Theo laced his fingers with Elle’s as they walked down the path toward the guest house. The basset hound, Louie, loped at his side, head down, nose twitching as he sniffed each brick that passed beneath his paws.

“What a day.” Elle leaned against Theo, exhaustion evident in the weight of her words.

“It has been.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, drawing her closer. He’d spent the afternoon playing catch-up on work while Elle got Megan and her family settled into the castle for the night and took care of their guests. “You’re stiff,” he commented, feeling the tension in her muscles beneath his fingers.

“Sore. Tired. Stressed.” She rolled her neck, and it popped beneath his fingers.

“I know what you need,” he said.

“Is that so?” She tossed a suggestive look in his direction.

“Actually, I wasn’t talking about sex, but that sounds good too. I was going to suggest a hot bath and a glass of wine.”

“Oh.” She rested her head on his shoulder. “That sounds heavenly, now that you mention it.”

“I don’t think you’ve tried out my tub yet.”

“I haven’t.” She leaned against the side of the house while he opened the door for them and then headed straight down the hall in the direction of the bathroom. “Care to join me?”

“Sure would. You get started while I pour us some wine.” He unclipped Louie’s leash, and the dog promptly curled up on the living room floor and went to sleep. Laziest dog of all time, but hey, it made him the perfect houseguest, as far as Theo was concerned. He walked to the bar, opened a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, and poured two glasses, which he carried with him to the bathroom.

Elle sat perched on the edge of the tub, watching the water as it ran from the faucet. “I guess I’ll forgive you for not having any bath bombs or anything to put in it.”

“Bath bombs?” He frowned. “Is that like bubble bath?”

She gave him an amused look. “Bubble bath is for kids. Bath bombs are for adults. They have oils to moisturize your skin and for aromatherapy. They’re lovely. You should try them sometime.”

“I’ll take your word for it. I do have Epsom salts, though. They’re good for muscle aches.”

“Oh, perfect.”

He set down the wineglasses and rummaged through the cabinet until he came up with the bag of Epsom salt, then dumped a small amount into the bath. Elle reached behind her back to unzip her dress. It fell to the floor, leaving her in a flesh-toned bra and panties, which soon joined the dress in a heap on the tile as she sank into the tub.

“God, that feels good.” She leaned back, propping a towel behind her head.

Theo was getting aroused just watching her. He shucked his clothes and slid in opposite her, their legs tangling in the center of the tub. “Can’t remember the last time I took a bath.”

“I take them often, but my tub isn’t nearly as nice as yours. I do have lots of nice bath accessories, though.” She gave him a coy look as she reached for her glass of wine.

“What kind of accessories?” he asked, because something about the way she said it sounded sexier than bath bombs.

“Oils and bath bombs and scented candles,” she said, sliding lower in the water. “My little tub up at the castle doesn’t have jets, which can be nice for, you know…”

Was she talking about masturbating in the tub, or had his mind just taken a wide turn and fallen into the gutter? Either way, his dick rose to the challenge, hardening beneath the water.

Elle glanced at it, and a flush spread across her cheeks. “But my vibrator is waterproof. I took a lot of baths before we started sleeping together.”

“Fuck.”

“After our bath,” she said with a wicked wink. “I’m supposed to be relaxing right now.”

He pressed the button to turn on the jets and motioned for her to come toward him. He spun her so that she leaned against his chest and brought his hands to her shoulders, working his fingers into the knots in her muscles.

“Mmm.” Elle dropped her head to the side. “You have such nice hands.”

“Keep talking like that, and we might not stay in the tub very long.”

“Don’t care,” she mumbled. “As long as you keep doing that.”

“Happy to oblige.” And he was. There was something uniquely satisfying about holding her in his arms, working the tension from a long, stressful day out of her shoulders.

She reached for her wineglass, making her muscles ripple beneath his fingers. “I still can’t believe you sold the castle.”

He sank his fingers into a knot between her shoulder blades, drawing a low moan from her lips. “I’m sorry, Elle.”

“I’m still mad at you. Don’t think just because I’m leaning on you after the car accident that I’ve forgotten.” There was a fierceness in her tone that he hadn’t heard in a while. It reminded him of the way she’d sounded that first afternoon in his office, when he’d told her he planned to sell, and she’d fought so hard to stay.

