Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 57350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 229(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
He kissed her again. “Yeah. Home.”
EPILOGUE
The airport outside Mineral Lake had two gates, a vending machine that hummed louder than the planes, and a window that looked out over miles of open Montana sky.
Adam liked it.
It felt honest.
He leaned against the big window watching Bianca finish at the check-in counter. She spoke quickly, hands moving while she talked, that familiar spark of excitement lighting her whole face. She had that look when she was about to start something new.
It was one of the things he loved most about her.
Bianca turned and spotted him across the room. Her smile came instantly, easy and bright, and she walked back toward him with the light step she had when she was excited about work.
“Okay,” she said, holding up her boarding pass. “I’m officially traveling again.”
Adam nodded. “For one week.”
“For one week.”
“Then you’re back.”
She grinned. “Then I’m back.”
That had been the agreement with Randi. One trip a month. One week away.
The rest of the time right here in Mineral Lake.
Bianca stepped in close and slid her arms around his waist. The movement felt natural already, like they’d been doing it for years instead of a handful of weeks. “You really are okay with this?” she asked.
Adam looked down at her. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Because I’m getting on a plane.”
“You’re going to Texas to look at filming locations,” he said calmly. “You’ll be back in a week.”
“Exactly.”
“And you love your job.”
She smiled at that. “I do.”
He kissed the top of her head. “Then why would I want you to stop?”
Bianca leaned her cheek against his chest for a moment. When she spoke again, her voice carried that thoughtful note he’d started recognizing. “You know what’s funny?”
“What?”
“A few months ago I probably would’ve already been on three different planes by now.”
“That sounds exhausting.”
She leaned back enough to see his face. “It kind of was. I like the way we’re doing things now.”
“Me too.”
Bianca glanced out the window toward the little commuter jet parked on the runway. The mountains stretched wide behind it, blue and quiet under the afternoon sky. “I’m so glad Randi agreed to my new schedule.”
“I think she understands that she’d have a town full of people ready to drag you back home if you were away too long.”
Bianca laughed. “That’s true.”
Mrs. Hudson alone could probably organize a search party.
Bianca bumped her shoulder lightly against Adam’s arm. “You know what I keep thinking about?”
“The nursery.”
She blinked. “How did you know?”
“You’ve been sketching it in that notebook every night.”
She smiled sheepishly. “I thought I was subtle.”
“You are not subtle.”
Bianca laughed softly. “I’m not ready to jump into it yet,” she said thoughtfully. “But I keep picturing rows of trees and flowers. Maybe a little greenhouse. I could own a nursery and work it when I wasn’t traveling once a month.”
Adam nodded. “You’d be good at it.”
“You think so?”
“I know so.”
She studied him for a moment. “You really are on board with all this.”
“With what?”
“My life.”
Adam shrugged easily. “Your life includes traveling sometimes, planting things everywhere you go, and turning quiet places into something beautiful.”
Bianca’s smile softened. “You know I’ll be back before Dawn’s wedding, right?”
“Yeah.” He was looking forward to dancing with her.
“I promised her I’d help with the flowers.”
“Then you’d better get back.”
“Oh, I will.”
The airport speaker crackled overhead. “Flight to Dallas now boarding.”
Bianca lifted her boarding pass. “Well.”
Adam pushed away from the window. “Well.”
She stepped closer and wrapped her arms around him again. “I love our life,” she said. The words were simple, but they carried a quiet certainty.
Adam smiled. “Me too.”
She rose onto her toes and kissed him.
He took over, going deep, and then pausing to let her breathe.
When she pulled back, she grinned. “See you soon, cowboy.”
Adam nodded toward the gate. “Go catch your plane.”
“I will. I love you.”
He kissed her again. “I love you, too. Come home soon.”
“You are home.” Her eyes darkened. “I never figured that out before. That it’s people and not a place.” She smiled. “You’re my home.”
Yeah. That was exactly right.