Chapter 40
Chapter Forty
Excited crowd chatter erupted all around us as Noah pulled me aside. “So, did you see all that male grouse had to go through? All that dancing, all that effort, just to get her attention?”
“I did. Seemed like a lot of work.” My heart was suddenly racing. “Almost as much work as rescuing someone from rapids. Or building a fire with moldy logs in a storm-swept cabin. Or carrying them to their Jeep after a moose attack.”
“Don’t forget baking muffins before dawn,” he added, the smile spreading over his face. Or scraping all the mud off a Jeep that hasn’t been washed in … well, ever. Just to impress someone’s mom.”
“You definitely made an impression, that’s for sure.”
“With your mom? Or with you?”
I considered. “Both.”
Noah’s hand found mine, his fingers intertwining with my own. “We should probably finish that conversation we started by the cliff,” he began. “The one where you were going to tell me how you …”
I figured actions were stronger than words. If the sage grouse could put himself out there like that, putting on a public display for all the world to see, risking rejection, looking foolish, dancing his heart out for love, the least I could do was show a little public display of affection myself.
I cut Noah off by rising on tiptoe and pressing my lips against his. The kiss was everything a kiss in front of hundreds of people should be, slightly clumsy, unexpectedly soft, and absolutely electric.
But more than that, it was honest. Here I was choosing love in front of half of Colorado and my parents and a very judgmental-looking wolf-dog.
Noah froze for a heartbeat, then his arms wrapped around me, lifting me slightly off the ground as he deepened the kiss.
Sinking into Noah’s embrace, the noise of the festival faded away, replaced by the thundering of my heart and the certainty that had been building since that first disastrous meeting at the airport.
This, us, was authentic in a way no curated content could ever be.
Every spilled coffee, every airport abandonment, every eye roll, every grumpy growl, every reluctant compliment had been leading us here, to this moment of perfect clarity.
When we finally broke apart, I laughed at the pure joy bubbling in my chest, the kind of laugh that comes from genuine happiness.
“I am falling in love with you, Noah Barrett,” I admitted, the words tumbling out before I could second-guess them. “Which is completely ridiculous and makes no logical sense and will probably end in disaster.”
“Possibly,” he agreed, his smile wide enough to reveal that hidden dimple. “But I’m willing to risk it if you are.”
But even as I’d said it, I knew it wasn’t ridiculous at all. Falling in love with Noah made perfect sense. Sometimes the best content was just life, lived honestly, with someone who saw you clearly and loved you anyway.
“I lied to Victoria,” I added, because if we were doing honesty, we might as well do it completely. “About us being just business. About everything being for content. I lied because I was scared of losing my career, but I ended up losing something much more important.”
The words felt like stepping off a cliff, but Noah’s smile caught me before I could fall.
A low growl, followed by a bark, drew our attention back to the world still happening all around us. Yeti watched us like a protective parent, tongue rolling out of her mouth. The entire festival had shifted focus from the departed grouse to our impromptu romantic scene.
My parents stood nearby, Mom looking smugly vindicated while Dad pretended to study the cloud patterns. Brie was openly collecting cash from Jenn, Maya, and Diego, apparently settling some sort of wager at our expense.
The crowd burst into another round of cheers, this one even louder than the last. Even Axel was clapping. But I didn’t miss his quick glance toward Maya afterward.
As the applause continued, Noah’s ears turned an endearing shade of red, but he kept his arm firmly around my waist, as if afraid I might vanish if he let go.
Marcus observed our embrace with all the warmth of a corporate restructuring announcement.
“Well,” he said, straightening his tie and brushing a leaf from his pressed shirt.
“It’s fortunate you two are on good terms again, because we’re going to be doing quite a lot of work together if we’re all going to spin this ecotourism angle. I have some thoughts.”
It was a career opportunity of a lifetime.
Travel, adventure, authentic content creation with someone I loved.
Six months ago, I would have seen it as a vindication of everything I’d worked for.
But now I recognized Marcus’s offer for what it was, another way for him to sell what didn’t belong to him.
“That’s a generous offer,” I said, Noah’s arm tightening around my waist. “But I think we might have our own ideas about how to move forward.”
I was done with the manipulation. I’d spent the past few years trying to influence other people, when the only person I’d really needed to influence was myself.
But before I could fully process my own character development breakthrough, Victoria was already moving into her true element, seizing opportunities as the strategic landscape evolved. Her eyes fixed on the giant video screen where a replay of the sage grouse’s elaborate dance was playing.
“They are pretty remarkable, if I’m being honest. All that effort, all that performance, just hoping someone will notice.” She paused, caught up in the footage. “Kind of reminds me of Felix.”
“Felix?” I noticed her corporate composure soften; something almost like fondness in her eyes.
“Who’s Felix?” Maya asked.
The moment she realized she’d spoken aloud, Victoria’s hand moved instinctively to smooth her already-perfect hair. “Felix was my pet chicken. When I was a little girl.”