“I know you haven’t forgotten.” He kept massaging her neck and shoulders, trying not to feel the weird tightness that took up residence in his chest every time he thought of selling the castle…of hurting Elle…of losing her.

“We have to talk about it soon, just maybe not tonight.” With a sigh, she leaned back against him, letting her blonde hair spill over his shoulders. It smelled like honey and flowers, everything sweet and beautiful like the woman in his arms. She squirmed against him. “How am I supposed to relax with that thing poking me in the back?”

“This thing?” He shifted his hips, letting his cock press more firmly against her.

“Mm hmm,” she said, sounding restless and aroused.

He let one of his hands drift from her shoulder to her breast, pinching her nipple, before continuing its journey over the soft plane of her stomach. Her breath hitched as he dipped between her legs, brushing against the slickness he found there. “Maybe this will help.”

In response, she lifted her hips, allowing him better access. He turned his head, kissing her a bit awkwardly due to the angle, their tongues moving clumsily against each other. He pressed one finger inside her while his thumb circled her clit, drawing a breathless gasp from Elle.

“Don’t stop,” she whispered.

“Wasn’t planning to.” He added a second finger, stroking in and out, letting his fingers drift up over her clit on each stroke.

She threw her head back, panting, her hips moving to the rhythm he’d set. “Theo…”

“I’ve got you.” He brought his free hand down to cup her breast.

She panted, thrusting her hips against him, and he stroked harder, faster, letting his wrist rub against her clit as he worked, and soon her body was tensing, her inner walls clamping around his fingers as she came. She turned her head, her lips meeting his in a messy, desperate kiss that lit every cell in his body on fire.

This woman…

Her body went limp in his arms as he slid his fingers carefully from her body, coming to rest on her stomach. She rested her face against his neck, breathing slow and deep. They stayed like that for a long minute as she caught her breath. She moved first, sitting up and reaching for her towel. She slid out of the water, wrapping the towel around herself with a sated smile on her lips. “Ready to move this into the bedroom?”

Elle woke in Theo’s bed sometime during the night. Her heart felt full to bursting and painfully broken at the same time. Megan was leaving today, going home to Florida. She wouldn’t be back before they closed the doors on their program here at the castle forever. Elle and Ruby would host their charity ball without her, pose for their photoshoot for Modern Home and Gardens without her. Before Elle knew it, tears were streaming down her cheeks.

Theo’s arm came around her, warm and solid. “Shh, it’s okay.”

“This isn’t how it was supposed to end,” she whispered.

“I know.”

“Why does nothing ever work out the way it’s supposed to?” She swiped at her eyes, sinking into his chest as she tried to staunch the flow of tears.

“Well, some would argue that it does. It’s just not the way you thought it was going to be.”

She sucked in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. She needed to calm down so she could get back to sleep, but she felt like she was suffocating under the weight of all the emotions churning inside her. “It’s so unfair that Megan’s missing our last week here, and the ball, and the photoshoot for the magazine.”

“You’re right. It’s not fair.”

“I just feel sick about it.”

“I know you do.”

“It just feels like everything in life eventually turns to shit. I’d finally found something amazing here at the castle, and with you. And now Megan’s hurt. I’ve lost my job here, and you’re going back to England…”

Theo went very still and quiet behind her. “My decision to sell had nothing to do with our relationship. You know that, right?”

“My head knows it. My heart’s not so sure.” She hated the words as soon as they’d left her mouth. They sounded so small and needy.

“Elle.” He tugged at her arm. “Turn around and look at me.”

She did, finding his eyes in the dark. God, why were they doing this now, in the middle of the night? She was so tired. And wired. And hurt. “I’m looking.”

“He made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. What happens between us when it’s time for me to return to London has no bearing on it, okay? You’re important to me, and I don’t want to fuck this up any more than I already have.”

Her heart squeezed painfully. “What will happen, though, Theo? When it’s time for you go to back.”

“I don’t know. I had intended to cut ties here in America, but I’m not sure that will be as easy as I’d thought.”

