When they got out of the car, Ash stood in front of the doors of the largest house she had seen in her life.

Up to that point, the largest house she had ever been to was the state orphanage. The House had belonged to a wealthy couple who had left their estate as a donation to the government. The estate had included the family home, which the couple expressly provided in their Last Will and Testament was to be turned into a childcare inst.i.tution after they died.

The two-storey stone house had 4 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, a front lawn and a sizeable backyard. It had housed up to 20 children at one point, cramming 5 children in each of the 4 bedrooms. The children had needed to eat their meals in 2 scheduled rounds just to fit everyone at the table.

The Guzman compound had about 10, 000 square feet of living s.p.a.ce on the nearly 750-acre estate. The main house alone had 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, a formal dining room, an informal dining room next to the large kitchen and 2 living rooms. From what Ash had seen, the main house could easily fit at least two, maybe even three state orphanages inside of it.

"You'll meet my parents at dinner, so we'll set you up in the guest house for now."

Hunter carried Ash's duffel bag on his shoulder as they walked through the main house. Behind the main house, there were 4 other buildings that Ash could see. From the look of it, the 2 larger buildings were probably guest houses while the 2 smaller buildings were caretaker homes.

Ash had a.s.sumed that she would be staying in a bedroom in the main house, but apparently she would have a whole guest house to herself. As a little girl who liked to play house, Ash was thrilled at the prospect of having her own little house, even if it was just for two weeks.

Ash loved the guesthouse. It was a smaller terracotta version of the main house, with the same warm colors, only cozier. It had a receiving area with a love seat and 2 chairs. It had a dining area with a gla.s.s-topped table and 4 dining chairs. It had a small kitchen with a stove and a fridge. And she had a bedroom all to herself with a queen-size bed. She was so happy with the s.p.a.ce that when she sat on the bed, she had to stop herself from wiggling with joy. It felt like a childhood dream had come true.

Hunter put Ash's duffel bag on the floor in front of the closet and scanned the room. He was satisfied that everything was spotless. Ash had been staring at everything when she walked in and he was nervous that she would find something out of order.

"There's a buzzer by the light switch if you need to call the caretaker for anything. There's a phone if you need to call the main house, but we don't really use it anymore. You could just text me if you need anything."

"Am I staying here alone?"

Hunter turned to look at Ash. He had been preoccupied with getting her settled in that he hadn't really looked at her since they got home.

She had taken her shoes off and was sitting on the bed. She wiggled her toes in her black tights and she was leaning back, relaxed, with her palms on the bed cover.

She was sitting on a bed in his guesthouse: her glossy black hair was down to her back, her brown eyes were bright and she was smiling at him, asking him if she were meant to stay in this place alone. She melted his heart like b.u.t.ter in a hot pan. He wanted her to stay there with him forever.

He walked up to her and cupped her face in his hands. She was here, in front of him, in his house.

[I just want to keep you here, with me. Don't ever leave. Stay and be mine,] he said to her in his mind.

Ash put her hands over his and closed her eyes. She wanted to stay in the guesthouse and play house with Hunter. It would be fun. They would make food in the kitchen and eat together and at night they would sleep together. It would be like having her own family. She wanted him to be her family.

[Please say you'll stay with me,] she urged him in her mind.

They kissed for the first time that day. After the worst birthday lunch ever and after 2 hours of air travel over hundreds of miles, kissing was a relief. It was cool clean water after hours of thirst.

Drinking each other in, they fell into bed together.