Theo walked through the front doors of the castle the next morning and stopped short. The sound of piano music drifted out of the parlor. For a moment, he thought the women had brought in some kind of sound system, but then he spotted Elle seated at the piano. He’d always thought piano music to be rather sad, but the song she was playing felt different. Its tune and tempo made the whole room feel lighter and brighter.

He lingered in the doorway, listening.

After a few moments, something seemed to alert her to his presence because she glanced over her shoulder, and their gazes locked. His pulse quickened as he stepped inside the room. She flashed him a quick smile, her hands never faltering in their endless dance over the keys.

It was beautiful, nearly as beautiful as Elle herself.

The song ended with several high, staccato notes, and she turned on the piano bench to face him. “Colin told me no one’s played this piano in over thirty years.”

“He’s right,” Theo told her. “I’m surprised it’s still in tune.”

“It wasn’t,” Elle said. “Colin lent me a set of tools, and I downloaded an app onto my phone that helped me tune it myself, although a few of the keys are still tricky.”

Resourceful. He liked that about her. Or maybe he just liked her. “That’s not easy to do, or so I’m told.”

Elle trailed her fingers lightly over the keys. “My piano teacher taught me the basics years ago. He thought we ought to understand how they worked as well as how to play them.”

“You play beautifully.”

She blushed, glancing over her shoulder at him. “Thank you. I’ve been playing since I was a little girl, but it’s been ages since I’ve had a piano as nice as this one to play on. Such a shame no one uses it.”

“Precisely why I’m selling the place.” He raised his eyebrows for emphasis.

“I’d like to talk to you about that.” She stood from the piano bench. Today, she wore a purple and green patterned top with a long, flowing skirt. Automatically, his eyes tracked to her feet to see if her shoes were as fuck-me-hot as yesterday’s, but they were hidden within the folds of her skirt.

“You’ve made your decision?” He raised his gaze to her eyes.

“Sort of. Do you have a minute?”

“I do, but only a few. I have to jump on a conference call with London at nine thirty.”

“I’ll be quick.” Elle scooped up a handful of papers from the top of the piano, and that’s when he realized she’d been waiting for him.

“Where are your friends?” he asked.

“Sunning it up by the pool.” She brushed past him, walking briskly toward his office.

“And why aren’t you with them?” he asked as he followed.

“Because I was waiting for you,” she told him with a backward glance, confirming his suspicion.

“Because you’ve ‘sort of’ made a decision about my offer.” He eyed the paperwork in her hands as he allowed himself to be led to his own office by this whirlwind of a woman.

She walked to the table where he’d sat with them yesterday, smoothing her fingers over the papers. “Actually, we’d like to propose a compromise.”

“A compromise?” He rested his hands on the seat back before him.

She nodded.

“You want more money?” He’d already made them a generous offer, but the truth was, it would cost a pretty penny to keep this place sitting around for another six months, so if they wanted more money, he might not have any choice but to pay them.

“No.” She squared her shoulders, meeting his gaze. “We want a chance to prove ourselves.”

He shook his head. “Look, none of this was about you in the first place. It’s just business. I need to sell Rosemont Castle whether you take the deal I offered or not, so it seems to be in everyone’s best interest if we wrap things up sooner rather than later.”

“But it’s not just business.” Elle lifted her chin. “This castle is a part of your family’s heritage, and we can help you save it.”

He sighed, drumming his fingers against the chair. “There’s nothing to save.”

“That’s ridiculous. How could you even say such a thing?”

“Excuse me?”

She rested her knuckles on the table, leaning toward him. “In case you haven’t noticed, this castle is one of a kind. Your grandfather built it out of love, and he thought it was important enough to save.”

“What makes you say that?” He leaned in too, his face mere inches from hers, his frustration dueling with his desire to kiss her.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Her gaze dropped to his lips for a moment before returning to his eyes. “That’s why he reached out to Modern Home and Gardens. He wanted to find someone to manage the property for him and breathe new life into it.”

“Or he was an overindulgent old man who never stopped to think about the financial ramifications of his decisions.”

Elle looked so affronted that, for a moment, he thought she might slap him. “What a terrible thing to say about your grandfather!”

“You’re right.” He straightened, returning some space between them. “I have nothing but the utmost regard for my grandfather. However, he was rather more attached to this place than any of the rest of us.”

