We sat on the blanket and he pulled the sandwiches from an insulated bag, and then poured us each a cup of coffee. I’d already eaten pancakes at home, but who was I to say no to an egg sandwich?
When we finished eating and were sipping our coffee and enjoying the cool quiet of the cave, Jesse moved to sit close beside me, his legs stretched out in front of him. He stroked his hand up the back of my arm. “I’ve prepared a monologue.”
I laughed. “That’s what I get for dating an actor.”
He dropped a kiss on my hair. “Yes. Do you want to hear it?”
“Of course.” I took a sip of my coffee and waited.
“We each have our dream job. How lucky is that?”
“Pretty lucky,” I said.
“I won’t give up my dream career, and I would never ask you to give up yours. Yet, I have other dreams apart from the ones surrounding my career.” He picked up my hand and linked his fingers through mine. “I dream of love. Of having a wife and children someday. Of living in a house in the woods. Of a family bigger than the one I have now, with card games and Sunday dinners and town picnics.”
I set my coffee down and sat up straighter. Jesse smiled at me.
“I want a more balanced life for myself than the one I had before I came here. A million thoughts are racing through my head about what that looks like. Maybe we’ll build a house in these woods. Or maybe we’ll find the recluse’s cabin and fix it up. We could get a house in town.”
“We?”
“Yes. We. All of this is for the future, though. For now, to start making some changes, I’d like to cut back to one project a year, maybe two, and see how that feels. I’ll keep the house in L.A. that James and I bought, for the times when I’m working, and you can stay with me there if you want.” He took a long pause, searching my eyes. “But what would you think if Alden was my home base?”
He watched my face carefully, trying to read my reaction. I wiped beneath my eyes as tears brimmed over.
He spoke before I found my voice. “You’re my home, Cat. Wherever you are is where I want to be.”
I leaned forward and grabbed his head in my hands, planting kisses on his cheeks. “Yes.” More kisses. “To everything you’re saying, I say yes. You stay here for me, and I go there for you.”
He laughed, sounding relieved and joyous, and grabbed me around the waist, pulling me over until I lay back on the blanket, his face hovering over mine. He watched my eyes for a long time. His thumb caught a tear and wiped it away. He leaned down and kissed me deeply. Slowly. “Wherever we go, we’ll be together,” he said, and I nodded.
“Together.”
The story continues in Broken Rebel, Sparrow Sisters Book 2!
He’s a reformed bad boy who wants the good girl. Lucky for him, she craves excitement.
Audrey Sparrow lives her life the way other people want her to. She dates the boy her parents like, she studies hard, and she never gets into trouble. Scared of the secret desires deep within her, she pretends she’s happy with the way things are. Then one day, a boy on a motorcycle drives up and asks her if she wants a ride.
Johnny Bright can’t outrun his reputation. No matter what he does, people in this town will always judge him based on his reckless past. He’s been enchanted by Audrey for as long as he can remember, but there’s no way she’d be seen with a guy like him.
Both misunderstood, both searching for something, Johnny and Audrey are drawn to each other. Can they make it work even though the entire town is against them?
Broken Rebel is the second book in the Sparrow Sisters Series. If you want an intense slow-burn romance that will make your heart race, you’ll enjoy this bad boy meets shy girl love story!
Want more romance?
Books By Lora Richardson
The Juniper Series
The Edge of Juniper
Juniper Limits
Juniper Skies
The Unexpected Love Series
Vanishing Summer
Awakening Autumn
Trusting Winter
Anticipating Spring
The Sparrow Sisters Series
Broken Hollywood
Broken Rebel
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Acknowledgments
Huge thanks go to my beta reading and editing team. Jill, Jana, Erin, Bev, and Portia, I couldn’t do this without you. Receiving that early feedback is always exciting, and you never fail to improve my work by leaps and bounds.
Kris Hack, my cover designer, did an amazing job with this series. Her design skills are fantastic, and beyond that, she’s a joy to work with.
My family, as always, gives me the support and encouragement I need to keep doing this day after day. Ryan, Walter, and Sylvia, I love you. Thank you for loving me.
Readers, it is still an amazing thing when anyone picks up a book I wrote. That you took the time to read this story means so much to me. I hope you loved it.
Broken Hollywood (Sparrow Sisters Book 1) Page 20
