The limousine pulled away from Primland shortly after midmorning, the Blue Ridge Mountains still wrapped in clean mountain air and pale sunlight that filtered through the trees in shifting bands. The quiet of the lodge faded gradually behind them as the road descended through forest and stone and long winding curves that carried them back toward the wider world waiting below.
The transition back toward the ordinary world felt strangely distant after the quiet isolation of the lodge.
Willow sat close beside Zane in the deep leather seat, her legs tucked slightly toward him in the relaxed closeness that had become second nature. The fatigue from the wedding and the long night lingered softly in her body, not painful but present, a gentle heaviness that made the quiet ride feel welcome.
