Story goes back & forth a lot which makes it kind of hard to follow, but it's a great ending!

The story begins with Gabrielle riding Triumph at a run! Drew had allowed her to ride Triumph any time she wanted when the separation papers were signed. Whenever she arrived at the ranch, he was not around. She felt guilty because no one was there to take care of Drew, now that she was gone. Triumph felt her tension. She hadn't been happy with their married life, but the last night...maybe she could have done something differently. She stopped her tears, what happened couldn't be changed. As a child, Gabrielle had often asked that they stay where they lived until the finish of school, but to no avail. She had to admit that Drew was as rooted as a man could get...maybe a little too much? Triumph had run to a place that she knew. A thunderstorm had blown through that area of Montana last week causing much devastation, but it would grow back in time. If only time would heal what Drew had done that night. At the sight of a sidewinder, Thunder reared & bucked, Gabrielle flew!

Gabrielle work up with a headache & a bleeding goose egg on her head. She had fallen off horses before, and knew how hard the fall could be! She took time to admire the view, noting the pink snow. Everywhere she looked, she felt life! She had to get home where her husband waited. Her wristwatch had broken in the fall, & although it read 11:35, the sun said it was after noon! She had to hurry because she had promised to make lasagne for Drew for their 2-month anniversary.

As she walked toward the highway, Gabrielle remembered many things she had memorized, but nothing could make her stop thinking about her headache. When Troy stopped when he saw her, he said she looked peaked. He looked her over & asked how she got the goose egg on her head, but she had no response. As she walked to the truck she stumbled, but Troy caught her. He commented on how white she was. Gabrielle's watch had been a gift to her father from her mother, Leah, & it was her most prized possession, but now it read 11:35 no matter how often she looked at it...she had always kept a picture of her mother on her bedside table. Gabrielle's father had taken the picture on their honeymoon. Gabrielle was glad that Troy had happened along, Drew had taught her survival skills so she wasn't afraid during the day. However, night was a different story. Gabrielle's mother had saved up her money to buy the watch for her father & presented it to him the night Gabrielle was born. Leah had often said that the watchband was as sturdy as her marriage to Jared, & Gabrielle thought how lucky she was to have found Drew, who was rooted in the land. When Troy dropped her at the house, Gabrielle told him that she thought Drew was mending the back fences, but he asked about the rest of the hands. According to Gabrielle, Drew had given them off to go to Oktoberfest, but Troy knew that had taken place two weeks earlier. When she got in the house, she realized that something was wrong...she never left the place in that kind of a mess! She got an asprin from the cupboard & wondered why the cups were put away in such a haphazard manor! She really needed Drew to come home! ( )