Wyoming in late April feels caught between seasons, patches of snow still clinging stubbornly to the shadows while fresh green pushes through the ground. The air is crisp, but the sun warms my skin, softening everything around us as we ride past endless fields and fences that carve the land into familiar lines.
Clusters of trees break the landscape here and there, some still bare, others just beginning to bloom, until something catches my eye and I lean slightly to get a better look.
A row of trees, their branches covered in soft pink blossoms, petals shifting in the wind like they don’t belong out here and yet somehow make everything feel more alive.
“Didn’t know cherry trees grew out here,” I murmur.
My grip tightens around him as I watch them pass.
“Weeping cherry blossoms,” he says over the wind. “Mama planted them years ago. Said they made the place feel softer.”
Softer.
Yeah.
That’s exactly what it feels like.
We ride past them, but the image stays with me, something delicate rooted in a place that isn’t.
Kind of like…
I shake the thought away before it can settle.
No.
The closer we get, the tighter something pulls in my chest, and I can’t tell if it’s the ride, the way I’m still holding on to him, or the fact that I’m about to step into his world again.
Dex slows as we turn onto a long dirt road, the engine rumbling beneath us as dust lifts behind.
And then I see it.
The ranch stretches out ahead, wrapped in soft music drifting through the air, laughter carrying across the open space, the scent of flowers mixing with something sweet and warm from the food being prepared. White string lights hang between posts, glowing softly even in the daylight, and round tables dressed in white and pink are scattered across the field overlooking the lake.
It feels like stepping into something out of a dream.
Dex brings the bike to a stop, and for a second his hand covers mine before he pulls away.
“You can let go now, Tinker.”
I pull back immediately, my heart still racing as he removes his helmet. He reaches for mine, unbuckling it with careful fingers before lifting it off, his gaze lingering on my face… then my lips.
Something shifts in his expression before he looks away.
He offers me his hand.
“Time to party, Hawthorne style.”
He smiles.
And I smile back.
We walk up the steps and the door flies open. This time it isn’t Lily Hawthorne standing there, but Jace in a dark blue button-up, jeans, and a black cowboy hat over a face that must be stealing many hearts.
“Hot damn, my brother brought the most beautiful woman to the party!” Jace takes off his cowboy hat and walks over to us.
“Tone it down, fucker.” Dex pulls his little brother into a hug.
“I missed your sorry ass.”