“But I still think—”

He held up a hand to silence her. “Look, the truth is that this castle should never have been built. It was an expensive, unnecessary indulgence when the family already has a sizeable estate and several other residences in England. My grandfather was fond of grand gestures, and this was his gesture of love for Rose, but it is utterly impractical to keep Rosemont Castle in the family now that he’s gone.”

“But this castle meant something to him, something he wanted to preserve, and isn’t that alone worth at least trying to save it?” She clasped her hands in front of herself.

He dragged his fingers through his hair. “You didn’t even know him. Why are we arguing about this?”

“Because I think you’re making a mistake. And I want a chance to stay. Maybe Rosemont Castle shouldn’t have been built, but it was, and now it’s part of your family’s legacy, whether you like it or not.” She reached for the papers she’d set down on the table. “So will you at least hear me out?”

He drew a deep breath and blew it out. “No.”

Elle froze, an expression of disbelief on her face. “No?”

“My mind’s not going to change so there’s no point dragging this out any further.”

“I’m sorry to have wasted your time.” With a look that could have frozen hell itself, she stormed out of the room.

Elle’s lungs burned as she jogged along the mulched path that curved around behind the stables. After her meeting with Theo, she’d let Megan and Ruby know the outcome and then gone upstairs to change into her running gear. And maybe she’d set a blistering pace for herself, but dammit she was furious. And disappointed. And hurt. And ugh. She’d fancied Theo as some sort of modern day Prince Charming when they first met, but he was turning out to be more of a beast.

She ran until she was too out of breath to think about anything but dragging enough oxygen into her lungs. At the far end of the property, she came across a pond with an adorable gazebo in the middle, connected to the shore by a wooden walkway. She slowed down, jogging the perimeter of the pond to take it in. Absolutely everything about Rosemont Castle was beautiful and picturesque, and it was so unfair that she wouldn’t get the chance to stay.

Ruby and Megan both wanted to take Theo’s payout now that he’d refused to even hear her compromise. So that was that. Elle would just have to pack up her dreams and hope that her next venture—whatever that might be—turned into something fabulous.

Her cell phone rang through her earbuds, interrupting the lively Rihanna tune that had set the tempo for the last few minutes of her jog. She glanced down at her armband and saw her dad’s name on the cell phone’s display. And then she almost let it go to voicemail, because she was in no mood for a chat with her dad, but she hadn’t talked to him since she arrived at Rosemont Castle.

She paused for a moment to catch her breath and connected the call.

“Hi, Elle. It’s Dad.”

She smiled in spite of herself. Her father always started phone conversations this way, as if she wouldn’t have recognized his voice even if she didn’t have caller ID. “I know. Hi, Dad.”

“How are you? All settled in at the castle?”

“Yes, although it looks like I won’t be staying as long as I thought.” She swiped at a flyaway strand of hair as she walked out to the gazebo in the middle of the pond, explaining everything that had happened since she arrived.

“Stick to your guns. He can’t just kick you out.”

“He’s not kicking us out. He’s buying us out.” She leaned against the railing, staring down into the greenish water below. A turtle stared back at her, blinking lazily.

“Well, you know you’re welcome at our house if you need a place to stay when you get back. Maybe it’s time to think about finally working on a degree, at least part time.”

“Thanks for the offer. I appreciate it.” She ignored his comment about college. Her father came from the mindset that everyone ought to go to college, get a degree, and find a steady, dependable job afterward. It’s what both of his other daughters had done. Elle—as usual—hadn’t followed the expected path.

“Francesca would be more than happy to help,” he said. Elle’s half-sister Francesca was a professor at the University of Central Florida.

“I’ll think about it,” she told him.

The turtle blinked again and ducked beneath the surface, its back legs kicking wildly as it disappeared from sight. Elle fought the urge to follow.

“I’ll have her call you,” her dad said. “And let us know when to expect you back in Orlando.”

“I will. Thanks, Dad.” She said goodbye and ended the call, feeling indescribably alone there in that gazebo, as though she were stranded on an island while the rest of the world went on without her. It had been that way ever since her mom died.

Elle had gone to live with her father and his family, but she’d never quite fit in. Her half-sisters Francesca and Valerie were fifteen and seventeen, while Elle had been just ten. They’d gotten upset every time she mentioned her mother, and when Elle had finally worked up the courage to ask why, Valerie told her to “do the math.”

