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"I'm so glad we decided to make this trip," Rowan took Brandon's hand as he leaned over the center console. They had been sitting in the car for almost six hours, with Denver, Colorado as their destination.
"I am too. I can't wait to get out of this car though," he replied with a gentleness in his voice. The black suv snaked through a snowy white country road, flanked with tall pine trees that hung low with fresh powdery snow on their branches. It was still falling and would continue to do so for the next hour. "How's she doing back there?"
Rowan peered into the backseat out of the corner of her eye, "she's doing alright. It looks like she's still asleep."
"It's been a big trip for her. She'll be so excited once we get there," Brandon smiled over at his girl as she turned her attention to face forward again.
Rowan lifted their joined hands to her lips and kissed his knuckles, "You know, I didn't think you'd agree to coming out here with me."
His lips curled up into a smirk on one side, "Why is that?"
"Because it's far. Like you said, it's a big trip," she kissed them again before gingerly dropping their hands into her lap. He let go of the embrace, latching onto her thigh and started to rub her leg.
"Anything for you babe. If it makes you happy, it's worth it. And what's also worth it is-"
"Oh my god babe!" Rowan interrupted as the vehicle whirled up the crest of the hill into a large open field. Off in the near distance sat a contemporary cabin, complete with an over sized porch that looked over the open area into the mountains. The snow was crisp and untouched, sprawling across the yard. She excitedly grabbed his forearm, "This is exactly what I wanted to see! The snow is so gorgeous!"
Rowan leaned over and kissed his cheek as they pulled up to the house. As soon as he killed the ignition, she hopped out of the vehicle into the snow. There was enough snowfall that it just reached the top of her boots. She bent over and scooped up a handful, throwing it up into the sky in a child-like manner. "It's so pretty!" She laughed as the cold flakes fell on her cheeks.
At the same time, Brandon slid out of the drivers seat and opened the back passenger door. "Wake up, sleepy head," he said, nudging at the three year old bernedoodle slumbering in back. The dog popped up at the sound of her daddy's voice and the second she saw the snow, she hopped out of the car as quickly as her mom did. She chased after Rowan and the two played in the pillows of pristine white snow. "I'll be right back," Brandon called out to them, grabbing their bags from the trunk.
"I'll come with you, I want to see inside," she said between breaths as little puffs of air trailed out after her words, "Come Luna!" The dog trailed behind them, up the wooden stairs. Brandon reached over to the door and punched the code into the key pad. The hallway was painted with a crisp cream color with a big mirror hanging to the right so the sunlight could bounce off of it and illuminate the area if it hit in the correct places. They slid off their shoes and headed into the great room where floor to ceiling windows covered the adjacent wall and the vaulted ceilings were clad in beautiful oak beams. A chocolate brown plush leather couch and two soft white armchairs sat to the right and an oversized dining room table for ten sat to the left. The view of the mountains was beyond compare. The clouds were hanging low that afternoon with the passing snowstorm and they sat just at the tops of the mountains. Rowan slid open the glass doors and sat down in one of the Adirondack chairs on the deck. "This is way better than I envisioned when I said I wanted to come to the mountains to see the snow fall."
The sun came out for a little while after they unpacked, so they went back outside to play in the snow. It was hard to pinpoint who was enjoying themselves the most- the couple or the dog. Snow was flung back and forth across the yard in an intense snowball fight until Luna decided she needed to catch each one and it turned into a game of monkey in the middle instead. Rowan made a good half a dozen snow angels and even got Brandon to make a few, but of course Luna walked through them so they had paw prints going across the bodies. They laughed and enjoyed the cold until the sun went down and they decided it was time for dinner. They washed up and shared a shower and took a few minutes to themselves away from the dog to fuck before slipping into comfortable clothing. Brandon threw on a hoodie and a pair of basketball shorts, while Rowan opted for a cozy sweater and leggings. They helped one another in the kitchen with Brandon searing some pork chops in a cast iron skillet and Rowan mashing up some potatoes and roasting a head of broccoli. The two finished the night sitting at the huge table and laughing over the pictures that they took earlier playing in the snow.
