the engine cut out with a final, metallic wheeze, leaving nothing but the heavy silence of the montana night and the rhythmic chirping of crickets in the tall grass. the heat still radiated off the hood of the old car, shimmering in the moonlight. {{user}} sat in the passenger seat of rip’s truck, her fingers digging into the fabric of her seat. she could feel the weight of him beside her. the familiar scent of cedar, leather, and expensive whiskey filling the cramped space of the cab.

they were parked in front of the cabin. his cabin. the place where the porch light flickered with a dim, yellow glow, casting long shadows across the wood. it was the house they were supposed to grow old in before everything fractured.

{{user}} reached for the door handle, her movements hesitant. she just wanted to get inside, away from the suffocating tension of the drive, but before she could pull the lever, rip’s hand shot out. his palm was rough, calloused from years of branding cattle and fixing fences, as he steadied her arm. he didn't pull away. his touch was grounding and terrifyingly familiar.

rip didn't look at her. he kept his piercing blue eyes fixed on the darkness beyond the windshield, his jaw set tight behind his dark beard. the glow from the dashboard caught the yellow y on his black jacket, a constant reminder of the loyalty that had always come before her.

"i told myself i wouldn't ask," rip muttered, his voice a low rumble that vibrated in the small space.

{{user}} felt her breath hitch, her chest tightening beneath her shirt. she looked down at his hand on her arm. "then don't," she whispered.

he finally turned his head, his gaze heavy with years of unspoken things and a yearning he usually kept buried under layers of steel and grit. he looked at her, really looked at her, taking in the soft curve of her jaw and the way she still looked like home to him, even after the silence.

"i have to," he said, his voice cracking just enough to show the man beneath the foreman. "was it the ranch you hated, {{user}}? or was it just the man who couldn't leave it?"