“Yeah,” she shrugged, as if turning down a dream job was nothing. “I figured if I took it, I wouldn’t be free. I’d be doing things for other people when, really, I want to see this project through for myself.” She touched his face gently. “And I can take freelance work. Pick and choose what I want to do.”
Matt let out a long whoosh of air and tightened his hold on her, relief flooding through him like a tidal wave. His bear was practically dancing with joy inside him.
“Well, in that case,” he said, struggling to keep his voice steady, “shall I show you where I plan to build your studio?”
“My studio?” Tessa asked, her eyes widening with excitement.
“Yeah.” He grinned, feeling lighter than he had in hours. “I mean, you’ll have to design it, but I know the perfect spot that gets great light for most of the day. And there’s plenty of space for whatever supplies you need.”
Tessa’s face lit up, her smile so bright it rivaled the sun overhead. “You’ve been planning this? For how long?”
“Since the moment we met under the tree, and I saw your drawings,” Matt admitted, taking her hand and leading her around the side of the house. “I want you to have everything you need right here. A place that’s just yours.”
He stopped at a flat area near a stand of aspens, where the afternoon light filtered through the leaves in dappled patterns. “I was thinking windows all along this side,” he explained, gesturing with his free hand. “And maybe skylights to capture more light in the afternoon. We could connect it to the main house with a covered walkway, so you wouldn’t have to trudge through snow in the winter.”
Tessa turned in a slow circle, taking in the space with an artist’s eye. “It’s perfect,” she whispered, squeezing his hand. “But Matt, are you sure? Building a studio is a big commitment.”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.” Matt watched her, his heart so full he thought it might overflow. She was staying. She was choosing him—choosing them—over everything else. “But are you sure about this?” he asked, needing to hear it again. “About staying? I meant what I said—I would have gone with you.”
Tessa walked back to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head against his chest. “I know you would have. That’s part of why I’m staying.” She looked up at him. “But it’s more than that. When I left this morning, I felt like I was leaving a piece of myself behind. I don’t want to feel that way again.”
Matt bent his head and kissed her, pouring all his love and gratitude into the gentle press of his lips against hers. When they broke apart, he rested his forehead against hers.
“I love you,” he said, the words coming easily now. “I’ve loved you since that first day in the restaurant and for every day for the rest of our lives.”
“I love you too,” she replied.
His bear rumbled with satisfaction at hearing those words from their mate’s lips.
Together they stood in the spot where her studio would be, planning their future while the mountains stood sentinel around them. And Matt knew with absolute certainty that no matter where life took them, as long as they were together, they would be home.
Epilogue
Time has a way of healing the deepest wounds, Tessa thought as she placed the final colored pencil back in its wooden case. She stepped back from her drafting table, eyes tracing over the completed illustration—a caregiver’s gentle hands supporting an elderly woman as they walked through a garden of memories. The last page of her journal was finally finished.
Sunlight streamed through the wall of windows Matt had built for her, casting golden light across her studio. Two short months had transformed this space from a dream into reality—her sanctuary of creativity nestled among the aspens. Custom shelves held her supplies, sketchbooks lined up in neat rows, and finished pieces hung on the walls, a sign of how much she’d created since making Bear Creek her home.
Home.The word still filled her with wonder.
The door creaked open behind her, and she felt Matt before she saw him—that familiar electric awareness that had only grown stronger with time.
“Finished?” he asked, his deep voice warming her from within as he crossed the room to stand behind her.
“Just now,” Tessa nodded, leaning back against his solid chest as his arms encircled her waist. The scent of him enveloped her. “What do you think?”
Matt studied the illustration over her shoulder, his breath warm against her ear. “It’s perfect,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to the sensitive spot just below her earlobe. “Just like you.”
Tessa turned in his arms, tilting her face up to his. “Did I ever tell you that you say the sweetest things?”
“Once or twice,” he murmured as he brushed a strand of hair from her face.
His fingers traced the line of her jaw, and Tessa felt that now-familiar surge of love rise within her. Two months of waking up beside him, of building a life together, and still his touch affected her like the first time.
“I love you,” she whispered, the words as natural as breathing now.
Matt’s eyes darkened, his hand sliding to cup the nape of her neck. “I love you too,” he replied, bending to capture her lips with his.
The kiss was gentle at first, but quickly deepened with familiar hunger. Tessa pressed closer, her body molding to his.
