ELLIE
I almost dozed off during the short ride to the golf course. It was still a little dark when Ethan parked the cart at the top of a small hill. The cold was nearly freezing.
The temperature must have been below forty-six degrees, and the sky was cloudy and gray, making our little escape from the hotel feel even more clandestine.
Ethan made an effort to keep us from being seen, which wasn’t too hard since most of the staff and guests were probably still in bed, sleeping. *Which was exactly where I should still be.*
After getting out of the cart, he walked around to my side.
“Are you still mad?” he probed, trying to hide a smile.
“I’m not mad, I’m just trying to figure out when exactly you lost your mind,” I teased, crossing my arms over my chest in an attempt to stay warm.
“Come on.” He extended his hand to help me down.
“I really hope you didn’t bring me all the way here for a golf match,” I said, taking his hand.
“Don’t worry, Brown. I would never wake you up at this hour to play with balls that aren’t mine,” he teased, locking eyes with me and wrapping his hands around my waist once my feet touched the ground.
“Yeah, maybe I really should try hitting a few balls now,” I shot back, hypnotized by his gaze.
“In this cold, I think you’d have to find them first,” he retorted, letting go of me to walk around the cart.
I couldn’t hold back a laugh, though I seriously doubted even the cold could shrink all of that.
“No comeback?” he asked, stopping on the other side and grabbing the bag where I’d seen him stuff a few sheets before we left.
“No, I’m not giving you that satisfaction,” I said, making him smile.
“I don’t need words to know exactly what you were thinking,” he taunted arrogantly, stopping in front of me once again.
I bit my lip to keep from smiling, feeling the tension grow with every second of silence.
“You think this will ever end?” I asked.
“What?”
“This thing between us.”
He furrowed his brows, seeming to consider it.
“You think you’ll ever stop being annoying?”
“And you? Will you ever stop being an arrogant bastard?” I shot back.
He shook his head, his lips curving into a wicked smile.
“Then I guess the answer to your question is no,” he said before turning his back to me. “Now come on before we freeze.”
“Where to?” I asked, following him.
“Judging by this fog, it looks like my plans went down the drain.”
“And what exactly were your plans?” I pressed.
He suddenly stopped, making me halt too. Following his gaze, I took in the vast golf course before us, only then realizing the extraordinary scenery.
Even with the sky covered in gray clouds, the view was still breathtaking—at least the parts the mist allowed me to see.
The course seemed to blend seamlessly with the surrounding nature, its soft slopes, and impeccably green grass framed by trees and hills.
The mist hovering over the place, obscuring the horizon, created a tranquil and mysterious atmosphere—strangely captivating.
“This place must be amazing in the summer,” I mused, letting the thought slip out.
“Yeah,” he agreed. “Actually, I was hoping we might get a chance to see the sunrise.”
“So that was your plan?” I turned to look at him.
“There was a little sun yesterday.” He shrugged as if trying to justify himself.
“It’s okay. Nice try.” I stepped closer, touching his arm. “I would’ve loved that. Honestly, that idea was surprisingly romantic of you.”
“You wouldn’t find it so romantic if you knew what I had in mind.”
“Why do you always have to ruin everything?”
Smirking, he started walking again, turning his back to me.
“No sex on the grass…” he grumbled. “So I guess plan B will have to do.”
“Plan B? Wait… So the sheets were for that?” I laughed, following him. “You actually thought we were going to have sex here?”
“No. I didn’t think. I was sure. And we still will. Maybe not here, not now, but it’s going to happen… Because there’s no way what I imagined is staying just in my imagination.”
“So you thought it was a good idea to wake me up at this hour just to bring me here to have sex?”
“No. I thought it was a good idea to bring you to see the sunrise and *then* have sex.”
“Always so filthy, Mr. Morgan.”
“You just said it was romantic of me, and you can’t take it back now,” he argued as we walked down the small hill toward the trees.
“That was before I found out about your dirty, depraved plan. Now, tell me where the hell we’re going.”
Stopping suddenly, he turned to me, making me hesitate.
“What?”
With a grin, he stepped closer, bending down just enough to scoop me into his arms effortlessly, making me burst into laughter.
“Is this really necessary?” I asked, wrapping my arms around his neck.
“Yes, you were starting to whine too much.”
“You’re really not going to tell me where we’re going?”
“You’ll see,” he said simply, stepping into the small trail between the trees.