“You had a pet chicken?” I asked.
“And a pet piglet. And a pet donkey. And a pet goat. My parents had a small family farm in Wisconsin. Felix used to follow me around everywhere. To the barn, to the market, even to school sometimes when I could get away with it.”
Victoria’s jaw tightened, the memories playing out behind her eyes.
“Until the family farm went bankrupt and Consolidated Agricultural bought my parents out.” She stared at the video of the grouse for a few moments longer.
If I didn’t know better, I’d have sworn the bead of sweat wasn’t the only moisture forming on her face.
“Guess you could say I learned early that if you can’t beat them, you’d better become them.
” Whatever moment of humanity Victoria had experienced, she snapped out of it quickly.
“And if you’re going to become them, you’d better be the best one in the room.
Especially if you’re the only one wearing a skirt.
” She looked back at me. “Isn’t that right, Samantha? ”
The revelation re-contextualized everything I thought I knew about Victoria Sterling.
Not a corporate ice queen, but a farm girl who’d weaponized competence to ensure she’d never be powerless again.
I could see both versions of her now, the little girl who’d loved a pet chicken and the executive who’d built an empire on strategic emotional avoidance.
As her polished shield clamped back down into place, Victoria’s gaze moved between Noah and me. “What if you had complete operational control? Full decision-making authority. Complete creative and strategic autonomy.”
“Victoria ...” Marcus started, but Victoria cut him off.
“I’ve been watching the engagement metrics, the guest satisfaction scores. The traditional luxury model shows diminishing returns across all our properties.”
Her mental gears were turning, a strategic mind that had built an empire now pivoting to protect and expand it.
“We have resorts across the world. All operating on the same tired luxury model, several struggling with the same engagement challenges we were facing here. All sitting on authentic cultural and environmental resources we’ve been systematically ignoring in favor of generic amenities.”
We all gathered round. Noah, Jenn, Maya, Diego, and Brie.
“For this to work, I need partners who understand authentic engagement isn’t just better ethics, it’s better business. People who can help transform LuxeLife from a luxury accommodation company into an authentic experience designer.”
The mountain air was still cool, but Marcus was sweating bullets. “Victoria, I really don’t think …”
“That’s right, Marcus. You don’t think. Which is why we’re in this predicament to begin with.”
Victoria shifted her attention back to Noah.
“And we’ll need your wilderness friends to help conduct site visits, I imagine.
Environmental assessments, activity development, staff training.
” She smiled. A real one. I think. “So instead of one Adventure Center, you’ll have to figure out how to run several. Think of it as a promotion.”
“That sounds like a lot of travel,” said Noah, and I could practically see him recalculating Victoria from “corporate threat” to “complicated ally with a pet chicken in her past.”
“For both of you,” Victoria confirmed. “I’ll have legal draw up the contracts immediately.” But then she paused. “Unless, of course, you prefer to go back to Los Angeles, Samantha. And you, Mr. Barrett, would rather stay up here on your mountain.”
“We’re open to new possibilities,” I answered for both of us.
“Excellent,” said Victoria. “I feel good about this. I think it could work out very nicely for all.” She snapped her fingers, and Marcus scurried after her like a chastised intern, his perfect white teeth no longer quite so intimidating when his ego was deflating faster than a sage grouse’s air sacs when it was done with its show.
As Victoria and Marcus moved away to continue their number crunching, Noah’s expression was a mixture of hope and uncertainty. “So, are you sure you’re okay with mountains in Alaska? Swamps in Florida?”
I pretended to consider, tapping my finger against my chin. “I don’t know. Are there moose there too?”
“In Alaska? Even more than here. And bears. Lots of bears. Big bears. Not so much in Florida though. There, it’s just the snakes and the alligators. And spiders.” Noah shuddered.
“But will there be muffins?” I asked.
His smile brightened. “Possibly.”
“Then I’m in.” I rose on tiptoe again to place another quick kiss on his lips. “But you should know, I’m still not hiking without frequent rest breaks. And I expect to be carried at least forty percent of the time.”
Noah laughed. “Only when you’re actively bleeding or being chased by wildlife.”
“I’m sure that won’t be a problem for me,” I said.
“Deal.” He sealed our agreement with another kiss, this one drawing a fresh round of cheers from our audience.
Around us, the festival continued, the crowd now buzzing with talk of grouse sightings and eco-adventures and the unlikely romance between a city influencer and a grumpy mountain guide.
Parker was already coordinating with the livestream team to capitalize on the magical moment, while my parents had returned to their cooking station, Mom no doubt already planning wedding venues and Dad calculating how he was going to afford wedding bills in addition to the student loans.
I thought to myself, maybe I could convince Victoria to let me take a business trip, with a few special guests of course, to the Copenhagen resort to ease the sting a bit.
But in that moment, with Noah’s arms around me and the mountains rising in the distance, plans for the future would have to wait. I was too busy enjoying the present.
Living in the moment.
And I didn’t need to curate anything to make it perfect.