It took Elle some time to figure out what that meant, but when she got it, she understood everything. Her father had been married to their mother, Delilah, since before they were born, which meant Elle—as the youngest sister—was the product of an affair. Delilah and her father had worked things out, but Elle was a constant reminder to everyone of his indiscretion, and as a result, her years in their home had been awkward and painful, and there was no way in hell she’d ever move back in with them.

She shoved the phone back into her armband and cranked up her music, jogging down the wooden bridge out of the gazebo. Ever since her mom lost her battle with cancer, Elle had been forging her own path through life. She wasn’t sure what the next chapter would bring—not yet—but she’d pick herself up and keep on going until she found where she was supposed to be.

She jogged toward the castle, circling around behind it to see if Megan and Ruby were still at the pool. Now that she’d run off her anger, she might join them. But when the pool came into view, there was only one person standing beside it.

Theo stood with his hands in his pockets, still dressed in the gray button-down shirt and slacks he’d had on when she’d spoken to him that morning. He gazed toward the woods behind the castle, his expression so intense, so raw, so sad, that she stopped in her tracks. Feeling like an intruder on this private moment and since he hadn’t spotted her yet, she turned and jogged off in the opposite direction.

Theo worked until the sun set, and then he worked some more. It seemed his obligations as the earl were never-ending. He’d always been heavily involved with the family charity, but now he was expected to show up for photo ops and provide a public “face” for the organization. He’d always known he would someday become the Earl of Highcastle, he just hadn’t expected that day to come so soon. After all, the Duke of Edinburgh was ninety-seven and still active. His grandfather had been only seventy and in great health. Theo had planned to be here at Rosemont Castle this month visiting him, not wrapping up his affairs.

He didn’t like the way he’d left things with Elle that morning, didn’t like being stuck here in America when he had pressing duties back in England, didn’t like much at all about his current situation. By the time he left his office, the castle was quiet. It was always this way here late at night, but since his grandfather’s death, the silence felt too complete. It seemed to echo down the halls as he walked.

Hungry and irritable, he stopped in the kitchen for a beer and a handful of Lucky Charms from the box in the pantry. Lucky Charms had always been his favorite cereal, and they were all but impossible to find in London. On second thought, he grabbed the box and brought it with him. As he left the kitchen, the door to the game room caught his eye, and before he realized what he was doing, he’d opened it. He flicked the switch, and light flooded the room.

It looked exactly like he remembered. The pool table stood prominently in the center of the room, flanked on one side by the shuffleboard table with the heavy wooden gaming table on the other side. Mahogany cabinets along the wall contained—if memory served—chess, checkers, poker chips, cards, and a variety of board games. A dart board was mounted to the far wall near the bar. The faint scent of cigar smoke still lingered in the air. His grandfather had been a traditional man. Not a single game in the room required a plug.

Theo chewed and swallowed a mouthful of Lucky Charms as he walked to the dart board. He set down his beer and the cereal and grabbed a handful of darts. His first toss went wide, and the dart fell to the hardwood floor with a clatter. His second dart found its home, hitting a double ring. Damn, but he’d spent a lot of hours in here as a kid. His grandfather had taught him how to play every game and then kicked his ass at every single one.

He smiled at the memory. This had been one of his favorite rooms in the castle when he was growing up. He tossed a few more darts and then walked to the cabinets along the wall. He couldn’t resist the temptation to poke through their contents. As with the rest of the room, nothing seemed to have changed. He felt a rush of nostalgia as he held the hand-carved chess set he and his grandfather had spent so many hours sitting in front of. He’d felt like Superman the first time he won a game.

The sound of a woman clearing her throat behind him yanked him back to reality. He turned to find Elle leaning against the doorway, her hair a mess of loose curls over her shoulders, wearing a pink tank top and pink plaid pajama shorts, a glass of red wine in one hand.

He had no idea how long he’d been in here, but it was late. The castle beyond the game room was dark and silent.

“I didn’t mean to disturb you,” Elle said softly.

“You didn’t.” He closed the door to the cabinet and stood. “I was just poking around in here and lost track of time.”

“Either that or you were about to play a game of chess against yourself,” she said, a smile playing about her lips.

