Page 86 of Rockstar Next Door Neighbor

“It’s where I learned to cook,” she says, straightening up. “Grandma and I would spend weeks here in the summer. She taught me all her recipes right here.” Her voicesoftens with memory. “After she died, I would come to the cabin. It helped, being surrounded by her favorite place.”

I wrap my arms around her from behind, pulling her against my chest. She sighs and leans back into me.

“Thank you for sharing this with me,” I murmur against her hair.

“It’s the perfect place to hide out.”

I chuckle. “Not exactly how I planned to start our relationship.”

“Oh?” She turns in my arms, raising an eyebrow. “You had plans?”

“Maybe.” I can’t help but smile at her playful tone. “They definitely involved less paparazzi and more actual dates.”

“This counts as a date,” she declares. “A very long, very private date.”

“I like the sound of that.” I lean down to kiss her again, but she ducks away with a laugh.

“First, I need to check the generator and make sure everything’s running properly. Then I’ll make us some lunch.”

“I can help,” I offer, following her to the back door.

She pauses with her hand on the knob, giving me an amused look. “With the generator or the meal?”

“Both? Neither? Whatever keeps me close to you.”

Her expression softens. “You’re already close to me, Luke. That’s kind of the point of all this.”

The simple truth of it hits me then—we’re here, together—starting something real. No more having to pretend, no more holding back. Just us, in this beautiful hidden place, with nothing but time.

As if reading my thoughts, Lila stretches up on her tiptoes and kisses me softly. “Come on, rockstar. Let me show you how we rough it in the forest.”

The day unfolds slowly and peacefully. We check the generator (which Lila handles with surprising expertise). We have a simple lunch—just sandwiches, if you can call anything that Lila prepares simple.

Afterward, she shows me the different trails that lead through the forest. As dinner time approaches, I help her prepare a quick but delicious meal. If anything, my appetite is even more evident, but Lila just laughs, stating it has something to do withthe fresh air.

As night falls, we settle on the porch swing, listening to the chorus of frogs and keeping an eye out for deer in the clearing.

Lila fits perfectly against my side, her head resting on my shoulder. The gentle back-and-forth of the swing matches the rhythm of our breathing, and for the first time in months, I feel completely at peace.

“What are you thinking about?” Lila asks softly.

I press a kiss to her temple. “How grateful I am that you had this escape plan ready.”

She laughs quietly. “I wouldn’t call it a plan exactly. More like... a hope?”

“You hoped we’d need to hide from the press?”

“I hoped we’d need somewhere to be alone together,” she corrects, snuggling closer. “The press part is just an inconvenient bonus.”

I tilt her chin up, meeting her eyes in the growing darkness. “We have two whole weeks of being alone together.”

“Whatever will we do with all that time?” Her voice is innocent, but the sultry look in her eyes is not.

Instead of answering, I kiss her, slow and deep, pouring everything I feel into it. She responds eagerly, turning in my arms until she’s practically in my lap, her fingers threading through my hair.

When we finally break apart, we’re both breathing hard, and the swing is swaying erratically.

“Maybe we should take this inside,” Lila suggests, her voice husky.

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