316 Rose Rd (A Cherry Falls Romance)

It’s a gorgeous place, carved out by the people who have come here before us. I can hardly believe that it’s real. Sure, I hardly live in a full-blown metropolis, but I’m not used to nature being this accessible.

"If I lived here, I’d be down here every single day," I sigh, as we round a corner and come opposite the river that runs down to the lake that he told me about.

"I try and make it here as often as I can," he agrees. He hasn’t let go of my hand once as we walked, confident, as though he knows that I want him to be holding it.

"I bet you could have made this path all by yourself," I tease him. "Real mountain man, aren’t you?”

"Is that what they’re calling it these days?” he remarks, shaking his head and playing like he doesn’t love that I just gave him a new nickname. We turn another corner, and he helps me over a small log that has fallen in the way of the path, and then, finally, the two of us are at the falls.

And they really are as beautiful as he promised that they would be. Cascading from jagged rock that sticks out from a ledge in the mountain, the water crashes into a heavy, vibrantly blue pool beneath us, covered by a canopy of trees. For a moment, I just stand there, unable to do anything but admire how downright gorgeous it looks, how striking and stunning it seems.

"You like it?" Cliff calls to me over the sound of the water. I nod, hardly able to keep the smile off my face.

"It’s beautiful!” I exclaim, and he tugs me down towards the rocks at the edge of the pool.

"I know a spot," he explains as I follow him – careful not to slip – and he places a hand on my back to steady me, to hold me close.

And sure enough, it doesn’t take long till the two of us have made it. There is a small alcove that dips into the rock, providing some cover from the path above, and he ducks down to lead me inside a small cave. The second I step in behind him, it is as though I have followed him into another world entirely. The soft sound of the water echoes around us, and Cliff pulls off his backpack and pulls out a thick blanket for us.

"Here," he murmurs, and he tosses it down so that I have somewhere to sit. I rest on the ground, the soft blanket under my hands, and marvel at the sight of the waterfall just beyond me. How can something that big, that huge, that powerful, be so beautiful at the same time? It seems as though it should be scary, but with him right here beside me, it is anything but.

"Thank you," I reply, and I tuck a strand of hair, flecked from the water beyond us, back from my cheek. He plants himself right down beside me, his arm behind my back. I love the way he touches me, as though he knows that he already owns me – as though he doesn’t even have to think twice about it.

"This place is gorgeous," I tell him. "Thank you for bringing me here."

"Not many people from the campsite make it down here," he remarks. "It’s a shame. It’s one of the prettiest places in the whole state."

I smile. He brought me down here because he wanted to share it with me – because he wanted to make sure that I didn’t leave without getting to experience it. I can’t think of much in the world sweeter than that. I rest my head on his shoulder, feeling the soles of my feet tingling, wondering if this is real, if this can really be happening. There is no way that I just happened to stumble across the man of my dreams. Did I?

"Do you want something to eat?" he asks, reaching for the backpack. "I got us some food..."

He turns to face me, and, before I can answer, he pinches my chin between his thumb and forefinger and leans forward to kiss me. I close my eyes, surprised, but more than happy to go along with it. When he pulls back, he is smiling, and I can taste his sweetness on my lips.

"What was that for?” I ask him.

"You look as beautiful as the wild roses on the path, delicate but tough enough for this wilderness," he replies, running his hand down my neck, to my shoulder.

His touch turns me on, and by the way he speaks to me, I know that he is having a hard time containing himself, too. We both want this. We both need this. And, when he kisses me again, lays me back on the blanket behind me and moves on top of me, I know that this is right. It is time.