"I think I'm going to throw some wood into the fireplace," Brandon stated as they sat at the dinner table with empty plates, "do you want help with these?"
"No, it's alright, I got these," Rowan reached over and started stacking the dishes on top of one another. She nodded toward the fireplace, acknowledging the fact they hadn't lit it yet, "Get that thing going. Do you want coffee?"
"Just a little," he said, placing a chaste kiss on her cheek as he stood up from his seat. Rowan made her way into the kitchen, placing the dishes into the sink. She ran the water and scrubbed at the plates before sticking them into the dishwasher. The warmth of the water steamed up the window and she leaned in, wiping it with her sleeve. "Do you think there's coyotes out there or is it safe to let Luna out?" She asked Brandon. When he didn't answer, she turned around and peeked around the corner to see the wood stacked onto one another inside the fireplace but it hadn't been lit. "Babe?" She called out.
"Sorry, I had to grab a lighter," he said as he rushed down the stairs, "what did you ask?"
"I asked if I should let the dog out or if she'll get eaten," she bent down over the couch and ran her hand over Lunas belly.
Brandon leaned into the fireplace and flicked the lighter, setting a piece of news paper on fire to get it lit, "Yeah I'll watch her so she doesn't go far. You make that coffee."
Rowan smiled at him before turning on her heel to return to the kitchen. She threw some ground decaf into the French press while the water on the stove came to a boil. As she waited, she watched Brandon from afar, admiring him as he situated the fire and being thankful for the day he had planned for her. They had recently gotten so caught up in their daily lives that slowing down and enjoying time together seemed to be exactly what the doctor would've prescribed.
Once the kettle whistled, Rowan poured the hot water into the French press and let it sit for a few minutes. The fresh warm aroma of the coffee filled the air and she pressed down on the plunger to filter the grounds and then carefully filled two mugs with some for herself and Brandon. Rowan padded into the living room and sat down on the couch, sprawling across its entirely underneath a cozy throw blanket. She cupped the hot mug between her hands and blew lightly at the brown liquid, taking a small sip to test the temperature. She smiled contently, taking another sip and letting the drink warm her body.
"How is it?" Brandon asked as he joined her in the living room. Luna was not far behind and she hopped onto the couch and cuddled up at Rowan's feet.
"It's hitting the spot. I have yours right here," Rowan motioned toward the second coffee mug on the table while he sat down across from her. He too took a careful first sip, avoiding burning his tongue and then nodding in approval at the delicious late night roast.
"Can I ask you something?" His voice echoed in a low timbre as he lowered the mug from his lips.
Rowan nodded her head.
Brandon moved over to sit on the coffee table so he was sitting across from her and placed the mug off to the side. "You know how much I love you, right?"
"Of course I know how much you love me," Rowan's heart melted a little and she placed her palm to her beloveds cheek.
"Well I know I've told you before, but it's always been you Rowan. You've always meant more than the world to me and I don't think I'd be as good of a person as I am today because of you. You've taught me so many things about love and kindness and caring for other people," Brandon's voice faltered slightly as he fidgeted in his pocket. Once he could grasp what he needed, a little white box sat in the palm of his hand. Inside was the most gorgeous diamond that he could find and it shined like the top of the Chrysler building on a sunny day. "Rowan Fricks, I can't imagine spending life without you by my side. Will you marry me?"
Rowan could feel her heart beating a mile a minute, as if it were about to burst at the seams. She felt so overcome with happiness that she started to cry. He took the ring out of the box and slid it onto her ring finger. She held her arm out to delight in the glisten that it gave off from the light of the fireplace before taking his face in her hands and pulling him in for a deep kiss. The two parted and she gently rested her forehead with his.
"One hundred times, yes."