“I don’t want to lose you.” She wound her arms around him, pressing her face against his chest. His heart beat beneath her cheek, not slow and steady like she was accustomed to, but hard and fast like maybe his emotions were as messed up as hers were. Or maybe he was just afraid she was about to cause a big scene when he wanted a clean break.

But he’d said leaving wouldn’t be as easy as he’d thought…

“I don’t want to lose you either,” he said softly, one of his hands brushing across her hair in a gesture so tender that fresh tears welled in her eyes.

“I love you.” The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them, hanging between them in the dampness of her breath. Theo’s heart lurched beneath her cheek. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping, praying he might say it back, even when she knew it was wishful thinking. She wasn’t sure Theo understood enough about love to articulate it, even if he felt it.

“I…Elle…dammit.”

She heard the panic in his voice, felt it rising in her own chest. Dammit, indeed. She lifted her head, brought her lips to his. “Shh. Don’t say anything. Just think about it and know how much you mean to me. I don’t know what the answer is either, but if you want to try to figure something out when it’s time for us to leave here next week, let’s talk then, okay?”

“Okay.” He kissed her back, his arms wrapped around her so tightly she could hardly draw breath. “I don’t have much experience with love, but you mean more to me than any woman ever has, and that’s the damn truth.”

A tear escaped her eye, burning its way to her hairline. “That’s a really beautiful thing to say. Thank you.”

“I feel like I’ve been fucking things up with you from the beginning, and I’m sorry for it. I just don’t know how to make any of this work.”

“I don’t either,” she whispered. “But let’s not give up until we’ve exhausted all our options, okay?”

“Okay.”

Oddly, she felt lighter and calmer now that she’d told him how she felt, like a weight had been lifted. With his arms around her, she closed her eyes and finally drifted back to sleep.

Neither of them brought up Elle’s middle of the night confession as they got dressed the next morning. Theo seemed fairly unaffected, or at least he didn’t look like he was about to run for the hills because she’d told him she loved him. They got ready together and walked Louie with them to the castle for breakfast. Unlike yesterday, though, she and Theo parted in the hallway with a quick kiss. He headed for his office, and she brought Louie upstairs before meeting Ruby in the kitchen.

“Good morning,” Ruby said, sipping coffee as she stared at Elle with slightly narrowed eyes through her backup glasses.

“Morning.” Elle slid onto a stool beside her. “Have you seen Megan? Her door was closed when I brought Louie up, so I didn’t want to disturb her.”

Ruby shook her head. “She’s been really quiet since the accident. I’m worried about her.”

“Me too.” Elle allowed the feeling that had been tugging uncomfortably in her gut for the last day to surface. “It’s not just the physical pain, I don’t think.”

“No.” Ruby tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear. “I’m not calling Megan vain or anything, believe me, but to think about potentially having scars like that…”

Elle nodded quickly. “It would be hard for anyone, but Megan’s always been the pretty one, the popular one, the one who turns men’s heads wherever we go. This is…it just sucks.”

“It does.” Ruby toyed with her bottom lip, looking over at Elle. “She’ll still be beautiful, you know? Even with scars.”

“Of course, she will.”

“It’ll just be an adjustment. A hard one.”

“I hate that she won’t be here for the ball. The whole thing was her idea.” Elle fidgeted with the sleeve of her dress. “It’s so unfair.”

Ruby nodded solemnly.

Elle grabbed her in an impulsive hug. “We’ll help Megan through this. We’ll get through it together. We will.”

“We will,” Ruby repeated, clinging to Elle for a moment before she straightened in her seat. “Friends hold each other up when times get tough.”

“I’m so grateful for you guys. You have no idea.” Elle couldn’t imagine life without Ruby and Megan. They’d been her lifeline, tethering her to the zigzagging course of her life for so long she couldn’t remember a time without them.

“Ditto.”

They ate together, served breakfast, and then climbed the stairs to check on Megan. They found her already up and dressed, with a silver breakfast tray beside her bed and her parents bustling around the room, helping her pack.

“Morning,” Elle said hesitantly from the doorway.

Megan turned, giving her a half-smile. “Holding down the fort without me?”

“We’ve totally got it covered, don’t you worry.”

“You just focus on getting better,” Ruby added.

