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The bell rang.

Holly dropped into her chair and covered her face. “I’ll Be Home for Christmas,” she said through her fingers.

Rhett studied the drawing. “I liked my story better.”

Jack and Ivy got their three points with “Frosty the Snowman,” although Jack’s Frosty looked alarmingly muscular.

“Why does he have such broad shoulders?” Ivy asked after guessing correctly.

“He has to lift all that snow,” Jack said.

“Right. Makes total sense,” Ivy said.

“If you two dance, kiss, or sit on either lap, I’m walking out now,” Rhett said.

Ivy answered him by kissing Jack.

Finally, Grant pulled our last card.

He drew a Christmas tree with several presents underneath it. Then he crossed out every present. Next to the tree, he drew two stick figures. One had long hair. The other had drumsticks in his hands.

Between them, he drew a heart.

“All I Want for Christmas Is You,” I said.

Grant turned from the easel, smiling at me. For one dangerous second, the rest of the room disappeared. It was just us and that ridiculous heart he’d drawn between two stick figures.

Jack clapped Grant on the shoulder. “You two are scary good together.”

Yes we are, I thought.

“I know how she thinks,” Grant said.

“Obviously,” Ivy said.

The words warmed and hurt me at the same time.

Ivy declared us the winners with eleven points. She and Jack came in second with nine. Rhett and Holly finished with one. Blake and Beck had none.

Beck lifted his beer bottle to clink with Blake’s. “To sportsmanship.”

“To us,” Blake said.

By then, it was almost ten. The storm continued to rage outside, but we were warm by the fire, tired from laughing and reluctant to let the night end.

However, one of the staff came forward, a worried look on his face. “Gang, I’m sorry to break up your evening but the snow’s really coming down. It’s probably best you get back to your cabins before it gets too hard to get there.”

“What a fun night,” