River had never sounded so sad. “Would you rather me stay and drag this out?” she whispered. “String you along until we both hate each other? Ruin the last couple of weeks?”

Yes. But…no. Hell, he didn’t know. Everything was moving so fast. Ripping a bandage off a wound might hurt less, but his heart was telling him to slap that sucker back on. In the end, Easton didn’t reply. There was nothing he could say.

“The way I see it, we can leave things where they’re at. What happened on the mountain can stay on the mountain.” River offered him a sad look. “Easton, I love it here, because you’re here. But my life—my career—it’s not in Moose Springs.”

“Do I get another option?” he asked quietly.

“The other option is what happened on the mountain doesn’t stay on the mountain. But that’s going to be short, messy, and complicated. I won’t ruin us, Easton. Tomorrow, I’m getting on that plane, no matter how much I wish I weren’t.”

“River, every single minute I’ve spent with you has been messy and complicated. I wouldn’t trade any of it. Not for anything. Whatever this is, let’s see it to the end. Even if that’s only twenty-four hours from now.”

“Summit or bust?” she asked, slender fingers tugging at his hair, drawing him back to her.

“Summit or bust,” he breathed against her lips.

Chapter 20

   Since they were releasing her tomorrow, River had one more night in the hospital room. It seriously sucked.

At least she was wearing her normal clothes again.

River’s back was to the door, and the constant footsteps in the hall caused her to stop paying attention to unexpected noises. Which might have been why River was completely unprepared to turn her head and find a border collie in a three-piece suit in her room, a thornless long stem rose held carefully in between his teeth.

At first, River stared. This was no normal canine outfit. Someone had gone to a lot of effort to tailor the suit for the adorable, floppy-eared dog. Not only was it tailored, it was also pinstriped, with matching bow tie and pocket square.

A fedora had been secured between those ears, tilted jauntily.

“Hey there,” she cooed, earning herself a vigorously wagging tail. Only when River scooted off the bed to kneel next to him did she realize the dog had a thick film over his eyes, indicating his blindness. “Puppy, who lost you?”

“I didn’t lose him.” Graham Barnett’s voice spoke up right next to her, making River jump. “Like I would ever lose my best friend. Jake, can you believe that?”

Jake—the well-dressed border collie—barked in mutual offended agreement, accidentally dropping the rose. He sniffed the ground, then picked it back up again, the flowered end closer to his teeth and the long stem drooping out the other side of his mouth. It was officially the cutest thing River had ever seen, and she’d seen Easton cuddle a marmot.

“Graham, where are—?” River started to say, then she noticed the baby monitor tucked into the breast pocket of Jake’s suit. “Oh. Very sneaky, Overwatch.”

“Jake has been asked to escort you to an evening of wonder and romance, courtesy of someone who has never successfully pulled off either,” Graham informed her cheerfully. “Jake, give the nice lady her flower.”

A wet nose snuffed her hands, then Jake set the slightly slobbered-on rose in her fingers. Unable to contain her sheer delight, River spent a solid minute ignoring the man on the monitor in favor of telling Jake how perfect he was, petting those floppy ears, and taking multiple selfies.

“Wow, and I thought Zoey had it bad. Jake, you’re such a ladies’ man. Now, if you don’t mind changing, we’re on a deadline here. Jake, give the lady some privacy.”

“I’m wearing clothes,” River said as the border collie politely turned around and sat with his back to her. “For a disembodied event organizer, you’re dropping the ball here.”

“Hey, I’m doing this blind. Can’t a guy catch a break?”

“Give me that.” Ash’s voice came over the line, sounding annoyed. “He always has to make everything about himself. River, come outside, okay? Head to the back parking lot, and you’ll see where to go.”

River put on her shoes, careful not to tie them too tight over her still bandaged toes, and dutifully took Jake’s leash. She kept the rose in her free hand, trying to sneak both past the curious eyes of the nursing station. The entire trip through the hospital, River had the feeling Zoey was lurking in the background, but she could never quite catch her, not even when she ducked an extra corner or two.

Easton’s truck was parked in the back of the hospital, on the very far side of the parking lot, where the woods butted up to the asphalt. Someone had set an empty pizza box in the back of the truck, with a much neater handwriting than River’s own.

“Don’t stop,” she read, chuckling at the arrow pointing to the trail hidden behind the truck’s bulk. “No film crews allowed. Private event.”

Graham’s voice came back over Jake’s monitor. “This is where you’re on your own. Please leave the handsome devil on your left in the bed of the truck and continue on the trail.”

“Okay, now whose getting led into the woods by a crazy person?” she joked, scratching Jake beneath the chin. “Thanks for the escort, Jake.”

“He says you’re welcome. Oh, and, River?”

“Yes, Graham?”

“Thanks for taking care of my buddy out there.” In a kind voice, Graham added, “I hope you have a nice evening.”

Okay, so maybe Zoey was right, and Graham wasn’t all bad. Leaving Jake was tough, because who really wanted to leave a dog in a fedora? But River did as directed, tying Jake safe and sound in the bed of the truck with the duo of puppet masters still hiding in the cab, sneakily watching her through the side mirrors.

Following the indicated trail, River had to squeeze through closely grown branches. The trail stayed tight for the first several yards, then it opened up as the trees grew higher and farther apart. Even though they were so close to the hospital, River felt like she was back in the bush again.

It was harder to know where the natural trail was anymore, but someone had already taken care of that. Every few yards, a glow stick was suspended from a branch at face height, showing her the way. She followed the glow sticks around a corner and then stopped in her tracks.

River’s breath caught in her throat.

Of all the impromptu picnics or surprise dates in her lifetime, this was by far her favorite. The campsite Easton had picked was perfect. A tiny fire had been built and carefully circled with rocks in the center of a small clearing, the crackling of the burning wood almost lost beneath the softly babbling brook skirting the edge of the camp. River didn’t recognize the tent in front of her, but the man waiting for her was burned into her soul.