Then I lean in and kiss him, soft and sure, tasting possibility on his lips. "Boone, I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”
Epilogue
Stacia
Onemonthlater
I dip the paddle into the water, attempting to turn the kayak the way Boone taught me. It wobbles, and I shriek. “I swear to God, Boone, if this thing flips over, I’m going to kill you.”
His laugh echoes across the lake, low and wicked and entirely too satisfied with itself. “Kayaks are very stable, darlin’. And the water is smooth. You’re not going to flip.”
“Riiiight,” I huff, adjusting the paddle in my hands. “But this kayak has it out for me.”
“You say that like it’s not literally the same one you picked out for yourself. With color-coded accessories.”
“It matches my water shoes.” I straighten my posture. “And my dry bag.”
“City girl,” he mutters affectionately.
“Mountain man,” I shoot back.
We’re floating just off the shoreline of what’s quickly becoming our favorite spot—an inlet framed by tall pines, the lake calm and glittering around us in the late morning sun. There’s a little wooden dock waiting for us back at the launch point, freshly built last week with a hand-painted sign that reads:
The Great Outdoors with Boone & Stacia.
Guided Lake Tours. Forest Hikes. Fishing & Wildlife Adventures.
Our new business.
We’ve spent the last four weeks building it out, filing permits, setting up a website with pictures and descriptions I painstakingly wrote while Boone rolled his eyes at phrases like“unplug and unwind in the heart of nature.”He’s still not sold on the tagline, but heissold on me—so he let it slide.
And now, here we are. Soft launch weekend. Our first tour’s scheduled for tomorrow.
“Honestly,” I say, dipping the paddle gently into the water, “I might actually be getting the hang of this.”
Boone hums. “That so?”
I nod. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not ready for whitewater or anything. But I haven’t flipped yet.”
“That’s true.” His grin widens. “But that might just be because I’ve been staying close enough to grab you if you start to wobble.”
I roll my eyes, but my heart’s already melting. Again. “I thought you said it was stable!”
He chuckles. “I’m just teasing.” He reaches over with one arm and hooks a finger through the side of my kayak, pulling us closeuntil we’re side by side. “But I’ll also use any excuse to keep you close.”
I glance over at him, damp curls sticking to his forehead, a threadbare white T-shirt clinging to his chest, and my stomach does a ridiculous flip. He looks relaxed. Happy.Lighter than he’s been in years, he told me once. And I feel it, too. Like all the pressure and noise of my old life finally washed off the day I sank into this lake and was pulled out by the only man who could’ve kept me afloat.
“You know,” he says, eyes twinkling, “I was thinking you might want to help with the guided fishing tours. Could use someone to help bait lines.”
I bark out a laugh. “That’syourside of the business, not mine.”
His face splits into a grin. “Don’t you want to learn all the sides of the business?”
“We’ll see,” I say. “Maybe if you give me a raise.”
“Funny you should mention that.” He shifts slightly, his hand dipping into the pocket of his cargo shorts. “I’ve got a signing bonus for you.”
Before I can ask, he holds something out between us.
