PROLOGUE
LUCY SMITH WAS PASSIONATE about many things. It would have taken her at least fifteen minutes to list all the things she was passionate about—from cooking to books to music, to her furry companion, a mutt named Toby, who in the few years since she rescued him had yet to not be there for her through thick and thin. But most of all, Lucy was passionate about challenges. She could never, for the life of her, back down from one. Especially when what was at stake was her whole career, or at least that was what she thought.
Which was why she currently found herself on a train to a strange town before she’d even had a chance to really get her bearings around the city she had just moved to. Everyone had told her to rent a car, but Lucy figured a train ride would give her the time she needed to clear her head and perhaps more importantly, to prepare.
There was no doubt about it in her mind that it was a gutsy move. But Lucy was convinced. Deep down in her heart of hearts, she believed that if she could pull this off, the doors to all of her dreams would swing wide open for her.
She stared out the window and allowed herself to daydream for a moment as she tried to envision what that success might look like—a job writing for the likes of Clean magazine, the most widely read and respected health and wellness journal out there. This was the plan.
When Lucy eventually returned her attention back to the iPad in front of her, she tapped the screen and hit play again. She watched his face, studied his movements and listened carefully to the words he spoke, paying particular attention to the delivery. She watched it over and over again until she thought she had it all down. And then she watched it yet again. This time, she looked for clues about who he was, beyond just the man and the legend on the screen. She wanted to know what was driving him—what his motivation was and what made him tick.
Elijah Redford was the most renowned health and wellness gurus in the nation—and one of the top five in the world. He had taken his passion for the body and its movements and shaped it into an honest-to-god billion dollar empire. People were crazy about him. And rightly so. There were many wannabes out there—countless fitness and diet “experts” and spiritual gurus, all ready to help people “transform” their lives with the “best” workouts, nutrition tips and meditations that were supposed to save one’s figure, cure ailments with magical potions and elixirs, and fix a negative mindset. Some were frauds and some of them actually knew what they were talking about. But there was none like Elijah Redford.
Lucy had spent an embarrassing amount of time trying to figure out what it was about this guy that spoke to so many people. And then it finally dawned on her and she finally got it. It wasn’t just that his programs were brilliant or that he seemed to possess an uncanny ability to know exactly what the human body—any type of human body—needed. It was his passion. Elijah Redford was on fire with it, and he set you on fire in return. No one else in the fitness industry could compete with that.
Lucy could not believe her luck when she managed to score a press pass to the conference in Ojai, just one short three-hour train ride from Los Angeles. There was a chance that she might have gone anyway, just out of sheer curiosity and because everything health and wellness-related really was her jam. But it was Elijah Redford’s name on the attendee list that ultimately convinced her to go.
Lucy supposed the universe really did conspire to make things happen if one could find the courage to take a leap of faith.
She watched one more video before she forced herself to put the iPad away. It’s all about mindset, she told herself. She looked out the window again and watched the Californian landscape sweep by. If she could get a profile on Elijah Redford, she might have a real shot at writing for Clean magazine, which had been her very own bible ever since she discovered what the healthy living movement was all about. Hell, if all goes according to plan, she might very well have her pick of stories to cover and magazines to sell them to.
Her heart beat faster in her chest at the mere thought of the opportunity ahead of her. She could feel the ambition coursing through her veins. This plan was nothing short of brilliant.
Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she dug it out impatiently. She smiled as she saw the name of her best friend pop up on the display.
“Go get ‘em, tiger!”
An emoji of a cheerleader’s pom-poms completed the encouragement, to which she immediately replied, “Will do! I miss you!”
“Miss you too. I’ll be visiting before you know it. Go be awesome!”
Lucy couldn’t help but smile as she fired off a final reply and tucked her phone back in her pocket.
Whoever said that men and women couldn’t be friends never had a friend like Michael Dalloway. She and Michael had been best friends since high school, and she knew for a fact that not even her moving all the way to California from their Colorado home town of Glenwood Springs would be able to mess with their friendship.
She went back to staring out the window, her green eyes drinking in the landscape. Everything was different out here—the air, the sun, the trees and perhaps most of all, the people. She didn’t understand California—not fully, at least not yet. But she was determined she eventually would. She believed she just needed some time to adjust and get to know the place, and to let California get to know her in return. After all, she thought, moving to a new state or anywhere for that matter, was probably a lot like beginning a new relationship. It’s awkward at first. You study each other, pry cautiously because you don’t want to appear too eager and you go out on dates. You get familiar with each other—slowly, gradually. And then with the proper nurturing, the relationship blooms and becomes something. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to happen?
Her relationship with California was the only one she was interested in cultivating. She believed she was destined to live in California. Ever since she was little, playing with her Malibu Barbies, she dreamed of living in California like it was the Promised Land. And now as an adult, there was no doubt in her mind that the Golden State would play a critical part in her path to success. She didn’t have the time or patience for anything else. Guys? Dating? Jeesh… who had the time, the energy or the patience for all that? Lucy didn’t want distractions. She couldn’t afford them. Dreams required hard work and dedication and she wasn’t willing to give up her dreams for anything or anyone else.
When the train finally pulled into Ventura, where the nearest rail station to Ojai was, Lucy gathered up her things and stepped onto the platform. It was a typical Southern California summer night. The stars were just starting to come out in the sky. Lucy took a deep breath and filled her lungs with the fresh, warm Californian air, before she headed off to find a taxi, away from the tracks and out of the station.
Off the beaten path, she thought and smiled to herself. Because if there was one thing Lucy Smith was not afraid of, it was the unknown