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“Thanks. I’ll think about it.”

“Well,” Elena placed her hand on the door handle, “I guess I should change out of these wet clothes.”

“Atlas is sorry about that.”

“It’s okay.” She turned around and patted his head one last time. “He’s a good boy.”

Skylar wished they could make more small talk so Elena didn’t have to leave. But Elena seemed to be in a rush to change her clothes.

“So, I’ll see you soon, Sky.”

“Yeah, see ya, Ellie.”

Smiling once more, Elena opened the car door and got out. Skylar watched as she closed the door, then walked up to her rental car and drove away. She leaned back into her seat and sighed. Atlas put his head on her shoulder and sighed too.

“I miss her too, buddy.”

Chapter 7

Elena

Elena’s Santa Barbara estate had felt bigger and lonelier since she’d arrived back home a few weeks ago. She still had no idea why she’d purchased such a large home. At over three thousand square feet, the home had four bedrooms and as many bathrooms. Large windows on both the main floor and the basement overlooked the ocean.

The view has been the selling point for Elena. Being near the ocean had always grounded her. And after her divorce, Elena needed to be grounded. She needed that safe place to come home to that was all her own. Especially after how badly things had ended with Peter.

Once upon a time, Elena had thought she could love Peter like a wife should love her husband. But the truth of the matter was Elena never truly loved him because her heart always belonged to someone else. Peter knew that. Hell, he’d even had his fair share of affairs with women he claimed to love while he was married to Elena. All the while, Elena tried to act like it didn’t bother her. She knew their relationship and marriage were more out of convenience than love.

That was why it had been years since she and Peter had shared a bed, much less been intimate. They had tried to seem in love while on the red carpets of his movie premieres, but that never went farther than a quick peck of a kiss. Needless to say, it was nothing like the kiss that she and Skylar had shared that night at the bar.

Elena always wanted more than what she knew Peter could give her. It was why their divorce wasn’t a surprise for either of them. What had been a surprise was the fact Peter had taken her for a ride during the court proceedings. His lawyer had managed to get him half of Elena’s money as well as the house they’d purchased together. She’d been crushed by Peter’s callous behavior in court to the point she wasn’t sure she’d ever be willing to open her heart or life to anyone else again.

Granted, that was before the now infamous kiss with Skylar. Elena had thought about it every day since it happened. When she closed her eyes, she could still feel the way Skylar’s kiss felt on her lips. She’d even gotten off to thoughts of Skylar several times since she arrived back home.

That was the last thing Elena had expected to come out of her visit to the Cove. She’d thought she’d argue with Skylar about the tour, win that argument, and then be on her way with a tour in the future. Elena hadn’t expected all her anger toward Skylar to dissipate so quickly. But that was the pull Skylar had always had over Elena. She could turn any of Elena’s bad days around simply with her smile. And it was clear that was still the case today.

Which meant Elena had to figure out how she was going to make it through the tour without letting herself fall back in love with Skylar.

The fact that Skylar had up and left the band and Elena was still a bitter pill for Elena to swallow. She could trace all of her abandonment issues back to the moment of watching Skylar walk off the stage on their last night on tour and subsequently walk out of Elena’s life.

A part of Elena had assumed Skylar would come running back to her. What they had was that once-in-a-lifetime love. Elena knew that because she’d never experienced it again. But Skylar never came back. She never called, never messaged, never came back to the band. As the years passed, Elena assumed she’d never see Skylar again.

That’s what made the idea of a reunion tour so exciting for Elena.

Sure, she was excited to play venues that were larger than a bar. But she was even more excited she would be singing at those venues with Skylar by her side.

The doorbell ringing brought Elena out of her thoughts. She’d invited Gordon and Andy over for dinner since Erica and Michael were finally in town for rehearsals. Skylar was set to arrive the next day, which brought a smile to Elena’s face. She eagerly bounced over to the door and opened it.

“Skylar,” Elena gasped. “What are you doing here?”

“I heard there was a dinner party, and you know I love free food.” Skylar shrugged as she laughed. She had a suitcase by her side and a backpack on her shoulders. “Is it okay that I came here early?”

“Absolutely.” Elena shook her head as she snapped back into hostess mode. “I’m so glad you’re here. Come on in.”

Judging by the fact Skylar had her suitcase and no car in sight, she must have decided to take Elena’s offer to stay at her house while they were in tour rehearsals. The thought of being in the same house as Skylar sent a warm wave through Elena’s body. She tried not to let it show as she opened the door wider for Skylar to enter.

Skylar looked around the house with her mouth slightly agape. Elena knew her house was too extravagant. She’d hired a top interior designer to set up the entire house, so it looked more like the cover of a magazine than a lived-in home. The large, open-concept living space greeted people as soon as they walked in. A kitchen sat off to the right, while two bedrooms were off to the left. Another bedroom was downstairs, while Elena’s bedroom was on the top floor. Artwork dotted the white walls, and Elena suddenly realized how devoid her home was of any personal touches.

“I’m still working on making it a home.” Elena didn’t know why she felt the need to lie to Skylar. Until that moment, Elena never thought her house wasn’t a home. But seeing it from someone else’s eyes made her realize how almost sterile the place felt.