Ashton was standing at the door, just looking at the stairs. For a moment, I thought he might change his mind and call John to take us back. Then he turned and held out a hand to me, the mysterious bag in the other. I felt the tension leave my body, all of my insecurities of a moment ago faded away.
My hand slipped into his, weaving our fingers together. The warmth infused my skin, chasing away the cold. We walked the steps hand in hand, toward the jeep that sat on the tarmac in front of us.
“Here, you might need this.” He reached into the bag and pulled out a hooded sweatshirt.
“Thank you.” I put the sweatshirt on and climbed into the jeep.
Once he was settled in the driver’s seat, I looked over at him. He was such a handsome man. I had to force myself to believe I wasn’t dreaming. “Still not going to tell me where we are.”
“You’ll see in a minute.” He started the car and took off toward the front gate.
When we passed through, I thought my eyes might fall out of my head. I couldn’t have seen the sign correctly. Reaching over, he placed a finger under my chin and closed my mouth.
“Close your mouth, before the bugs fly in.”
“The Grand Canyon? You brought me to the Grand Canyon?”
It was a place I’d always wanted to go, but never in a million years thought I’d find myself.
“I had a feeling you’d never been here, and I thought sunrise would a spectacular way for you to see it the first time.”
The tears came on so fast I had no chance of stopping them and they leaked down my cheeks, blurring my vision and making it hard for me to draw a full breath. Ashton glanced over at me. “Don’t cry, Elena.”
“I can’t help it. I’ve never been so happy.”
The sky was still dark and it was hard to see. My heart pounding in my chest the longer we drove. I knew we were getting closer.
Ashton pulled the jeep to a stop and jumped out to grab the bag. Stepping out of the car, I was surprised by the drop in temperature.
“Wow, it’s cold.”
“Until the sun comes up.” He lifted the bag in his hand. “I brought things to keep us warm. Come on, I don’t want you to miss any of it.”
He flicked on a flashlight and led the way, the light seeming extraordinarily bright in the darkness. I was used to nighttime, obviously, but I didn’t know if it was the change in location or something else, but everything seemed . . . more. The air was colder, the night darker. I caught up to Ashton, looping my arm through his as we followed the trail and the feel of him against me was just the same.
More.
We weren’t the only ones there. Voices could be heard all around us. When we finally stopped walking, I was glad Ashton had me put sneakers on. He lay out a blanket and pulled another from his bag. Taking a seat in the center, he gestured in front of himself.
“Sit with me. This is the best place to see the sunrise this time of year.”
Shivering at the cold I sat between his legs, leaning against his chest and he wrapped the other blanket around the two of us, holding me tight to him. It felt so right, sitting here with him like this. But it was hard to concentrate on anything but the beauty surrounding me. As we sat watching, the sky changed from a light blue to orange and eventually a pink.
Then, in the most unforgettable moment of my life, wrapped in the arms of the man who saved me from the hell I’d been living in, I watched the sun peak over the horizon.
“It’s beautiful.”
I didn’t dare move my eyes from the sky, knowing this was a once in a lifetime moment. I didn’t want to miss a single second. Nothing could make the moment any better.
“Yes,” Ashton said, resting his chin on my shoulder, his mouth right by my ear. “You are.”
CHAPTER 21
Ashton
The awe in Elena’s voice made everything worth it. No one had ever bothered to treat her like a princess. My dad read me like a book the first night I brought Elena to his house for dinner—something about her called to me. I didn’t know what, I didn’t know why. I just knew. At first I told myself that it was all about saving her, but the reality was she’d found a way past the barriers I put up.
I watched her as we sat there waiting for the sun to come up, studying the curve of her jaw, the way her hair flowed around her, thinking Elena was beauty and elegance wrapped into one package but she didn’t realize it. It baffled me.
The sun continued its ascent and Elena sat watching, completely enthralled. All I wanted was my hands somewhere on her body; it didn’t matter where, as long as I was touching. I could have tried to tell myself it was about the feel of her body, the sex, but I knew it wasn’t. Every moment I spent with Elena, I found myself changing, becoming a man worthy of being with her.