I walked further down the driveway; the gravel crunched beneath my feet echoing the unsteadiness I felt inside of me. I desperately needed to talk to Colt. I owed him an explanation, and I really hoped he would listen.

I approached the white wooden barn that matched the color and charm of the house. Black iron crisscrossed the barn doors, and one was pulled all the way open. I stopped just before the entrance, twisting my hands together in a nervous habit, and took a deep breath in. I heard the sound of horses nickering and peered around the door, taking my first step inside.

There Colt stood next to a stall, his hands on either side of a horse's neck rubbing gently, and his forehead pressed against its' own head. I stayed rooted in spot watching the interaction. It seemed so raw. The horse's breathing soon became the only sound as the nickering died down. It was as if the other horses sensed the need for solitude in their intimate moment.

The air was entirely too heavy, and I felt I would choke on the emotion I had abruptly stepped into. I started to back out but hit the barn door, causing the private moment to break and Colt's eyes to jump to mine.

He backed up away from the stall and took one step toward me, then stopped. He slid his hands into his pockets and roamed his eyes across my body as if trying to decipher what had happened when he left. I'm not sure what he felt he found, but he kept his gaze locked on mine and stayed silent.

I felt as though I would implode under his unwavering stare. When I couldn't take his silence any longer, I spoke.

"Colt, I'm so sorry about this morning. I had no idea Mark was going to show up. It completely caught me off guard."

He nodded and looked to the stalls before returning his gaze back to me.

"So, he does have a ballsy bone in his body. I never would have guessed it."

I took a few steps forward until I was only a couple of feet away. His eyes held up the wall that was once there; the wall I had reveled in tearing down.

"Colt, I'm sorry I hurt you this morning, but--"

"Grace, quit apologizing. Look, you gotta do what you gotta do, right? Hell, it may be the most stupid fucking decision you'll ever make, but who I am to stop you from doing what you think is best? I just want you to promise me one thing, Grace?"

I had to blink back the tears that I hadn't even realized were threatening to escape. I swallowed back the pain his broken voice inflicted.

"What's that?"

"Don't forget to dance." He took two quick steps forward so that he was towering over me. He lifted his hand and wiped the tear that spilled down my cheek. "Be that Grace that is so damn moved by living, that she dances in a field of flowers without a second thought. And if he won't dance with you, promise me that you won't stop?"

I closed my eyes and leaned into his touch. Another tear trailed down my cheek and I opened my eyes to see the Colt I had left in those mountains.

"Promise me." He sternly repeated.

"I promise."

He nodded as his eyes scoured mine, determining the truth in them.

"Colt--do you think I chose him? Do you think this morning means that I'm going back to him?"

"Are you, Grace?"

"Colt, if I asked you what my favorite color is, what would you say?"

He didn't even hesitate. "Red."

"How did you--"

"You love rainy days because it gives you an excuse to stay in bed, drinking tea and reading or writing those poems you think no one will ever understand. You love 'I love Lucy' re-runs and secretly wish your life was a black and white sitcom. You cover your mouth when you laugh, but I don't know why because your smile and laugh are absolutely everything. You quietly moan every so often when you eat, and I fucking swear its the sexiest thing." Multiple tears were now silently falling down my face, and I had no way of stopping them. He placed his other hand on the side of my cheek so he was now cupping my face, and his thumbs wiped the tears.

"You don't give yourself credit for how strong you are and tend to settle for less than you deserve because you think you lost that piece of you a long time ago, but baby, it's right here." He urged, placing his hand on my heart. "You love kids, and I know you will make a damn good mother one day. And you are every bit of a star your dad told you that you were. Because Grace, you light up every single broken piece of my dark world."

I couldn't speak; his words knocked every bit of breath out of me. How he remembered those details about my life that I had shared with him on our journey, especially in that cave, throttled my very core. Especially the things I hadn't told him. I felt invisible and a burden for most of my life, and there he was telling me he saw me.

I wrapped my hand around his neck and pulled him into me. Our lips collided in a ferocious kiss; a kiss that claimed every single part of my soul. He didn't hesitate one moment as he gripped my face and pushed me back into the stall's door. His tongue danced alongside mine and we shared in a moan.

A breath in my ear and a snort that was, thankfully, not Colt's broke the trance we were in and we pulled apart. I looked up to the side of me to see a horse sticking her head outside of her stall. She stuck her tongue out and then nudged me with her nose.

Colt and I laughed as I reached out to pet her head. He grabbed my waist and scooted me over.

"Sorry, she's a bit friendly, especially if she thinks she's getting a treat."

His gaze fell back on mine and we stayed momentarily silent as our thoughts caught up with our breaths.

I placed my hand on his beating heart. "I invested five years in a relationship with someone who doesn't even know half of what you already do in the short time of knowing me. That's five years I'll never get back, Colt. I don't plan on wasting another single minute."

