me on the cheek.”
Ella’s eyes widened. She hadn’t had the best angle. It could’ve just been on the cheek, but it had still been a lot closer to his mouth than she’d wanted to see.
“But it was a kiss of friendship, a kiss of goodbye. I hope Kaytlyn is okay, and I will always care for her as a friend, but you have nothing to be jealous of.”
“I’m not jealous. I’m ticked off,” she threw back at him.
“Really?”
“You promised you wouldn’t hurt me, but you did. Seeing you chase after Kaytlyn and then hold her hurt, a lot.”
He nodded, his blue eyes concerned and full of longing. “I guess promising I would never hurt you isn’t very realistic, is it?”
Ella shrugged. “Not if you’re going to think you can be kissing other women.”
Trey pushed out a breath. “I’m really sorry I hurt you, El. Sometimes we might hurt each other, even though we don’t want to. The important thing is if we can work it out. Will you please forgive me?”
Ella pushed out a long sigh. He talked like they were a couple, and they weren’t. “Fine, I forgive you. It doesn’t really matter. I appreciate you coming here to try to make things right, but you need to go.”
“Where would I go?”
“Back to your stunts and your bikini-clad women and your life of being in a different state each week.”
“See, that’s the problem.” He edged in even closer and trailed his fingers along her jaw. Ella trembled from his touch, wanting more, wanting him. “I don’t want that life. I want you.”
She jutted out her chin, trying to be strong. “You can’t have me.”
Trey framed her face with his palms and leaned down, touching his forehead to hers. “There’s no life for me without you, Ella.”
Her body was trembling now, and she really didn’t know how much longer she could be strong. Maybe the kiss with Kaytlyn had been innocent, but during her drive she’d realized how stupid and idealistic she’d been to think she could change the eternal playboy.
“Why not?” she heard herself ask, when she should’ve been pushing past him and locking herself in her apartment.
“Because.” He bent closer and gave her a soft, achingly sweet kiss.
Ella’s body arched closer to his without her permission.
He smiled against her lips and murmured, “I love you, Ella Strong.”
Ella’s heart thumped wildly in her chest. “Please, Trey,” she begged. “I revealed too much to you. How long I’ve loved
you. If you care about me at all, don’t toy with me like this.”
Trey kissed her softly again, and she moaned against his lips. He pulled back slightly and pulled the green-and-pink bracelet out of his pocket. “When I found this in the gift shop after seeing you again and falling instantly in love, I thought it must be a sign from above. We’re meant to be together.”
Ella smiled shakily and extended her arm. He slid it onto her wrist.
“Maybe you’ve loved me longer,” he admitted, “but I love you deeper, and I promise you, Ella—promise you—I’ll make mistakes, do stupid things you have to yell at me for, but I will never stop loving you.” The words were said almost fiercely.
Ella couldn’t resist any longer. She threw her arms around his neck and demanded, “If you’re lying to me, I’m going to have Gavin fillet you like a fish.”
Trey laughed. “Don’t worry. He already threatened me with worse.”
“Good.” She smiled. “You really love me?”
“I love you more than I have ever loved and will ever love any person on this earth.”
Ella melted against him. “Until we have a baby girl. I’ll bet you’ll love her more.”
Trey groaned softly. “A baby girl?” He spun her around, pinned her against her apartment door, and proceeded to kiss her until she couldn’t catch a breath. When he pulled back, he said roughly, “Are you toying with me, El? Do you really want … to have a family together?”
Ella nodded, more serious than she’d ever been. “I’ve been daydreaming about it for years. I even have all of their names picked out.”
Trey threw back his head and laughed. “You would,” he said.
“Hey! I told you I’ve had longer to daydream about you than you did me.”
Trey grinned and lifted her close again. “I can hardly wait to reenact all those daydreams.”
Ella smiled. “It could take years.”
“I’ll plan on it.”
His mouth met hers with a sweet promise. They could spend the rest of their lives reenacting all of her daydreams, but she already knew that any time spent with Trey surpassed anything she could dream up.
Epilogue
Ella didn’t fly home with Trey that night like he wanted. She did kiss him long and good, and then she sent him to a hotel close by. They spent Labor Day together, plotting, planning, and kissing, and on Tuesday morning she gave her two weeks’ notice. Her boss didn’t like losing her, but he understood the desire to be close to family.
Two and a half weeks later, Ella had moved her stuff back home, able to spend some time with her papa, who was feeling better, and her mama, who was relieved that he was feeling better. It was a bright, chilly Saturday morning, and she was standing on the sidelines of the grass field at the local park next to her mama and her brother, Heath. It was fun to reconnect with Heath who owned resorts in four different states, and was even busier than Gavin.
They were all watching as Austin played football and Gavin coached. Austin was a running back, which was interesting; Gavin and Stetson had both excelled at defense. The little man was pretty good too, dodging and twisting around the defense and sometimes just plowing through. He seemed small compared to Gavin, but Austin was pretty well built for his age.
Strong arms wrapped around her from behind, and she inhaled sandalwood and musk, the delicious scent of Trey. Whipping around, she squealed. “You’re here!”
He wrapped her up in his arms and lifted her off her feet. Kissing her soundly, he set her down and said, “I couldn’t miss the little man’s game. How’s he doing?”
“Good. He’s scored twice and run a lot of yards.”