“Believe it or not, I’m not that hard up for companionship.” He was trying very hard not to notice Elle’s breasts beneath the thin fabric of her tank top or the way her nipples had hardened from the cool breeze of the air conditioning.

“Oh, I believe it. You are the ‘Earl of Lure,’ after all,” she said, her eyes sparkling mischievously.

“Saw that, did you?” The press in England had lost its mind where he was concerned. It was one thing he didn’t miss while he was here in America.

She walked a few steps into the room, her gaze locked on his. “Are you going to try to lure me in with one of your smoldering looks?”

“No.” But he sure as hell wanted to. Right now, he couldn’t think of anything except how much he wanted to touch her, taste her pink lips, kiss her until all the chaos inside him was silenced.

She held his gaze for a long, loaded moment, then turned to look around at all the various games and decorations lining the walls. “So is this the royal equivalent of a man cave?”

“I suppose it is.”

She took a sip of her wine. “I just snuck down to the kitchen for a drink. It’s kind of nice here at night when the place is quiet and empty.”

He nodded. He’d always preferred the solitude of nighttime at the castle.

“I mean, don’t get me wrong, Colin and the rest of the staff are wonderful, but it’s nice to be able to walk around in my pajamas.” She glanced down, as if seeing herself for the first time as he was seeing her, and crossed her arms over her chest. Her cheeks bloomed pink. “But, well, I wasn’t expecting to run into you.”

“I worked late. I was just about to head down to the guest house for the night.”

“Oh. Well, I won’t keep you.” She turned to leave.

“Wait.” He shoved his hands into his pockets to keep from reaching for her as she turned to face him. She smelled sweet like some kind of flowery perfume, and it was seriously messing with his head. “About this morning…”

She cocked her head slightly to one side. “Yes?”

“I was an ass not to at least let you explain your idea.” And the knowledge had been resting uncomfortably in his gut all day. Not only had he been an ass not to hear her out, but by pissing her off, he’d also endangered the chances of Elle and her friends agreeing to take his payout, which was just plain stupid on his part.

“Yes, you were.” She walked around to the opposite side of the pool table, positioning it between them.

“Would you like to explain it to me now?”

She sipped from her wine, her cheeks slightly flushed. “Right now?”

“If you’d like.” He rested his knuckles against the table’s green felt surface.

“Well, I don’t have my spreadsheet with me, but I suppose I could bring that to you tomorrow morning if you’re willing to consider my idea?”

He nodded. “Yes.”

“Okay.” She sucked in a deep breath, and it was all he could do not to stare at her breasts through that paper-thin pajama top. “You offered to pay us if we’ll treat this like a vacation and leave after a few weeks, but we’d like to propose a compromise. We stay three months and give it our all with the business plan that won us this opportunity from Modern Home and Gardens, plus a few new ideas we’ve had since we got here. Even taking our salaries into account, we think we could generate enough income for you to justify keeping Rosemont Castle in the Langdon family.”

He studied her, seeing a spark of excitement and determination in her eyes that he hadn’t seen before. “I see what’s in it for you, but what’s in it for me if I’ve already decided to sell?”

“It’s a chance to preserve a piece of your heritage. You can go home to London, and Megan, Ruby, and I will manage the castle for you. If we’re as successful as we hope to be, we could even turn a profit for you.”

“And if my feelings don’t change?”

“Then you can pay us off at the end of three months, and we’ll leave. Or you can use our business as an added selling point to your potential buyers.”

He came around the table to stand before her. “Why should I give you three months when I want you out next week?”

She tilted her head up to meet his eyes. “Because your grandfather would have wanted you to.”

The air between them was charged with something a lot warmer and more intimate than the situation called for. His pulse pounded hot and fast through his veins. “That was quite a sales pitch.”

“So what do you say?” she asked, her green eyes locked on his.

Hell no is what he ought to say, but he couldn’t force them to take his offer and leave right away, and three months was a lot shorter than six. “Before I say yes, I need you to understand that my position on selling is unlikely to change.”

Something new lit in Elle’s eyes, a light and a passion that had nothing to do with the heat still shimmering in the air between them. “Does that mean—”

“Yes.”

“Yes?” She leaned forward, so close she almost spilled wine down the front of his shirt.

“Three months.” He slid the wineglass from her grasp and set it on the pool table beside them. “And then I absolutely must return to London full-time.”

She nodded briskly, extending her right hand. “We’ve got a deal.”