Grabbing one of the resort robes from a hook in the bathroom, Elena slid it over Gage’s shirt and followed the trail of pink petals out of the master suite. She wound an elastic around her hair and scooped up a handful of the rose remnants from the hardwood, bringing them to her nose for a sniff. Her mother had taught her that—take time to smell the roses. She didn’t have many good memories of her mom, but it helped to hug close the ones that weren’t tainted by her parents’ drinking. Fighting. When her mom abandoned the family, it had eliminated the arguments that too often turned to violence, but the hole she left behind had been too big to fill no matter what Elena tried to put there. Work. Ambition. Relationships.

It was simpler to just smell the roses and savor the present, especially since Elena couldn’t change the past. Hiding it hadn’t worked with Gage’s family. And altering herself to fit into Tomas’s life had been foolish.

From now on, she was embracing the journey that had made her the woman she was today. As she made her way through the family room, she saw that the petal path led through the double doors leading out to a patio overlooking the lake. She stepped outside to find a bubbling hot tub steaming white puffs into the cool mountain air.

Gage sprawled in the far corner, his arms spread wide along the edges of the tub, ropes of muscle drawing her eye, the black ink of his tattoos shiny and wet. Her personal Poseidon.

“Good morning, lovely.” His New Zealand accent wrapped around her ears, the words as unhurried as his gaze. “I thought you might like a soak to start the day. The view isn’t bad, either.”

He nodded toward the lake visible through the trees, the mountains in the distance still capped with snow even though spring buds were visible on nearby branches. But she preferred the view of Gage’s naked chest rising from the water.

“As it happens, I might have a few muscles that would benefit from the pulsating jets.” She slid off the robe, setting it on the wooden bench that wrapped two sides of the tub. She reached for the hem of the T-shirt, then hesitated. “What would you rate the level of privacy out here?” She peered around.

Gage’s pupils darkened with satisfying speed. “Maybe for my sanity you should keep the T-shirt on.”

“As you wish.” Elena stepped over the edge of the partially sunken tub, then tucked the end of her ponytail through the elastic to keep her hair out of the water before she sank into one of the seats. “How did you sleep?”