Waking up wasn't fun.

I struggled upright, stiff, and sore, especially my butt and upper legs, and making it to the toilet was the most painful thing I had ever experienced as I slid from the bed, sounding like someone giving birth before crossing the floor with very tiny steps. And I was right about my thighs; the saddle had chafed them raw.

Pulling down my pants got me wide awake, and sitting down almost tore me in half.

"Mercedes? Are you alright?" Sherise asked from the door.

"No. Yes. Nooooo."

She made her way into the chalet and walked into the bathroom.

"Do you need a doctor?" she asked, and I laughed, instantly regretting it.

"For sore muscles?"

"Mercedes?" Jeanette asked from the other room, putting a tray on the bureau just inside the door, and my stomach growled at the thought of food.

The previous evening, I went straight for a hot shower and barely made it to bed.

"Morning, Jeanette, I'll be out in a minute," I said, unsure how I intended to accomplish that.

"How do you feel?" she asked, setting the table in the corner from the sound of it.

"Not great."

There would be no point in lying.

"I brought you some muscle relaxants and pain pills. When Barry taught me to ride, the horse ran off with me and, apart from scaring the piss out of me, also threw me.

"With us kilometers from home, I had to get back on the damned thing to get home. I'll never forget how I felt the next morning, and I would have been happy never to get on another horse again, but Barry made me." The laughter in her voice told a story of its own.

Only stubborn pride made me lift myself off that toilet without help and pull up my shorts in the same motion.

"I could almost feel how much that hurt," Sherise said, hovering around me and not knowing how to help me.

I brushed my teeth before slowly shuffling into the other room.

"I won't be physically able to get on a horse by Monday," I admitted.

"You won't need to do that. Harris made Druscilla pack her stuff and had Barry take her to the city to catch a flight on Monday. He wouldn't even give her a chance to speak, she got angry and blamed it all on you, but he just turned his back on her and told Barry to remove her from the property."

Jeanette poured my coffee and helped me sit.

Even picking up the fork hurt.

"He told her they would talk when he got home, and she better not still live in his house when he returned." The idea seemed to bother her, and with her being friends with Harris, I could understand that.

"The lady's probably burning me in effigy right now," I said, and I wasn't entirely kidding.

"None of this is your fault. This is her nature, and she will never change until she understands the problem is with her and not other people."

"Jeanette? Druscilla just arrived by taxi. She demands to be let past the gate, and Harris is having none of it," Thabisho said from the door, out of breath, a scowl almost connecting his dark brows.

"Let me sort this out. His issues with his daughter are none of our concern, and he does not pay us enough money to deal with this," she said, nodding at me and leaving but not meaning any of it.

"This production has more drama than the movie," Sherise relished, sitting down and drinking the coffee Jeanette prepared for her.

"And you love every moment of it," I teased, struggling to get the fork to my mouth and not finding it amusing.

"You have no idea," she said, winking at me.

Sherise, Jeanette, and I were out by the pool. Harris and Druscilla left for the south of France, Pagliani and Dean were filming a scene near the river, and the three of us had the day off.

A week passed since Sunday, and even though Pagliani continued filming, we were unsure whether Druscilla would return with Harris.

I could finally move more freely, and although I never wanted to see another horse again, Jeanette made me go riding with her this morning, and despite my protesting muscles, I enjoyed it.

We didn't go far, and contrary to my expectations, it helped.

"Take off that robe. We're alone, everyone else has gone off somewhere, and you need to get some sun on you."

"I used the tanning bed last week, and I am too lazy to move."

"Don't make me come over there. It's far too hot to huddle in a robe," Sherise said, and with a sigh, I took it off.

It was the same swimming costume I wore for the scene in the dam, but with shorts to hide the state of my thighs and to prevent them from touching.

"Good day, ladies," Dean said unexpectedly close, and I had to force myself not to grab my towel and cover my body.

Had Sherise not seen him? She knew how self-conscious I was.

"I'm going for a swim; anyone want to join me?" he asked.

"Why are you back so soon?" I asked, not moving.

"Harris called Pagliani, they had a long, very animated conversation, and he had us pack up for the day. It seems Druscilla's suing her father to continue with her role."

"What?" I asked.

