Page 119 of Sunrise & Serenity

Standing here with her at my side, it hits me how little I want this to end.

Not this moment.

Not this night.

None of it.

CHAPTER 31

SAGE

The new lodge smells like fresh-cut pine and drywall dust. A ladder stands open near the far wall where one of the contractors has been installing the final light fixtures, and sunlight pours through the massive front windows overlooking the lower pasture.

After taking a few shots of the view through the windows, I wander farther in. “It’s a beautiful building.”

Sterling grunts, phone in hand. “Expensive is what it is.”

Across the room, River laughs. “You were stressing about expenses before I left too.”

“Because they keep coming.”

“And because you enjoy complaining.”

“That too,” he mutters.

I smile to myself and look back through the lens toward the fireplace. The stone stretches up two stories along the far wall. It’s impressive. The whole building is.

But it doesn’t quite feel finished, and not just because it’s still missing a few cosmetic touches. I lower my camera again, turning in place as I study the massive room. It’s gorgeous in the way luxury hotels are. Elegant lines, beautiful rustic finishes. But none of it says Wild Ember. This lodge could exist anywhere.

I turn back, attention drawn to the expanse of wall flanking the fireplace. I point. “Are you putting anything there?”

Sterling squints at the area. “We’ll frame some of your landscape photos and hang them.”

I roll my lips together. “Hmm. Okay.”

He steps up alongside me and scans the wall. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong…”

He arches a brow. “But?”

“What if you put all of Wild Ember up there?”

Frowning, he looks at the blank surface again, like he’s trying to picture what I mean. “In what way?”

“I mean visually.” I step forward, already seeing it in my head. “Photos, yes. Some of mine, for sure. But more. The ranch’s history, generations of your family. Guests don’t come to a place like this just because the wood and stonework are beautiful. They’ll want to feel the history of the land. To experience its story.”

River comes to stand on my other side, but I ignore both men, too busy thinking. “You’ve got generations of stories here. People building Wild Ember up to what it is today.” I pivot to face them, my voice rising. “You could do an entire installation here.”

River stares up at the wall. “I think it’s a great idea.”

Sterling’s brows pull together. “You think that’d be any more of a selling point than landscape photos?”

“People care about connection. The ranch feels real because of its story and the people who live—and have lived—here. Guests should see that the second they walk through the door.”

There’s quiet for a moment, then Sterling asks, “How much work and expense are we talking about?”

I tap my lips with my finger. “I’d have to sort through the photos you have, get them printed, framed, and hung. I wouldn’t charge for my time, so it would just be the cost of the materials. And I’m sure we can source secondhand frames or get someone to make them for us out of reclaimed wood.”