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“That was soooo much fun,” I said, zipping up my coat.

He could move. It took a few songs to warm William up, but once he got over the hump, he really let loose. He was spinning and twirling me so much people started standing around to watch.

The party was still going strong inside, but he had to go back to let the dog out and I offered to walk with him. I was hot and Noel was busy with her future in-laws and it wouldn’t be fun for me anyway after William left.

It was almost nine. It had snowed lightly while we were inside, but it had stopped now. The street was lit with Christmas lights. Only a few tourists were still milling about.

He stopped me. “Hold on,” he said, unwrapping his scarf. “It’s windy.” He looped it around my neck. “You’ll get cold.”

I was glad our time on the dance floor had made my cheeks pink so he wouldn’t notice me blushing. I studied him while he secured the ends under my chin.

I think maybe I had a thing for crabby, jaded, cynical divorce attorneys. At least I did for this one. I really liked hanging out with him today. The car ride down, talking to him.

There had been a couple of slow songs at the party. He’d pulled me in and I got to wrap my arms around him. He was firm and tall, and he smelled so good. But it was more than just that. He was good-natured too. He had a dry facade, but he was thoughtful. I liked that he looked out for Nick and that he took things in stride. I liked that he was going to write a cease-and-desist letter for an old lady who was going to pay him with fruitcake. And I liked that tonight felt like a date, even though it wasn’t.

He’d treated me like we’d come together. Like it was his job to make sure I had food and drinks and was having a good time—and I did have a good time. I would go on a date with this man if he asked me, if he lived where I lived.

But unfortunately he didn’t live where I lived. Not even close.

I wondered if I’d ever see him again after the wedding. Maybe we’d end up in Little Christmas at the same time occasionally, visiting our friends. But would they even be married one year from now? Or would all this just be some wild story Noel and I would talk about one day around a firepit, long after the ink on the divorce papers had dried?

It made me feel sad, the idea of not having a reason to run into William Dixon again.

He finished tying the scarf. “There,” he said, stepping back.

I looked down at the scarf instead of looking at him because he was still so close.

“Ready?” He nodded toward the direction of the house.

“Yeah.”

I know I’d called this town Santa’s butt crack, back when I was horrified that Noel was moving here all of twenty-four hours ago, but in truth Little Christmas was actually pretty amazing. Even my favorite travel vlogger came here. I watched a whole thing on it while I was blow-drying my hair earlier. She called it one of the best hidden gems in the nation.

Every inch of Candy Cane Way was a perfectly manicured holiday landscape. Every shop was decorated and themed. The town was immaculately clean and the vibes were even better. The small pines in the planters at the boutique doors had ornaments on them and frosted branches.

We walked through a haze of chocolatey air coming from a fudge shop with a pastry case full of confections. A cute couple linked at the elbow eating chocolate-dipped Rice Krispie treats came out and kissed in the doorway under some mistletoe. Everyone was happy to be here—except William, of course.

There was a restaurant with a working train set that circled in the window, carrying train cars decorated like wrapped gifts. We stopped to look at it.

“How can you not find this place magical?” I asked, looking at him.

He shrugged. “I do. If I look at it objectively, I can see it. Or I can see how other people think that.”

“You know what I saw this one time?” I asked, watching the train go into a tunnel.

“What?”

“A video in New York in the subway station and there was a man playing the violin. Turns out it was this famous musician on like a million-dollar instrument. And nobody stopped to listen. It was so beautiful and everyone was just walking by him like he wasn’t even there. I don’t want to be the kind of person who gets used to incredible things and just stops seeing them. That would be so sad.”

He was quiet for a beat.

“I was thinking about that tonight,” he said. “I don’t think it’s that I hate Christmas. It’s that living in it made it feel less special. It started to annoy me. I think I just have a touch of holiday retail PTSD.”

“Ooof, do I understand the retail PTSD. Can you ever get that back, you think?”

“What?”

“The magic of it all.”