Chapter 1

The Caelum ranch stood on a hill, its white-washed walls glowing like a beacon in the fading light; the ranch house’s structure seemed out of place, as if someone had plucked it from the Mediterranean coast and deposited it amidst the rolling hills and dotting pastures of California.

From the bottom of the hill was a winding driveway lined with ancient oak trees and a rusted ranch gate, which led up to the house.

Inside the ranch, an earthy smell filled the air, showcasing a rural setting. A pleasant reminder to rest.

Driving up the driveway had a dreamlike effect on those in the rented car, but that had been where the dreams started and ended.

Emily could not give in to indulging rest as she lay awake in her single bed.

Something heightened Emily’s senses; No amount of tossing and turning could erase the face of the man behind the front desk from her mind.

It was her anniversary weekend, and the ranch had been Owen's idea, who was now snoring away in the other single bed in the room.

Emily had gone along with the ranch idea, as she always did with Owen's ideas. Not that she was fond of the countryside, but it had sounded like the best idea she had heard in a long time, not to mention that her marriage needed the time away.

This was their time away from the city to recharge and ignite the flame of their marriage. Heaven knew the marriage never took off, but now it needed serious rescuing.

Judging by the gentle snores that came from Owen’s bed, he was already reaping the peace that came with the countryside. Only if she could switch her mind off.

It was not as if Emily did not like her husband; she was very fond of Owen, but in the two years they’d been married, she couldn’t bring herself to be intimate with him, and so far Owen had been understanding.

But on this trip, she planned to make some changes, starting with the twin beds. If anything was going to happen, they had to share a bed.

If the quality time they spent tonight talking was anything to go by, their marriage was well on its way to catching a spark. Emily breathed a sigh as she got off the bed and stood before the tall windows, another reminder of her old life, as she gazed into total darkness.

The man downstairs had introduced himself to her and Owen as Mark. The minute she had raised her eyes to meet his, she had the strangest feeling wash over her.

She couldn’t say that his physical appearance looked like that of someone she once knew, but she knew what she had felt.

It had been something more than a mere déjà vu; it had been a connection, a connection she hadn’t felt in a long time. A once in a lifetime type of connection.

Owen continued to snore peacefully, and she sank into the closest chair, feeling guilt ripple over her. The last thing she needed was to throw away her new life, and for what? A connection with a stranger she didn’t even know.

*

Emily opened her eyes before she tried to move; she could not remember when she had fallen asleep in the chair, but judging by the lack of light from the tall windows, she knew it hadn’t been long.

She stood, got her bearings and then walked over to the nightstand and touched her phone; it was four thirty in the morning, and Owen was in the same position he’d been in last night, snoring the night away.

The sun would be out soon, and she did not want to wake him up; the stay-at-home wife in her was used to early mornings, which meant she couldn’t even think about going back to bed.

Despite a mansion full of maids on the upper side of California, in the two years she had been married, Emily insisted on waking up early to make Owen breakfast and prepare him for work.

Waking up early and keeping her mind occupied kept the nightmares at bay and it soothed the guilt for the lack of intimacy, but on this trip, just this once, she thought she could sit still and watch as the time trickled by ever so slowly before they could go down and have breakfast in the dining hall, but now that too seemed out of reach.

Owen stirred in his sleep, and she tiptoed to the bathroom; she knew how much he needed the rest. While he caught up with his sleep, she would explore the ranch and maybe rearrange the chaos that was in her head.

When they’d left the city, she had such a wonderful feeling about this trip, and now, as she looked at her pale skin in the mirror reflection…she didn’t know anymore.

After dressing up carefully in casual linen pants and a matching top, she slid out of the room, down the dimly lit hallway in search of the stables that she had read about in the brochure.

"Good morning, Mrs. Anderson." Emily almost jumped out of her skin when she turned to find the mysterious man from last night, Mark. The same Mark… Emily had lost precious sleep over the man.

He had been all she had been thinking about last night. She couldn’t understand why one man could affect her so much without even trying.

She took a long breath to compose herself; last night when she had laid eyes on him at the front desk, she had thought that she was seeing a ghost from her past, and this morning as she looked at him closely, she knew without a doubt that she was staring at the eyes of a ghost.

Mark cleared his throat.

"Forgive me, you must think I'm weird." Emily said when she realized she hadn’t said anything in response.

"It’s only that you startled me; I didn’t expect to find anyone down here so early. I thought I would explore on my own before everyone woke up." Her hand was still on her chest, feeling her pounding heart.

Mark's eyes followed her beautifully manicured hand and settled on her ring finger; he couldn't help but feel a sting of jealousy; she was not wearing his ring.

He wondered if she had disposed of everything that had reminded her of him, but he quickly collected his thoughts; that was in the past, and now she was someone else’s.

The woman in front of him now was Emily Anderson, and Mrs. Anderson was a very beautiful woman; from the roots of her now blonde hair to the tips of her nails, she was a looker.