Page 265 of Promise Not to Fall for the Rich & Famous

Ellie took it, and Nash pulled her into him, his other hand at her hip to encourage a sway in rhythm with his. “Ever since we were kids, we’d come out here at night, push the couches together. My folks are the ones who started the tradition when we were out here with Lloyd and Jackie. You can imagine the excitement of all those rowdy boys climbing onto this massive bed. Pops layered foam mattresses while we rounded up all the bedding, and Mama played this song.”

He gave her a spin before pulling her back in close. “We’d sing every word, belting it to the high heavens.”

“That’s a great memory,” Ellie said, sensing her troubles drifting further away as she welcomed the happy scene. She imagined creating memories like that for her own kids and welcomed another deep sense of happiness at the thought.

“Of course,” Nash said, “for tonight, we’ll have to fashion a pillow wall.”

“A pillow wall?” she asked, pulling back to quirk a brow at him.

“You heard Aunt Jackie. I need to behave, which means you can’t go getting handsy while we’re sharing the bed.”

Ellie gave him an indignant laugh. “Me?” She recalled the gentlemanly way he’d responded when his thumb glided above the waist of her jeans. Not only had he tugged the hem of her shirt back into place, but he’d also mentioned it afterward to make sure Ellie knew it’d been an accident. She wasn’t used to manners like that.

In fact, in the few relationships she’d had over the years, she’d experienced quite the opposite. An urgency of sorts and an entitlement that she hadn’t—at the time—been expecting.

She studied Nash for a moment, intrigued by the man he’d proven to be. How had they raised him to have so much honor and self-control? So much respect where women were concerned? Even if she did sense his passion and desire for more. He was not only physically strong, but he was also strong-willed, and she admired that.

Her gaze moved millimeters at a time as she appreciated the features that made up his face. His prominent jawline with a generous dusting of facial hair, the handsome set of his dark brows, and the hypnotizing effect of his honey, hazel eyes. “You are abnormally attractive. Has anyone ever told you that?”

He grinned. “Abnormal is a strong word,” he said, eyeing her face in return. “I prefer freakish. Freakishly attractive.”

She laughed and bumped his arm. “Okay.”

“And you,” he said, dropping his mouth to a spot just below her earlobe, “are impossibly attractive in every way.”

Ellie stifled a moan as he nibbled on her earlobe, causing a wave of pleasure to ripple through her. “Every is a strong word,” she said weakly.

“You’re right,” he rasped against her skin, the heat of his breath adding to the thrill. “There is the whole turkey jerky thing…”

Ellie giggled. “You should try it,” she urged.

Nash shook his head. “Sugar,” he murmured, “when your man raises cattle for a living, it’s time for poultry to move over for something…meatier.” He grazed her flesh with his teeth, releasing a low growl. “Speaking of which, let’s grill a few of those steaks in the freezer for tomorrow night.”

“Mmm hmm,” she purred, more in favor of what he was doing with that skilled mouth of his. A mouth that finally met hers in a deep, passionate kiss that had Ellie seeing a different set of stars.

It would take a long time to process what they’d been through; she knew that much. Their brush with death would likely haunt them for years to come, but the Copelands had been through similar traumas in recent years, and it hadn’t held them back.

She and Nash would get through it, and they’d have a whole lot of support as they did.

As a new song picked up, Nash brought their kiss to a slow end, then groaned against her lips. “I love you like crazy,” he said.

A delighted laugh bubbled in her throat. “I love you like…something crazier than crazy.”

He lifted a brow. “Something crazier than crazy?”

Her face flushed. “I couldn’t think of anything else,” she admitted through a laugh.

Nash shook his head. “No, it’s good. I think they should put it in a Hallmark card.” He took her hand and began leading herin another dance on the patio beneath the starlit sky. Crickets blended with the sweet melody as Nash instructed Ellie to twirl into him and then spin out before falling back into a casual sway and shuffle.

“What do you want to do now that you’re not acting anymore? Become an astronaut?”

She giggled. “Maybe. I do like the moon.”

“Who doesn’t?”

“Actually,” she said, recalling a conversation she’d had with Tucker at the ranch. “I’ve considered doing a bit of volunteer work.”

“Eh?”