When Cassie woke late the next morning, she pushed open the curtains and looked out over the city square, gasping at the postcard-perfect sight. The snow had continued falling, and white ribbon-like icicles now hung gracefully from the trees.

After being admitted, checked, x-rayed, and then released from the hospital, she’d insisted Cody take her to the Arctic Skies B&B. He’d done so reluctantly, pushing instead for her to stay at Bradford Homestead, but she hadn’t thought it a good idea. She’d begun her time in Golden Falls at the Arctic Skies, and the idea of ending it there had a certain symmetry that felt right.

Plus, she needed time away from Cody so she could think about him clearly.

With Doug in police custody, the urgency of Cassie’s leaving had abated. She canceled her flight that morning, which was refundable to KFLS. Her body needed time to recover from both the fire and Doug’s steel-toed boots, and emotionally she was a wreck. Not only because of the terror she’d experienced, but because some of Cody’s words from the previous night had hit her hard.

He wouldn’t ask her to stay. He was afraid she would be miserable in Alaska, unable to deal with the hardness of life here, and what if he was right? What if she stayed for him, but ended up resenting him?

After surviving the shadow of Doug across her life, it didn’t seem possible. What she had resented was being forced to move by her stalker. Staying in Golden Falls now would be her decision, and hers alone.

And then she understood why Cady hadn’t asked her to stay. He knew she needed that free choice.

Chasing her career, he’d called it. But in the clear light of morning, it felt more like chasing her own tail. She may have run away to Alaska, but she’d discovered her unexpected true north here instead.

Cassie went down the narrow, ornate Victorian staircase wrapped in the cozy robe that had been in her room.

“Good morning, Shannon,” she said, finding her friend in the kitchen.

“Good morning, yourself,” Shannon said. “We’ve got a lot of catching up to do.”

“We do,” Cassie said. “It’s been crazy.”

“Come here.” Shannon wrapped her in a warm but not-too-tight hug. “You look like you need some coffee. Oh, and good news! The firefighters were able to save your luggage since you had it all set by the front door. My brother dropped it off a little while ago.”

“Awesome!” Cassie said. “Thank him for me?”

“You bet.”

“Is Tom on shift now?” she asked, really wondering about Cody.

“No, they work tomorrow. He just volunteered to bring it by, since he almost always stops in here in the mornings to chow down on the breakfast I make for my guests. He’s such a freeloader.”

Cassie sat at the small kitchen table with her coffee and watched Shannon knead dough to make bread.

“So I have a decision to make. I was supposed to leave this morning.”

Shannon looked at Cassie hopefully. “And you’re having second thoughts?”

“I’m having second thoughts, and third ones, too.”

Shannon stopped kneading her dough and gave Cassie a knowing look. “This is about Cody Bradford.”

Cassie nodded.

“There’s a tradition in this town,” Shannon said. “You know the footbridge across the river, right above the falls?”

“Sure, I’ve walked there often.”

“Well, the legend goes that if you throw a stone onto the heart-shaped rock in the middle of the falls and it sticks, then you’ll know you’ve found the love of your life.”

Cassie had heard about the tradition shortly after moving to town and thought it quite charming.

“Do you believe it?”

Shannon gave her a secret smile. “What matters is if you believe it.”

“Like Santa.”

“Exactly. In any case, it’s a nice excuse to take a walk on such a pretty morning.”

“Have you ever thrown a stone?”

“I have.”

“Did it stick?”

Shannon gave a mysterious smile. “That’s a story for another day.”

Cassie was the opposite of superstitious, but a walk in the fresh snow did sound like a fine idea. She retrieved her luggage, changed into thick leggings and a warm wool top, added sheepskin boots, jacket, and scarf, and headed out the door.

As soon as she stepped outside, she could tell the early snow would melt soon. The sun was already warm on her face, and the fresh ice crystals sparkled wetly all around her. She crossed the main square, enjoying the sensation of creating new tracks in the snow, and approached the footbridge crossing Golden Falls, the city’s natural landmark namesake. The river had no ice yet, instead rushing briskly beneath the bridge and then plunging in pounding, merry torrents over the falls.

Cassie looked around for a stone, and then for good measure took a second one and put them both in her pocket. She walked out onto the bridge. She’d never noticed the heart-shaped rock before, but now that Shannon had told her it was there, she saw its unmistakable black outline amidst the white water. She stood there for a moment, one of the small rocks resting in her palm.

For several minutes she stood there alone, watching the waters surge beneath her.

Here goes, she thought, and lifted her hand.

“Don’t throw it yet,” said a voice, deep and quiet and beloved. “It only works if both people toss it at the same time.”

