Finally they reached a small clearing backed by a rocky slope. The peak they’d been aiming for was now an angular and dark void against a sky streaked in pale gold and orange.
Ethan dismounted and when the horses were secured she followed him along the slope. Midway up, he stopped, grinned and took her hand.
“Come on slowpoke, we’ll miss the show.”
With any other man, Bridie would have pulled her hand free and made her own way. But because it was Ethan, she let her fingers stay laced with his and didn’t protest when he helped her over the larger rocks.
Chests heaving and out of breath, they finally made it to the top. The early start and climb had been so worth it. He’d brought her to a mountain paradise.
“Oh Ethan ... this is ...” She stopped as words failed her.
“This is ... a first, you being lost for words.”
While his tone was light, Bridie didn’t miss the emotion thickening his words. She squeezed his hand that she still held. Just like when he’d found her in the games room and he’d made her smile, he was doing his best to again help her through her grief. And it was working.
She didn’t know where to look. A panorama of natural beauty stretched as far as she could see. To her left flowed a waterfall and to her right the sun would soon explode across the sky. She glanced at Ethan and saw him not looking at the waterfall or sunrise, but at her.
He touched her cheek with gentle fingers. “The world is full of beauty and happiness, Bridie; your father wouldn’t want you to only see shadows and darkness.”
She nodded and knowing speaking would be impossible, led Ethan over to where the rock flattened into a small seat. She sat and he joined her. She wasn’t sure if Ethan’s lips touched her temple or if it was the wind playing with her hair but then his arms settled around her. She relaxed into his side and sat still. The pebble he’d given her in the cave might still be in her jeans pocket but when she was with him she no longer needed it.
Not speaking, they watched as first one and then another golden ray spilled over the mountain peak and then the sun slowly ascended, filling the world with light. Bridie swallowed. Light ... and hope.
Ethan was right. It was time to embrace all that was good in life and to let go of all her loss. Just like her father had told her to do when she’d held his limp hand on that last day. He may no longer be with her physically but his love, wisdom and the lessons he’d so patiently taught her would remain.
Deep inside, her grief shifted and as it swelled and surged, she no longer fought it. This time when her tears came they slipped over her cheeks in silence, a slow, soundless torrent that drained away her sorrow and left room for only good things. Good things like laughter, friendship ... love.
Love. This time the shift within her wasn’t her emotions breaking free but instead it was a realization and an acknowledgment. All the feelings that she hadn’t trusted, or wanted to examine, weren’t by-products of her grief, they were ... real. Just like the sun throwing light across the natural landscape, now the darkness of her grief had receded, the view of her emotional landscape was clear.
She loved the sensible and gorgeous cowboy holding her.
“Bridie?” Ethan’s voice was a concerned rasp. “You’re sitting too still.”
She cleared her throat and swiped a hand across her wet cheeks. “I’m ... okay. I’ve said ... good-bye.”
His arm tightened around her. “I’m glad.”
“Me too. Thank you for bringing me here.”
She bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself from trembling at his touch. She was so close, Ethan wouldn’t fail to feel her every movement. With the knowledge that she loved him now came uncertainty and a new vulnerability.
Did he feel anything too or did he still believe they were incompatible? If he did feel something, could it last? He’d stepped outside his life to care for Henry, when he stepped back in and returned to his own ranch, would he feel the same? He’d shown her such care and concern but he was a decent man who’d been through what she was going through, would he help anyone out the way he had her? As for their kiss, did it mean as much to him as it did her? After all she’d been the one to instigate it.
She forced herself to remain still. Until she discovered the answers to such questions she couldn’t risk putting her still bruised heart on the line. She had to continue to hide the effect he had on her and now the depth of her feelings.
Her self-control caved in and she succumbed to the urge to move. She came to her feet, and not looking at Ethan, reached into the camera bag hung around her neck. “I have to take some photos.”