"And Sherise, Erika asked to speak with you if you have a moment." We watched her walk away, and I squealed when Dean grabbed me and ran straight into the pool with me in his arms.

As I sputtered, laughing, I looked into Dean's eyes as he found his footing with me still held against the muscled wall of his chest.

The world slowed down, and for a moment, no one else existed.

"Atlas, no," Jeanette warned as Dean turned around, and we watched Atlas and Toby walk down the steps into the water.

"Dammit, sorry, I forgot to close the gate properly," Jeanette said.

Atlas made a beeline toward us, and Dean lowered me into the water.

The lion swam close to me for a bit, trying to rub his head against me, but returned to the shallow steps where he could stand.

Toby just entered far enough to sit with his head above the water, and we laughed—it looked so strange.

"Should I go get something to feed them and lead them outside?" I asked, and Jeanette shook her head.

"Thabisho bathed them this morning, so they won't be dirtying the water much, and there's no one else here. Let them stay a bit. The two critters have not gotten enough attention with having to be outside in the veld so much."

The heat of Dean's body pressed against my side boiled my blood, and I reluctantly moved aside, swimming toward the shallower end, intending to sit on the steps, although I didn't know if it was a good idea with Atlas there.

The lion shifted closer, rubbed that scraggly head against my shoulder, lay down in the water, and rested his heavy head on my lap.

"My mother and mother-in-law need to know if you want to reschedule that cooking date. Things got a little messed up last week, and it's less busy; they have time this afternoon," Jeanette said, joining us.

"Love to," I said, petting the lion while my brain struggled to cope with the idea.

"Did you ever picture yourself sitting under the African sun playing with a lion as if it were a house cat?" Dean asked, watching us with a smile touching those sinfully elegant lips.

"No. I figured that at some point, I would give up fighting Mother, return home, and spend the rest of my miserable life living her dream for me. None of this ever occurred to me."

"Does your mother even know what you're really doing here?" Dean asked perceptively, knowing me far too well.

"No. I told her Harris asked me to come, and she assumed he needed an assistant."

"Mercedes!" Jeanette chastised me, and my cheeks glowed.

"You've clearly never met her highness."

"That is a little disrespectful, Mercedes."

And she wasn't wrong. The reminder shamed me.

"The lady owns Benson Atelier in Boston, Benson Etude in New York, and Benson Armitage in Los Angeles," Dean said, an odd tone to her voice.

Had my negative attitude influenced him against my mother? Probably.

"Adele and Kelly Benson?" Jeanette asked, taken aback.

"Kelsey," I corrected. "Sorry, I thought that was why your mother and mother-in-law invited me. Most people assume that because my mother and sister are chefs, I cook like them."

"Mercedes, you don't have to accept the invitation if you don't enjoy cooking," Jeanette said.

"Are you kidding me? I would love to get to know them, and although I am by no means a chef, I can manage not to burn water," I said, grinning.

"Just out of curiosity, what did you mean? Would your mother not believe you can be an actress?" Dean asked, coming closer and drawing my attention like a magnet with all that wet, rippling muscle.

Heaven have mercy on my soul.

"Mother's paranoid, protective mother syndrome would assume I'm getting conned and would end up making some..." Heat seared my face three shades darker as the pool refused to swallow me.

"Porno?" he suggested, that gaze sparkling with laughter.

Even the word coming from those lips seemed indecent and caused a little unexpected reaction low in my abdomen.

"Yes."

I wanted to die of shame as he laughed from the depths of his stomach.

"When will you let Adele see that she didn't raise a meek little lamb?" Dean asked.

"Mother has blinders on where it concerns me. Kelly's this rockstar, and I am a pitiful creature needing guidance to walk and chew at the same time."

"Only a fool would think that," Pagliani said from behind me, walking over to the deck chairs to settle comfortably in the shade. "Filming resumes tomorrow, and we need to push to get everything done on time."

Atlas surged to his feet, nearly knocking me over, and shook himself like a massive dog, spraying everyone before getting out of the pool as we sputtered in protest.

The juvenile lion stretched his muscles lazily, a yawn displaying those impressive teeth, and casually strolled over to the deck chair beside Pagliani, laying down and turning on his back.

Toby made a slight grunting noise, lowered his head a little, and made bubbles through his nose under the water.

We laughed until my sides ached, and I realized that this was the first time I was truly happy.