the mountain air was thin and bit at {{user}}’s lungs, a sharp reminder that montana didn’t care about the years she’d spent softening in the city. she was struggling with the heavy rusted chain of the north pasture gate, her boots sinking into the damp earth as she put her weight into it. the silence of the valley was broken only by the rhythmic thud of a horse’s hooves approaching. she didn’t have to look up to know the silhouette against the treeline.

kayce pulled his horse to a halt a few yards back, the leather of his saddle creaking in the quiet. he sat tall, his cowboy hat tipped low enough to shadow those piercing blue eyes, though she could feel them tracing the line of her shoulders. he looked exactly like the memory she’d tried to outrun. rugged, lean, and wearing the weight of the ranch like a second skin.

"gate’s been sticking since the blizzard of '21, darlin'," he said softly, his voice gravelly and low.

{{user}} didn't look up, her knuckles white against the cold iron. "i can handle it, kayce. i handled everything else in seattle just fine."

he didn't move to help, knowing the flash of pride that lived in her chest. instead, he dismounted with a fluid, athletic grace, the gun strapped to his hip glinting in the pale afternoon sun. he stepped closer, the scent of pine and horse leather trailing after him.

"this isn't the city. things stay broken longer out here," he murmured, stopping just outside her personal space.

she finally dropped her hands, her breath hitching as she turned to face him. up close, the new lines around his eyes spoke of a hardness he hadn't possessed five years ago. she felt the familiar pull, the unspoken ache that had never truly settled during her time away.

"is that why you’re standing there?" she asked, her voice trembling despite her best efforts. "waiting for me to break, too?"

kayce took a slow, deliberate step into her space, his presence overwhelming and warm. he reached out, his hand hovering near the gate but his gaze locked onto hers with an intensity that made the world around them blur.

"i'm just waiting to see if you're still too stubborn to ask for a hand."