I’ve heard film critics throw around words likeforce of natureandpowerhousewhen it comes to Ellis’ acting abilities, but it suddenly dawns on me that his intense energy might not be an act. I caught glimpses of his big personality during my long-ago heat, but this is on an entirely different level.
“Babe.” Tristan’s hand slides around Ellis’ waist, his voice gentle. “Maybe you should take a breath.”
Ellis shoots him a fond glance, pulling him tight to his side. “I can take one later. Right now, I’m just so excited to finally be here.Rosie’s Blooms. It’s beautiful, Lily, and so much more than I imagined.” He shakes his head, looking rueful. “I can’t believe your farm was righthere, so close I could’ve turned left at a couple of towns and found you.”
I look at him curiously. “You’ve been to Idaho before?”
Ellis nods, and giving my hand a tug, leads me over to the sitting area. I don’t know why my feet follow him, except that I’m caught in some kind of Ellis Castle tractor beam. He waits until I’m settled before sitting next to me, so close our knees arebrushing. Reaching up, he grasps Tristan’s hand that’s resting on his shoulder, but his green eyes remain fixed on my face. “I’m so glad we’re all here.Finally. But what made you decide to reach out to us, Lily?”
“Reach out?”
“Yeah.” He grins and flutters sooty lashes at me. “The guys haven’t had a chance to catch me up yet, so I want to heareverything. Are you happy? Is the farm going well? Were those huckleberry bushes I saw out there? I had a pie in Boise a couple years ago that my chef has tried to recreate, but it’s never been the same.” He gives a heavy sigh, then leans forward, sweeping a lock of my hair behind my ear. “But enough about pie. Catch me up, starting right back when you left California.”
I blink at him, lost for words.Is there a camera somewhere in the room and Ellis Castle is punking me?
“Ellis.” Otley slides into the chair opposite us, his serious expression in direct contrast to his mate’s glowing one. “We need to talk before you get ahead of yourself.”
“Get ahead?” Ellis pulls a face. “How can I get ahead, Ot, when I feel like I’m a million miles behind?”
But his frustration is drowned out by a scuffling sound outside, a familiar growl easily penetrating the front door. “Bud, let me the fuck past, or you’re gonna be picking porch nails out of your teeth.”
Oh, God.
I leap to my feet, but the door is already flying open, and Logan is storming inside, a dark scowl on his face. I shoot him a pleading look, but Ellis slides off the couch like he’s on skates, planting himself between us. Logan ignores him, his fists clenching as he takes in the muscle-bound alphas cluttering up my living room. “LeeLee? What the hell is going on?”
Before I can answer, Ellis snaps his fingers at one of his security guards, sending him in Logan’s direction. “I don’t know who you are, but you’re going to regret barging in here.”
“Wait! Wait!” I splutter, heading off the bodyguard with a wave of my hands. “This is Logan. He lives next door. He’s not a threat.”
“I think we’ll be the judge of that,” the security guard responds, clearly unimpressed by Logan’s worn fatigues, blazing eyes, and three-day-growth.
“He’s a Marine and my soon-to-be mate,” I snap, almost choking on the testosterone surging through the room. “So, I suggest you take a quick step back.”
“Mate?” Ellis’ shoulders instantly relax, and he strides forward, his hand out. “Wow. We really fucked up the first impressions, then.” He laughs as he pumps Logan’s hand. “I’m Ellis Castle. Sorry for not calling ahead, but things have been a little crazy.”
Logan grunts. “Just an ordinary Thursday for you, then.”
Ellis chuckles, like he’s immune to steely-eyed Marines. “You’re not wrong. But I can fix it, promise.” He jerks his head at his tense bodyguards. “Guys, let’s step outside so we can get a handle on this, okay?”
He leads the way, but Logan is still scowling as the other alphas file out. I’d scoff at the glares they shoot each other if I wasn’t distracted by a nine-year-old blur pushing past them, a yapping Bloomer on his heels. They almost tumble into the room and my heart sinks and soars at the same time, leaving me weak at the knees. My baby is home, but his arm is wrapped in a white sling, and I feel acid burn in my stomach as I take in the raw, red scratch on his face. “Leo! Whathappenedto you?”
He skips over to me, his free hand making up for his injured one as he flings it around my neck, giving me a lightning-quickkiss. “Nothing. The stupid rope broke on the swing and I missed the river.”
“What? How do youmissa river?”
I gape over his head at Logan, but Leo is already hurrying into the kitchen, making a beeline for the snack cabinet. “I’mstarving!”he whines. “Logan said it was good to live off the land, but the land doesn’t have Twizzlers or Pop Tarts.” He grabs an armful of junk food, dropping it all over the counter and tearing at the packaging one-handed. “Geez, I think I can hear my stomach eating itself.”
While Leo falls on the food like a starving animal, Logan’s head swivels from my son to the front door and back again. Watching the shock in his eyes give way to a deep, unexpected hurt makes my insides burn. “I can explain, Logan.”
He crosses his arms slowly, a deep groove settling between his brows. “I think the truth is staring me in the face.”
I’d flinch at his tone if I didn’t have a bigger bomb about to go off. I can hear Ellis out on the porch, his attention momentarily diverted by a phone call, but I know he will be coming back soon. And there’s no way I’m letting Leo learn about his father when he’s injured, overtired, and clearly spiraling. Under the scrape on his cheek, he’s unnaturally pale, and there’s a glitter in his eyes that tells me he’s on the verge of a crash.
“Come on, big guy. You need a bath.” I put an arm around his shoulders, steering him away from the pile of snacks and towards the stairs. He drags his feet, but he’s trembling as he leans into me. As we head upstairs, I can feel Otley and Tristan watching us, but I’m careful to shield Leo with my body. “As soon as you’re clean, you can tell me all about your trip.”
“But thesnacks,” he whines, stumbling a little as I steer him across the landing and into the bathroom.
“They’ll still be there after your bath,” I tell him as I carefully peel him out of his loose tank and shorts. He’s no dirtier thanhe gets in our backyard, but there’s a bruise on his hip and I grimace as I fill the tub. While he waits, Leo drifts to the mirror and pokes at the scratch on his cheek. “Cool! Rock rash.”
