No matter where they went, no matter what they did, they always found something worth climbing. And in the rare places they couldn’t, they had all they needed in each other, with River climbing into his arms.
Easton had never been happier.
Her father had found Easton a horse that would fit him, but the mare tended to give him disappointed looks every time he saddled her up. So he trailered Chance down to Wyoming instead. The mountains around the ranch weren’t his own, but the local ranchers quickly learned how skilled of a tracker Easton was. Soon, he was the first one they called when they needed a stray tracked or a mountain lion run off from the herd. And when the work on the ranch was done, Easton and River would slip away together, heading up the mountains as high as they could go without taxing their mounts.
“So, what do you think?” River asked him randomly as they settled in on a rock ledge together. Ticktock and Chance were tied off a hundred feet below, along with both their boots.
This time, River had remembered her chalk and climbing shoes.
“What do I think about you?”
She should already know. He’d spent all morning and half the night before showing her that she was the perfect woman for him, that she was everything he’d never known he wanted and absolutely all he would ever need.
“About here. Wyoming.” Her eyes sparkled as she shot him a grin. “And yes, about me too.”
Easton wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into him. “I think they’re all down there watching your movie. We should probably join them.”
“I’m not sure I have the ability to sit through two hours of them teasing us for acting like lovesick teenagers on a mountaintop.”
True. Besides, he didn’t need to watch them falling in love. He’d been there. Every single moment with her was etched in his heart, and he’d never forget it. But there were more mountains to climb together, more adventures to be had. Easton had never been the type to dwell on the past. They had their whole lives ahead of them.
“Easton? They finalized the schedule of my next film.” Jessie had been right; they were clamoring for River to produce now. She had more job offers than she could possibly take. “I’m supposed to wrap up filming by April. In May…how would you feel about not taking a group up the Old Man and going with me to Nepal instead?”
Desire burned in his veins. Looking at her, knowing she knew him the way no one else ever would, Easton had never been so glad he’d pulled over to ask a woman if she needed a ride. “You want to climb Everest?”
“I want both of us to climb Everest. I think we can do it.”
He had always been a man of few words. But as the sun dipped below the mountaintop, bathing them in soft reds and pale gold, Easton took her hand in his, squeezing it tight.
Together they could do anything.
Acknowledgments
Sometimes a book is the book of your heart. The one you don’t just want to write but have to write. Enjoy the View is that book for me.
I love the outdoors, and I love Alaska, so a mountain climbing story set outside Moose Springs was a dream project. Easton, in all his man-bunned glory. River, determined to find her best, happiest self. I pored over this book, fretted over this book, cried a few times, and definitely wrung my hands over it. It was the story I wanted to tell, but it was such a troublemaker! In the end, I’m so proud of these two characters and their love story.
When I was twenty, I threw all my stuff into the back of my car and moved to Los Angeles. Was it easy? No. Was it a little crazy? Yes. But it was the start of a life I have loved and would never have seen coming. I like that River and I have similar backgrounds, and I wanted her to find her happily ever after so badly. I wanted her to keep searching until her dreams came true. And when she finally sits on the mountainside with Easton, hand in hand and at peace, it gives me a sense of peace, too.
You don’t always know where you’ll end up in life. All that matters is that you’re next to the right person for the journey.
Thank you to Cat Clyne, Mary Altman, and Christa Désir for your incredible editing. You three made this story come alive in a way I never could have alone. Cat, thank you for not minding every time I said “let me tweak one more thing!” and for letting me go full in on the marmot scenes. Thank you for wanting these stories…you changed my life in all the best ways.
Thank you to my agent, Sara Megibow, for everything you do. Also for the idea of the marmot in the first place…you’re a genius. Thank you to Stefani Sloma, Sarah Otterness, and the entire Sourcebooks Casablanca team for all your hard work, every single day. Thank you for embracing my quirky little town of Moose Springs and letting me have so much fun writing happily ever afters for the people there.
To my critique partners, C.R. and Christina, thank you for putting up with all the revisions on this manuscript. Laurel, thank you for being a constant, incredible support for these stories. Leigh, as always, thank you for your friendship and your awesome attention to detail. Also, thank you to Chuck Heh for the climbing info. (Any and all mistakes are mine.) Endless gratitude to my Golden Heart sisters for being there through thick and thin. You are a daily joy in my life.
Thank you to my wonderful family for supporting me through the adventure of Moose Springs, especially to my husband, Kenney. Thank you for your love, your hugs, and your endless enthusiasm. These books are only here because of you. Everyday I know I’m next to the right person for the journey.
Last but never least... God, thanks for letting me be a writer. It’s the best job ever.
Kyle, this one was for you. I love you, kid.
About the Author
Geologist and lifelong science nerd Sarah Morgenthaler is a passionate supporter of chocolate chip cookies, geeking out over rocks, and playing with her rescue pit bull, Sammy. When not writing contemporary romance and romantic comedy set in far-off places, Sarah can be found traveling with her husband, hiking national parks, and enjoying her own happily ever after. Sarah is the author of the Moose Springs, Alaska, series, including the Publishers Weekly starred novel The Tourist Attraction.
Boyfriend Material
Wanted: One (fake) boyfriend, practically perfect in every way.
Luc O’Donnell is tangentially—and reluctantly—famous. Now he’s back in the public eye, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything. To clean up his image, Luc has to find a nice, normal relationship…and Oliver Blackwood is as nice and normal as they come. In other words: perfect boyfriend material. Unfortunately, apart from being gay, single, and really, really in need of a date for a big event, Luc and Oliver have nothing in common. So they strike a deal to be publicity-friendly (fake) boyfriends until the dust has settled. Then they can go their separate ways and pretend it never happened.