The bag slung over his shoulder wasn’t enough to pack an entire life in, but it was big enough to pack a week’s worth of clothes and a heart bigger than the man in front of her. His courage for showing up there left her breath caught in her lungs.

She’d missed him so much.

“I earn most of my money guiding climbs in the summer back home.” He cleared his throat. “Can’t leave my dad alone at Christmas. As for the rest of it, I figured wherever you were at seemed a whole lot better than missing you alone.”

River’s face hurt from the smile splitting it. “Christmas in Moose Springs?”

“It gets interesting.” His beard flashed her a quick grin.

“Will they want me there?”

“I want you there. And if you make that movie the way it deserves instead of for the Alaskan Tourism Board, they’ll like you a whole lot more.”

“The Old Man’s about to become a lot more popular. People are going to want to find their own adventure up there. Maybe even fall in love with their own mountain man. Think you can handle it?”

“As long as they know I’m spoken for.”

“The marmot?” River teased.

“I figured I’d see how this went first, ma’am.”

They shared a smile, and in that moment, River knew she’d found her home. Wyoming, Alaska, it didn’t matter. Home was where Easton was.

“Ma’am me like you mean it, big guy. Kiss me too, since you came all this way.”

With a sigh of relief, he ducked the fence. It occurred to her that he hadn’t been sure of his welcome, but Easton would always be welcome in River’s life. Always. Leaning down off the side of Ticktock, River pressed her lips to his.

And up until the damn horse tossed her off and stepped on Easton’s foot, breaking two of his toes, it was the best kiss ever.

• • •

No one made a movie very quickly. By the time River’s documentary was finished, simple as it was, they’d agreed to a new routine. Summers and Christmas in Moose Springs with his family. Winters and Thanksgiving in Wyoming with hers. Trips to LA as she negotiated her next film. Utah and Toronto to promote the documentary, with a few overseas excursions in the mix.

No matter where they went, no matter what they did, they always found something worth climbing. And in the rare places they couldn’t, they had all they needed in each other, with River climbing into his arms.

Easton had never been happier.