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“You know what? I overreacted. You did something nice for me, and I should have just said thank you. I’m not comfortable with help. From anyone. I’m sorry if I was clumsy.”

“Don’t be. I overstepped. I seem to have a habit of that when I’m with you.”

“You want to go inside? Get a drink?” I asked.

He nodded. “That sounds good, yeah.”

The moment we walked into the bar, all tranquility vanished. Most everyone was already there, laughing and talking, ordering drinks. Overhead, George Strait was singing about Christmas cookies.

I expected Grant to ask if he could get me a drink. That he might want to hold onto our moment a little longer. Instead, he darted toward the bar where Rhett and Beck were hanging out together, leaving me by the door.

Without a backward glance. As if none of it had even happened. I tried to let it go, but it stung. Bad. Had I imagined the tears in his eyes and the nice things he’d said to me? I stood there feeling like an idiot. Or like myself at twelve years old, wishing a boy would ask me to dance as I stood against the wall, watching everyone else. I’d been a nerd. The smart girl. No one had wanted me then. Apparently, no one did now either.

Suck it up, I told myself. Find someone else to talk to. I walked up to the bar, nodded hello to Rhett and Beck as Grant ducked his head. I wanted to scream at him—I’m right here. You can’t just pretend like none of that happened.

I didn’t, of course. I might be an idiot, but I wasn’t completely unhinged. Instead, I sucked in a deep breath to keep from crying and ordered a glass of merlot. Then, I looked around the bar for a place to land. I saw Blake at a table in the corner, working on her laptop. Ivy and Holly were in what looked like an intense conversation at another table.

Perhaps sensing I needed a friend, Blake looked up from whatever she was doing and waved me over. Grateful for somewhere to land, I headed her way.

“Hey,” I said as I sat in the chair across from her. “Am I interrupting your work?”

“No, not really. I was just editing a few things I shot today.”

“What did you capture with your magical camera?” I asked before taking a sip of my wine.

“Today was all about sledding,” Blake said. “Fans will love the footage of everyone acting like kids. In a good way, of course. I got some good film of Knox and Madeleine crashing at the bottom of the hill. I hadn’t seen Madeleine seem so playful and carefree before.”

“She usually isn’t,” I said. “She’s more of a lady boss than party girl.”

“Watching her and Knox has me thinking,” Blake said.

“Yeah? Thinking what?”

“How a month somewhere new—outside of the norm—with people you’ve known a long time—can change dynamics.”

“For example?”

“Knox and Madeleine. From what I understand, they’re sworn enemies.”

“They fight constantly. But sometimes I think it’s foreplay.”

Blake laughed. “That’s the vibe I’m getting too.”

“I guess we’ll see what the month brings us.”

“I’m dying to interview you,” Blake said. “I’d love to hear more about your childhood. I’m fascinated by the connections you all have with one another. How deep they are.”

“I’ll tell you anything you want to know,” I said. “I was the youngest of our little gang but I have a pretty good memory of those times. I was the spoiled little pet. I loved every minute of it.”

“It’s nice to watch you with Jack’s band members,” Blake said. “You must feel like one of them at times, right?”

“A bit. Although, I have no musical talent, which is very sad.”

“I think you’re doing all right, Doctor Wilder,” Blake said.

“I’ve known these guys for ten years, but I was only twenty years old when I met them. Still in undergrad. I think they all saw me as a kid. They might still see me that way.”

Blake nodded slowly, but a small smile played at her mouth, like she knew something I didn’t. “Some of them, maybe.”