Chapter 7 - The Unbroken Horizon
An hour later, the deep, familiar rumble of a truck engine idling in the driveway signaled Ryan’s arrival.
I grabbed my duffel bag, walked out the front door, and locked it securely behind me. The morning sun was breaking brilliantly through the turning maple trees, washing the suburban street in warm, golden light.
Ryan was standing by the passenger side of his truck, wearing a dark flannel shirt and jeans, waiting for me with an easy, radiant smile. As I walked down the stone pathway toward him, he reached out, took my bag from my shoulder, and tossed it into the truck bed before pulling me gently into his arms.
“Everything okay?” Ryan asked, his dark eyes searching my face with instinctive care.
“Everything is better than okay,” I smiled, resting my hands against the front of his flannel shirt, feeling the steady, strong rhythm of his heart beneath my palms. “It’s perfect.”
Ryan grinned, leaning down to press a soft, lingering kiss to my lips that made the rest of the world melt away completely.
“Good,” he murmured against my mouth. “Because the cabin is three hours north, the fireplace is stocked, and you’re officially off duty for the next forty-eight hours.”
“Is that an order, Coach Cole?” I teased, stepping back with a laugh as he opened the passenger door for me.
“Strictly enforced,” Ryan winked, closing the door gently behind me.
I climbed into the passenger seat, settled comfortably against the headrest, and watched through the windshield as Ryan jogged around the hood and slid into the driver's seat. He started the engine, shifted into gear, and pulled out of the driveway, steering us out onto the open highway heading north toward the mountains.
As the suburban houses faded into the distance and the vast, beautiful expanse of the open road stretched endlessly out before us, I rolled down the window slightly to let the crisp, clean autumn wind brush against my face.
For years, I had been the one chasing a ghost, constantly terrified of falling behind, desperate to keep pace with a man who was running away from me.
That morning, as the sun climbed higher into the bright blue sky, I realized the ultimate truth of my journey.
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I wasn't chasing anyone anymore.
And for the rest of my life, I was never going to look back.