Cassie looked to the end of the footbridge. Cody stood there, hands in the pockets of his jacket, thick strands of hair blowing slightly across his forehead.

She’d thought she needed space. But now, seeing him, she knew didn’t want any space between them at all.

“Did Shannon tell you where I was?” she asked.

“She did.” Cody walked towards her. “She also told me I should propose—really scare the hell out of you.”

Cassie laughed. “I just survived a fire and a stalker. You actually think I’m afraid of you getting down on one knee?”

There was a smile in Cody’s eyes, a happy lightness she hadn’t seen for awhile. He stood next to her, put his elbows on the railing, and looked out over the falls.

“The thing is, I know you won’t really do it,” she said. “You’re an old-fashioned guy, and you wouldn’t propose without a ring.”

Cody smiled. Then he withdrew a small jewelry box from his jacket pocket.

Cassie felt something inside her lift, a feeling of surprise and exhilaration, as if a hot air balloon had plucked her up off the ground. She gawked at the box. “Is that what I think it is?”

His smile turned into a grin. “Afraid yet?”

Strangely, Cassie found she wasn’t, not in the least.

“What if we toss the stones onto the heart-shaped rock and they fall off?” she said.

“Then you get on the first flight out of here and we never speak again.”

She laughed again, because it was so not the response she was expecting. “Wait, what!?”

Cody shrugged. “Well, what do you think we should do?”

“When I was a little girl, my grandmother told me an easy way to make a hard decision,” Cassie said. “She said you toss a coin, close your eyes, and you’ll realize that you already know what you want the result to be, heads or tails. We used to flip coins to choose between chocolate or vanilla ice cream, but maybe it would work with something major like this, too.”

“I don’t need to toss a stone, and I don’t need to flip a coin to tell me what I know in my heart to be true,” Cody said.

“Neither do I.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“It didn’t start out his way. When I first came here, I was afraid. Being stalked made my world small. It put me into a corner. And I thought Golden Falls was the last thing I wanted, even though I was going to do my best with the situation.” She took a deep breath. “But then I met you, and you opened my eyes—you opened up the world for me again. Made me see there’s so much more beyond New York City, beyond everything I’ve ever known. You made me feel like I had room to breathe.”

Cassie looked to Cody. His vivid blue eyes watched her, moved across her face.

She continued, “The past few months have changed me.” As soon as she said it, she knew it was true. “I fell in love with Golden Falls. And I fell in love with you.”

Cody leaned over then and kissed her, his lips warm, and for a blissful moment there was only his kiss and the rushing roar of the waterfall below them.

“You love me?” he said after a moment.

“I love you. And I want to be with you. Here, in Golden Falls.”

“You’re a big city girl,” he said. “I have my doubts whether you could be happy here for years on end.”

“So why the ring, if you have your doubts?”

“Because my proposal’s going to be a little different than the usual,” he said. “First off, we could have a really long engagement. Marriage is forever, and it’s not something to rush into.”

“At least I should get through one whole winter here,” she said.

“I agree. It’s important to me that you’re happy, Cassie. I love your spirit. Your laugh. Your curiosity for life. I’m going to make it my mission that you never lose them. I don’t care what it takes—you’re going to be happy, and you’re going to be with me. And if things change and this place isn’t right for us anymore, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Together.”

Cassie gazed at him. This man was willing to leave Alaska, the land of his heart, for her. That simple statement told her more about the depth of his love than anything else could have. She felt her eyes fill with tears, happy tears. The best part was that now, she knew she didn’t need him to make that sacrifice. She knew what she wanted.

Cassie grasped Cody’s hand, feeling the strength of it, the way her own hand fit warm and snug inside his palm.

“For the last couple years,” she said, “I had horrible nightmares, ever since the stalking began. Actually, they only went away when I spent the night with you. But you know what I dreamed about last night, Cody? When the stalker was gone and I didn’t have you?”

His kind eyes waited.

“I dreamed of Denali, our gorgeous mountain to the west. I dreamed of the Eskimo ice cream at the Sled Dog Brewery and the cinnamon buns at the North Star Café. I dreamed of searching for lost Boy Scouts, and of these great north woods, and of being part of something bigger than myself. I want all those things, Cody, and I want this place—but most of all, I want you.”

"That's music to my ears, Cassie Holt."

And you’re music to my heart, she thought.

“Just for fun, let’s toss our stones.” Cassie handed one to Cody. “If they stick, then you can get down on one knee.”

Both laughing now, they threw the stones toward the rock at the center of the waterfall, in the middle of Golden Falls, in the heart of Alaska.

And they stuck.