His eyes darted across my face, as if memorizing and ingraining every part of that moment into his mind forever. I certainly was. Because the look on his face in that moment was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

He dipped down and kissed me with every ounce of his being, and I gave everything I had in return. When we eventually broke apart, he leaned his forehead against mine and rubbed my cheek.

"I wanna show you something."

"Didn't you already?" I teased.

He backed up and chuckled, grabbing my hand and leading me further down the barn. "That I did and most definitely will again. But I have someone here who wants to see you first."

I let him lead me to the last stall and peered over the door to meet the rear end of a horse. "I prefer yours, but this is a very close second."

His eyes grew dark as a devilish look danced across them. "You're gonna regret that later." He smirked, and I shuddered with the promise of what was to later come.

He patted the horse's rear end and she slowly turned around, giving me a view of that beautiful star patch on her head. She snorted when she saw me and walked up to face me. I reached out and rubbed her neck.

"She found her way back?" I turned to Colt stunned, as I rubbed Star's face.

"That she did." He ran his knuckles down my cheek and smiled, making me feel the double meaning in his words. "Her and Cash were found grazing in a pasture a half mile from the lodge." He reached out and patted her side. "Now, I have it on good authority that she would like to take you on another ride to make the last one up to you."

"Oh, you do now, huh? And who told you that?"

"Why, she did of course."

I laughed and playfully pushed his chest.

"Would you like to ride her Grace?"

"I really would."

Those three words were all it took to light up his face. He harnessed her and walked her out of the stall to saddle her up. When he was done, he put his foot in the stirrup and pulled himself up, offering me his hand so I could hop up and sit in front of him. With his chest pressed against my back, he took the reins and lead Star out of the barn and toward a pasture.

Having him pressed hard against my back with his strong arms around me was making it difficult for me to concentrate on anything else and Colt had to completely get Star to come to a halt to get my attention.

"Grace? Have you heard anything I've just said?"

A deep blush formed, and I was grateful I was facing the front.

"Um sure...you were saying something about the weather."

"The weather?"

"Yeah, you asked if it was going to rain."

Colt's laugh reverberated through his chest and into my back, causing me to turn toward him in a playful scowl.

"Grace, I asked if you would like to take the reins."

Oh. Right.

I smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. Sure, I'd love to." I grabbed the reins from him and went to trot Star again, but his next words kept me in place.

"Good, because she's your horse to lead now. That is, if you want."

I turned back toward him; my eyes danced over his face and when the words fully registered, a huge smile spread on my lips.

"Do you mean it? You're giving her to me?"

"She's all yours. That is, if you'll take the offer to co-own Whisk Me Away and be the head chef here."

I twisted my body slightly more in order to face Colt better and narrowed my eyes.

"How did you know I was offered that? I only told you I was here to help with the opening."

A sheepish grin grew on that devilish handsome face of his and he gripped the back of his neck before dropping his hand on my thigh and squeezing.

"About that...it wasn't exactly a coincidence the same restaurant you work for got contracted here."

A small smile tugged at my lips as I narrowed my eyes in suspicion and waited for him to explain.

"When I found out the contract fell through with the other restaurant, I knew it was my opportunity at getting you back here. With the help of my mom, we got in contact with Michelle and she was more than excited to expand out here." He paused, hesitating a moment and clearing his throat before continuing. "There's more. I may have mentioned that we heard about your skills as a chef and we wanted you to be the one to come out for the opening so that we could try to persuade you to make the transfer. Apparently Michelle knew your love for the country, so while she was hesitant about losing you, she couldn't say no."

I slowly took in every word he had just confessed. To say I was startled that he went to those lengths for me would be an understatement. Though, thinking back, I am not sure why I was.

"I knew it wasn't just a coincidence! But I had no idea it was you pulling the strings. Why didn't you stop me from leaving that day in your kitchen?"

"Because Grace, I thought you needed me to let you go. And in a way, you did. You needed to learn to stand on your own two feet without my help. It had to be you to make that decision. But...I can be a little impatient and besides, sometimes fate needs a little intervening." He winked.

I smiled. "You're right. I did need to find my way. And I did because of you." I ran my hand against his cheek and gripped the back of his neck. "You promised me you would save me, and you kept that promise. In more ways than one."

"No, Grace. It was me you saved, I can promise you that." He grabbed the back of my head, leaned forward and closed the short distance between us. His lips were every bit addicting as the rest of him. I could say I got lost in that kiss, but the truth is, in every one of his touches, in every one of his kisses, I was found.

We pulled away and I turned back to grip the reins, kicking Star to a start.

"Should we run?"

"You know, for the first time, in a long time, I'm actually looking forward to walking. I'm not running from anything. Not anymore."

A slow smile spread across my face as I nodded and leaned my head back against his chest, allowing Star to lead us in a walk.

I knew exactly what he meant. Because for the first time in a long time, I wasn't chasing anything. Not anymore.