Page 76 of Capture the Moment

Frankie snorted. “You mean, let’s let them break up without an audience.”

Maisie blew out a puff of air. “This isn’t going the way I planned.”

“Kiddo,” Coop said, “sometimes life has turns of its own.”

She glanced up at him, confused by the lighthearted smile in his voice. Coop was never lighthearted. The expression on his face was a mixture of emotions. Sheepish yet hopeful.

Frankie caught it all. Laughing, he gave Maisie another elbow jab. “Told ya.”

What? What had she missed?

Kate plopped down on the edge of her bed in her Jackson Lake Lodge hotel room, fuming. The scenic beauty of the Grand Tetons out her window, usually a balm, might as well have been a blank wall for all the peace it offered her now.

The audacity of that man, thinking a surprise visit—and a proposal, no less—was a good idea. How dare Oliver just show up here, especially after she’d spelled it out that she didn’t want him to come? Hadn’t she been clear? Apparently not clear enough for Oliver, who seemed to operate in a world of his own, where “no” was just a hurdle on the way to “yes.”

Kate could still see the bewildered look on Oliver’s face whenshe let loose her fury, a mix of hurt and confusion that made her feel like the villain in a bad romance novel.

But no, she reminded herself, she was not the villain here. She had every right to be angry. Oliver had crossed a line, ignoring her wishes and invading her space, all under the guise of a grand romantic gesture. It was suffocating, presumptuous, and ... and just plain wrong.

Oliver, for his part, seemed stunned by her reaction. Then crushed. As if the thought had never crossed his mind that she wouldn’t be overjoyed by his unannounced appearance and proposal while she was on a work trip. There he was, bent on one knee in the parking lot, looking like a lost puppy that had just been kicked, not understanding what he’d done to deserve such treatment.

“Kate, I ... I thought you’d be happy,” he had stammered, still down on one knee, the ring box in his hand. “I thought this was what you wanted.”

“What I wanted?” Kate’s voice had risen, incredulous. “When did I ever say I wanted this? Oliver, I’ve been trying to find the right moment to talk about us ... about how things aren’t working. And instead of giving me space, you show up here ... with a ring! You involve a very overly enthusiastic, overly talkative thirteen-year-old girl with your plans to propose to me. Everyone in the park is going to hear about this!”

At that, Oliver rose to stand. He turned to look at Maisie in front of the visitor center, watching them with her hands held tight against her heart. Next to her were Frankie and Coop. And next to them was a semicircle of at least twenty strangers, all staring at Oliver and Kate, curious to observe the proposal-gone-sour.

Great, just great. They’d all witnessed the whole cringeworthy episode.

Kate had to pause her rant for a moment, take in a deep breath, as she struggled to untangle her thoughts from her feelings, tofind a little calm amid the storm of emotions. “You just don’t listen to me, Oliver.”

“Don’t listen?” Oliver looked incredulous. “What do you mean I don’t listen? When you said you thought it was time for a change, I thought this was what you meant.”

“I’m sorry.” Kate softened slightly, despite herself. “But you thought wrong.”

There was a heavy silence, filled with words unsaid. Oliver finally nodded, a sad acceptance in his eyes. He closed the jewelry box and tucked it in his coat pocket. “I think I’d better just head home,” he said. “Goodbye, Katie-Kat.” On that note, he turned and walked to his car.

She stood there, watching his car disappear into the distance. At last, he had heard what she’d been trying to tell him. They weren’t meant to be.

Kate collapsed back onto the bed, a mix of relief and sadness washing over her. The hurt in Oliver’s eyes was hard to see. She’d never wanted to hurt him ... which was probably why she’d let their dating relationship continue too long. This was for the best, she told herself. It was time to move on, to find her own path. Without Oliver.

But first, she had to straighten things out with Maisie. Sweet, meddling Maisie, who somehow got caught up in this mess, turning it into an exhibition for all to see! Kate pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to ward off the headache brewing from the whole debacle. Maisie had only been trying to help, in her own chaotic way, but goodness, did she have to turn it into such a public spectacle? Did she have to make it happen in front of Coop?

Coop. She wanted to spend more time with him. Because throughout the afternoon, as they hiked along Pilgrim Creek, she’d seen something in Coop’s eyes that suggested maybe she wasn’t the only one feeling something more than friendship.

Coop couldn’t have been more pleased with this day.

First, having the entire afternoon with Kate was ...awesome. Talking with her was so easy, so natural. They discovered they had a lot in common, even their embarrassingly vast knowledge of Lord of the Rings trivia. It had been a long time since he’d met anyone he liked half as much as Kate.

Second, the bothered look on Kate’s face when she first spotted Oliver was no small thing. To Coop—well, to everyone within earshot at the visitor center—it was clear that their relationship was over.

Which meant that he had a shot with Kate.

And then there was 399. He had found convincing evidence that she was alive and well—the remains of an elk calf carcass below the lair. Fresh scat, to boot. The bear, he was pretty sure, was just taking her own sweet time to leave the cozy den. He called Sally and told her. After he hung up, he decided to call Tim. He repeated everything that he’d just told Sally—the evidence she was alive, the coordinates of the den. It took him off guard that Tim had sounded alarmed that he’d given the coordinates of the den to Sally, but what else should he have done? She was the boss. The NPS was a vertical chain of command.

Let Tim do the worrying about Sally. Coop had other things on his mind.

It was a great day.

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