PART 2: The Mountain Man’s Unexpected Proposal
When Eloin opened her eyes, she was lying beneath warm blankets inside a small mountain cabin.

A fire crackled nearby. Her ankle had been carefully secured, and the smell of fresh bread filled the room.

Caleb Morgan sat beside the fireplace.

For the next three weeks, the rugged mountain man cared for her without asking for anything in return. He cooked her meals, changed her bandages, and stayed awake whenever the pain became unbearable.

But Eloin noticed something unusual.

Every evening, Caleb placed two cups on the table, although he always drank alone.

One night, she finally asked why.

“My wife used to sit there,” he answered quietly. “I lost her five winters ago.”

Eloin understood his loneliness because she carried a different kind of heartbreak.

As her ankle slowly healed, their conversations grew longer. For the first time in her life, Eloin felt valued rather than burdensome.

Then one morning, Caleb returned from town with troubling news.

Her family had reached the valley safely. They had told everyone Eloin had chosen to stay behind.

She turned away, fighting tears.

“I have nowhere to go.”

Caleb stood silently for a moment before kneeling beside her chair.

“Then stay here.”

Eloin looked at him in confusion.

He took her trembling hand.

“Marry me, Eloin. Not because you need rescuing, but because this house has felt like a home again since you arrived.”

Tears filled her eyes.

“Are you asking because you pity me?”

“No,” Caleb answered. “I’m asking because I love you.”

And for the first time since that terrible morning in the snow, Eloin realized something beautiful.

Her family had abandoned her because they believed she was a burden.

But the man who found her had discovered someone worth loving.

And this time, the choice belonged entirely to her.