If the Sun Never Sets (If Love 2)

“What do you know? You’ve only been living here for a few weeks,” Farrah grumbled. “I’ve been living here for years.”

“Yet I’ve been to the Ravine and Loch you haven’t,” Blake teased. He made it a point to visit at least one new place every time he visited New York. That was one of the city’s biggest draws: one never ran out of new things to see or do.

“You are seriously making me regret this walk.”

Blake’s dimples made a timely appearance. “Trust me. You won’t regret it once you see this place.”

It took them another half hour to reach their destination. During that time, Blake coaxed personal details out of Farrah, like what she did for her recent birthday (in mid-March, a month ago) and whether she was still friends with Olivia, Kris, and Courtney. The four of them had been glued at the hips in Shanghai.

Farrah had gone to Jamaica for her birthday and yes, she was still friends with them. In fact, Olivia was her roommate.

It wasn’t much, but it was a start. At least she was talking to him about non-work-related topics.

Meanwhile, Blake regaled her with tales of his travels, including the time he’d visited Luke Peterson, one of his closest friends during study abroad, in Wisconsin, and bought a crap ton of cheeses as souvenirs. Some of it hadn’t been wrapped properly, and when he opened his suitcase to unpack, it’d stunk so bad he had to toss the entire bag and its contents into the trash.

Blake hadn’t been able to eat cheese since.

Farrah laughed, causing his chest to glow with warmth. He’d missed that sound so damn much.

There wasn’t a lot of foot traffic in the North Woods, and Blake could hear the soothing sound of the waterfalls in the distance before they saw it.

“I can’t believe this is in the city.” Farrah followed him through the woods toward the stream. “I feel like I’m in upstate New York.”

“For good reason. It was designed to look like the Catskills or Adirondacks.” The roar of waterfalls intensified. Blake stepped out of the woods and spread his arms. “Welcome to the Loch.”

“Wow,” Farrah breathed. The stream meandered through the Ravine’s verdant canopy, creating a scene so idyllic it felt like they’d stepped into a painting, and the white noise from the waterfalls drowned out the city commotion in the distance, transporting them to a secret paradise where only the two of them existed. The fresh, earthy scent of the streamside vegetation tickled her nose, and she sucked it in with an eager inhale.

Blake settled on one of the big rocks by the stream and patted the seat next to him.

After a brief hesitation, Farrah sank beside him. “I feel like a tourist in my own city.” She tilted her face up, her hair shining with various hues of black and brown beneath the sunlight. It was an unusually warm day for mid-April in New York, not that Blake was complaining. “This place is so relaxing.”

“It’s better than therapy.” Blake ran his hand over the sunbaked rock, taking solace in its rough, warm solidness. “I try to visit every time I’m in New York. Although I live here now, so I guess I can come all the time.”

“Why did you move here?” She sounded genuinely curious.

“I love the city. I’m opening a new bar here and figured it was time to settle down in one place.” He shrugged. “Everything aligned.”

Farrah wrinkled her brow. “Settle down? Haven’t you been living in Texas?”

“No.” Blake curled his hand around the edge of the rock until it dug into his skin. “My family’s there, and I visit from time to time, but I’ve been traveling, going where business takes me. A few months here, a few months there. It’s fun, but it gets exhausting.” He noticed the smile on Farrah’s face. “What’s so funny?”

“I remember a time when Shanghai was the only city you’d visited outside the US. Now you’re basically a professional globetrotter.”

He chuckled. “I wish. Most of my travels are for business, but I sneak in some fun here and there.” Study abroad had opened his eyes to the possibilities that lay beyond the white picket fences and Sunday football games of Texas suburbia, and he’d never been able to go back. Not for more than a few days at a time.

The bad memories and his strained relationship with his father also played a role, but he kept that to himself.

“What’s your favorite place you’ve visited so far?”

Blake thought about it. “Depends. If we’re talking food, Tokyo. Nature? Norway. Wonders of the world? Machu Picchu.”

“You went to Machu Picchu for business?” Skepticism drenched Farrah’s voice.

“Llamas love beer and fútbol. My business doesn’t discriminate based on species,” he said, eliciting another laugh. Blake grinned. Two in one day. Now they were getting somewhere. “On a serious note, I want to expand Legends into a bigger international brand, so I travel a lot, researching markets, meeting with licensing partners, that sort of thing. Machu Picchu was just for fun, though. Have you been?”

“Not yet.” Farrah traced a star with her finger on the rock. “I’ve been so busy with work I haven’t been able to travel as much as I want, except for my birthday weekend. Though I have more flexibility now since I don’t have an office job. Not that I’m planning to take a vacation in the middle of your project,” she added quickly.

Blake wouldn’t mind—as long as he could go with her.