Page 30 of Broken on the Mountain
The moment, the heat, the desperate need… it all evaporates like the mist of the waterfall.
HopeI come back?
I stare at him, genuinely confused. This gorgeous, kind, enthusiastic human thinks there's a universe where I wouldn't want to return?
What planet is he living on?
He stands, offering me his hand and pulling me up with him. "Come on. We've got time for one last stop before the airport."
And now, I'm left standing in borrowed flannel with damp panties and a heart that now suddenly feels three sizes too big for my chest.
We drive down the mountain and I watch Stone River scroll past the truck window as everyone wakes up. At areasonabletime.
It sucks I'm leaving.
We pass the tavern where we danced, the bookshop where he bought me a compass, the meadow where we had our picnic. Every landmark is a memory now, tucked away like treasures I'll pull out later when Chicago feels too empty.
Then Chase pulls up in front of the General Store, where the OPEN sign has just been flipped for the start of a new day.
"Last-minute souvenir shopping?"
"Sort of."
Inside, the store shelves overflow with everything from camping gear to homemade jam. There's even an entire wall dedicated to socks so fluffy they look like they were knitted by adorable woodland creatures.
I drift toward the socks, laughing at the variety of patterns. Bears in sunglasses, mountains wearing party hats, one pair that just says 'I HATE PEOPLE' in cheerfully bright letters.
"These are amazing."
"Right?" Chase appears beside me, holding up a pair with tiny rescue helicopters. "Knox has these. Travis has the ones with beer steins."
The store owner, Linda, then materializes like she's been waiting for this exact moment, her loud earrings jangling as she surveys me from head to toe.
"Honey.Honey.Those shoes."
"They're Prada?"
"They're a tragedy." She pulls out a measuring tape. "We don't sell heartbreak here, but we do fix poor life choices. Size?"
"She's a seven and a half," Chase answers, winking at me.
He knows my shoe size?! How the hell does he know my shoe size?!
Linda disappears into the back and returns with an armful of hiking boots in various shades. She kneels on the floor and starts measuring my foot with the loving judgment of a fairy godmother who's deeply disappointed in my previous choices.
Chase watches closely. "This is the best thing I've seen all week."
"Glad my footwear crisis entertains you."
Eventually, Linda emerges victorious with a pair of boots in deep teal with coral laces. They're actually really cute. Practical but adorable, exactly what this city girl didn't know she needed.
Chase kneels in front of me, and takes my foot in his hands, then guides it into the boot. His fingers work the laces with the same focused intensity he used on the bandana, and I'm suddenly very aware that we're in public and I'm having extremely inappropriate thoughts about how close his face is to my… crotch.
"How's that feel?"
"Perfect."
He looks up, eyes warm. "Good. She'll take them, thanks, Linda."