“Don’t have too much fun without me,” Megan said, but her teasing tone fell flat, and then all three of them were hugging, clinging to each other through a mixture of laughter and tears.

“It won’t be the same without you,” Elle told her. “Come back if you feel ready, okay?”

Megan nodded, but her eyes slid away toward the window. “I think I just need to lay low and lick my wounds—so to speak—for a while.”

Ruby nodded sagely. “We’ll be home before you know it, and then we’ll figure it all out together.”

“We will,” Elle promised, hugging her tighter.

“You girls warm my heart,” Ruth said from behind them. “Megan is so lucky to have you.”

“And we’re lucky to have her,” Elle said, hearing the tremor in her voice.

They said their goodbyes—which involved a lot of tears—and then Elle and Ruby headed upstairs to Ruby’s room to reconvene on everything they needed to get done over the next ten days. They had guests to tend to, pets to adopt out, and a charity ball to oversee. Big glamorous events were Megan’s forte. Already, Elle felt her absence like a physical loss.

“You and I should go dress shopping,” she told Ruby.

Her friend shook her head. “Not in the budget. We need to pinch every penny to save for our next venture.”

“But…” Elle fought the sinking feeling in her stomach as she heard the truth in Ruby’s words. “We’re never going to get to do anything like this again. A ball in a castle? We should go all out.”

“I’ve got three properties lined up for us to see once we’re home,” Ruby told her resolutely. “We can’t afford to spend money on fancy dresses right now, Elle. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Elle said, trying to keep the disappointment out of her tone. “You’re right.”

“Besides, I’m sure you have enough pretty things in your closet that we can pick through.”

She did, but it wasn’t the same as picking out something new, especially for this event. Ruby was right, though. They’d be leaving the castle in just over a week, and it was time to focus on the future.

With that settled, they discussed all the final details of the guest list, the menu, and the raffle to benefit the shelter. Priya would be attending with several other volunteers from the shelter and plenty of adoptable animals. Guests would be able to meet and mingle with the shelter pets, and hopefully, it would result in lots of adoptions.

The next few days were a whirlwind. Elle and Ruby were too busy to worry about how everything was going to play out. Saturday rolled around with a full house—every room in the castle booked, which was typical for weekends these days.

Theo caught up to her as she rushed from the kitchen toward the stairwell to take Louie out before giving what would be her last public tour. “What can I do? What do you need?” he asked, sliding his arms around her to draw her in for a quick kiss.

“Just that,” she murmured against his lips. “Thank you.”

“How is everything coming together for the ball?”

“Good, I think. If Ruby and I have overlooked anything, we haven’t realized it yet.”

“I doubt you have,” he said, sounding much more confident than she felt. “Between the two of you, you’ve got more than enough brain power to make this the event to end all events here at Rosemont Castle.”

She nudged her shoulder against his. “Not that you ever host events here for comparison.”

He shrugged, his eyes twinkling at her. “I have full confidence in you.”

“Thank you.”

“I want you and Ruby to go shopping, buy the fanciest dresses you can find, accessories, shoes, everything. My treat.”

“What?” Her breath caught in her throat.

“You ladies have been extremely frugal with your expenses during your time here, almost ridiculously so.”

“Theo, you don’t have to—”

“Obviously, I don’t have to,” he cut her off, amusement in his tone. “I want to. Go shopping. Have fun. Spend as much as you want and charge it to the castle. Okay?”

“If you insist,” she acquiesced with a soft smile, ridiculously happy that she’d get to go shopping after all but not entirely comfortable with using his money this way. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Buy something that will suitably dazzle me.” He winked at her.

“I’ll do my best.”

“I’m flying to London on Monday and will probably be there most of the week,” he told her. “But I’ll be back before the ball.”

She swallowed past the disappointment that rose in her chest. Theo would be gone most of her last week at the castle. Their time together was measured in hours now, not days. He’d given her no indication that he returned her feelings or made plans to see her again after they’d both left Rosemont Castle. In fairness, he hadn’t done anything to make her think he was distancing himself from her either. But now he was leaving…

“I know you’re busy, but please try to be here for the ball.” She knew she sounded needy, but she couldn’t help it. “It would really mean a lot to me.”

He captured her lips with a heady kiss. “I wouldn’t miss it. Promise.”