Page 85 of Ruthless Riches
Nate sat up a moment later, leaning on one elbow. “We should get cleaned up. I have something to show you.”
I raised a brow. “Oh? What is it?”
“It’s a surprise.” He smacked my ass, making me giggle. “You’ll need to pack a bag with a few things.”
Fifteen minutes later, we were dressed and in the car, cruising down the coastal highway. I rested my head against the seat and stared out the window, letting out a contented sigh as I watched the sea breeze whip up little whitecaps over the glittering blue ocean.
When Nate and I returned to Avalon several months ago, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to stay for long. I thought there were too many bad memories here; too many places that would feel haunted. But it wasn’t like that at all. The second I stepped off the ferry and smelled the sweet, fresh island air, I realized the good memories I had of this place outweighed the bad by a huge margin.
It was my home.
It had its bad elements, of course. Everywhere did. But it was getting better, day by day, and having Nate by my side made it easy to enjoy all the good parts.
“How’s the book coming along?” he asked, glancing at me as the car idled at a stop sign.
“Very slowly,” I said with a rueful half-smile.
I’d recently started working on a book about our experiences with the Golden Circle last year. It wasn’t an attention-seeking gesture or a money-grab—I just found it cathartic to write it all out rather than keep it bottled up inside me.
When it was finally done, I wanted it to be available to everyone, so I planned to put it online for free. No publishing house, no promotional tours, no royalties. Just an easily-accessible book for anyone who was interested in the subject.
Nate had been supportive of the idea since I initially brought it up, because it was a chance for us to tell the story in our own words. We’d refused every media interview offered to us over the last eighteen months, so there was a lot of misinformation floating around online, along with a lot of purported quotes that neither of us actually ever said. My book would set the record straight on everything.
Nate also pointed out that I was essentially finishing my father’s last project for him by writing the book. I thought that was a nice way to look at it, and I planned to dedicate it to Dad to honor his memory.
“You’ll get there eventually,” Nate said, reaching a hand over to squeeze my knee.
I nodded. “Yeah. Laurel’s been helping a lot. She made some suggestions about the structure that will make it a lot better.”
“That’s good. She’s always had an eye for that sort of stuff.”
“Yeah, she’s amazing. I told you she got an award from the English department last semester, right?” I said.
“Yup.” Nate turned his attention back to the road and stepped on the gas. “By the way, we’re almost there.”
He steered the car onto a winding, tree-lined road. It led up to a dead end. He stopped there and turned to me with a devious grin lighting his handsome features.
“Uhh.. what am I missing?” I asked, looking around. “Are we going hiking or something?”
“No. This isn’t the real entrance. I just thought it would be better to sneak in the back way, so the surprise wouldn’t be spoiled as soon as we pulled up.”
I cocked my head. “Real entrance to what?”
“You’ll see.”
I smiled and let him take my hand, and he led me over to the right side of the road. He paused to punch a security code into a gate that was mostly hidden by shrubs and creeping ivy.
“There’s a fence all the way around here, but no one can see it from the road,” he said, pointing it out to me as we stepped through the gate. “Pretty cool, huh?”
“Sure, if you’re a fence enthusiast.”
He smacked my butt and grinned. “Smart-ass.”
There was a narrow path beyond the gate, leading through the woods. It ended after a hundred yards, opening into an enormous yard filled with lush greenery. Beyond that was a two story contemporary-style house made of wood and pale stone.
The outdoor area was a dream, with a massive deck, a lap pool with turquoise tiling, several gorgeous gardens, and a hulking oak with a treehouse.
Nate led me up to the house, tapped in another security code, and slid the wide glass door open. The fully-furnished interior was just as nice as the exterior. It was filled with natural light from all of the picture windows around the place, and it had an open floorplan that flowed seamlessly outside.
