Flynn dragged his gaze from the valley to the construction site behind them. He visualized the house he’d designed there, remembering the excitement he’d felt as he worked on it, the satisfaction he’d felt sitting before his laptop as it all came together. “I’m considering taking a position at headquarters after I finish in Dubai.”
Aidan frowned. “A desk job?”
“Yes.”
“You’ll hate it,” his friend commented.
“I can’t travel the globe forever, at least, not if I ever want to settle down. Wife. Kids.”
“Is that what you want?” Aidan asked.
“I don’t know,” Flynn told him honestly. It wasn’t something he’d ever spent any time thinking about, at least, not until he’d met Ruby.
“It’s the American, isn’t it? The one you few to Paris to be with?” Aidan turned to stare at him. “You’ve fallen in love.”
Flynn rocked back on his heels, swallowing his automatic rejection of Aidan’s words, because…because he couldn’t get Ruby out of his head, hadn’t truly been happy since he’d left her, couldn’t seem to envision any kind of future that didn’t include her. “I think maybe I have.”
“And you’re considering taking a desk job at Exeter for her?”
“Perhaps.”
“Is that what she wants?” Aidan asked.
“No.” It was his mother who’d put this thought into his head, not Ruby.
“What does she want, then?”
“She just wants me to be happy,” he said quietly, remembering how she’d encouraged him to pursue his dreams, to find his own path the way she’d done.Stop holding yourself back, she’d told him that afternoon in Paris. “I’ll submit a bid for your friend’s project.”
“Is that all?” Aidan asked, cutting a glance in his direction.
“No, it’s not all.” Flynn turned abruptly to face his friend’s future home site. “Ruby was right. I should be doing this full-time. Icouldbe doing this full-time instead of making myself miserable trying to fulfill a family obligation at Exeter.”
“Now you’re talking.” Aidan grinned at him. “Anything else?”
“Yeah. I’m going to need to cancel our dinner plans for the evening.”
“Any particular reason?” Aidan asked with a knowing smile.
“I’ve got to book a flight to America.”
Ruby saton the bench overlooking Rosemont Castle, the same bench where she’d told Flynn she was falling in love with him and he’d told her he couldn’t stay. Today, she’d brought her laptop and a picnic for one, yearning for a little peace and solitude as she worked. The air was a crisp sixty-five degrees, perfect inside her purple fleece jacket.
She wore fingerless gloves to keep her hands warm as she typed, and she was halfway through today’s to-do list by the time she decided to pull out the sandwich she’d brought with her. Maybe she should come up here every day to work. Not only was it ridiculously peaceful, but without internet access, her productivity had increased to a ridiculous level.
She’d just taken a huge bite out of her sandwich when she heard footsteps crunching in the leaves behind her. A deer? She turned quietly, hoping not to startle it away. She loved when she stumbled across wildlife out here—or when wildlife stumbled across her. But there was no deer in the woods behind her, and actually, these footsteps sounded human. Probably one of the castle’s guests out for a hike.
She chewed and swallowed so she wouldn’t be caught with a mouthful, reaching for her water to wash it down. And then the bottle slipped from her fingers, landing in the leaf bed at her feet with a muffled thump.
Flynn stood in front of her on the path, wearing jeans and a forest green pullover jacket, his wavy brown hair as disreputably tousled as ever. She stood, facing him, blinking like an owl behind her glasses because…was he really here?Whywas he here?
“Hi,” he said quietly.
“Hi.”
“Elle told me I’d find you here.”
She nodded, her throat gone tight. “Yes, I told her where to find me. But why areyouhere?”