Trey kept her in the circle of his arms as they turned to watch a play—a missed reception by the other team. “And how are you doing, love?”
“Missing you,” she admitted.
He grinned and kissed her softly. “It’s been too long without me, eh?”
“You know it.” Trey had flown to visit her in Salt Lake twice in the past two weeks, and now he was here again. They were planning for her to travel with him, but that would be a little hard until they were married. They’d talked about marriage, but for now she was going to revamp Gavin’s marketing plan from the ground up and be here for her parents and Austin as much as she could.
Trey gave Mama a hug and shook Heath’s hand.
“So you and our sweet Cinderella?” Heath asked Trey. “I never imagined.”
Ella stuck out her tongue at her second-oldest brother. “We all know I’m not sweet.” She dropped her voice and whispered in Trey’s ear, “And I imagined the two of us together enough for everybody.”
Trey chuckled and pulled her in for another kiss. Heath simply smiled and focused back on the game. He was a great guy and definitely not one to overreact.
Ella and Trey cuddled close together and watched the game. Austin’s team won 22–16. The crowd cheered, but the team cheered louder.
Austin came sprinting up to them and grabbed Ella. “Sweaty hugs!” he yelled.
Ella laughed and hugged him back.
“Thanks for coming.” He gave Trey a fist bump. “The team’s going for pizza. Will you come?”
Trey smiled. “Man, I wish we could, but I have a picnic planned for Ella. We’ll see you at Gavin’s tonight.”
“Okay. Love you. You’ll come right bro?” Austin said to Heath.
“Of course. Gav told me I get to pick up the tab.”
“What does that mean?”
Gavin appeared. “That means order whatever you want little man.”
“Yes!” Austin took Mama’s hand and skipped happily off with both his big brothers following, chatting. Ella imagined they were swapping ideas or stories about running retreats. She’d see them all back at the house, but right now she wanted to concentrate on Trey.
Trey took her hand and led her toward his Pathfinder.
“You have a picnic planned?” she asked.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Were you going to ask me or just assume I wanted to come?”
He chuckled. “Ella, would you please go on a picnic with me?”
“I’ll consider it.”
They drove up the mountain, passed the lodge, and parked in Gavin’s driveway. As they were walking up the path to the lake, Ella paused and said, “You didn’t grab the picnic stuff.”
He smiled slyly. “It’s already set up.”
She cocked her head to the side, studying him as they headed through the thick trees. Most of the trees were turning yellow, orange, and red in the autumn sun; the stately pines were still a deep green. “When did you set it up?”
“Let’s just say Gavin is a very good friend who has hardworking employees.”
“Okay. I’m excited to see this.”
They chatted easily as they walked to the lake. When they reached the clearing, the lake sparkled a deep blue, and there was indeed a picnic set up on a blanket next to the water. Ella walked hand in hand with Trey to the blanket, but then she noticed something bobbing in the water. It looks like letters, around a dozen of them.
“What is that?” she asked.
Trey grinned and tugged her closer. Ella peered at the letters out in the water, but they were too far away for her to read what they formed.
“Dang. They floated away,” Trey muttered.
Ella glanced at him. “What does it say?”
“You have to see it. Here.” He plucked her off the ground and lifted her onto his shoulder, holding her by the waist and thighs. “Can you see it now?”
Ella swayed and wrapped her arms around his head.
“Now I can’t see anything,” he muttered, laughing.
Ella squinted. “Shush so I can read the letters.”
Trey chuckled, squeezing her legs. “Can you read them?”
“Yeah. ‘Ella … marry me.’” She squealed, clapped her hands together, and slipped off his shoulder.
Trey caught her in his arms and laughed, holding her against h
is chest. “Is that a good squeal or a bad one?”
Ella smiled as she stared up at his handsome face and blue eyes. “A good one.”
“So is that a yes?”
“Did you ask my papa and get me a ring?” she asked, teasing him.
Trey grinned. “Of course. Papa said, ‘Yes, please get her off my hands.’”
“Oh, you.” But she could bet Papa would tease and say something like that.
Trey lowered her onto her feet and removed his right hand from her waist to fish something out of his pocket. He pulled out a huge square glittering diamond ring set in white gold.
Ella gasped and put a hand to her heart.
Trey dropped onto one knee and took her left hand in his right one. “Ella. You’ve loved me for a long time, and I promise I will love you from here until eternity. Marry me, please.”
Ella launched herself against him and knocked him back onto the blanket. “Yes!” she yelled. “Every day, yes!”
Trey leaned up and slid the ring on her finger. Then he pulled her down and proceeded to kiss her. Ella didn’t care if the food in the picnic grew stale or a bear came and feasted on it. She kissed Trey with all the adoration and longtime love she had for him. Her dream man returned it, and then some.
Her Loyal Protector
Chapter One
Kaytlyn Klein rushed through the wide halls of Jacob Tarbet’s mansion. She’d worked for Jacob for almost ten years now, though for the past five he’d treated her more like a partner than an employee. He’d found her waiting tables in his hometown of Sun Valley, where she’d been scraping by just trying to earn enough money to ski on the weekends. Jacob had become a regular customer. Then he’d seen her buying lunch for a family whose child had just been diagnosed with leukemia. He hired her as his personal assistant on the spot, paid for her online bachelor’s degree in business, and taught her how to run his businesses and how to be poised and classy. He was the smartest, most generous, and most selfless person she knew.
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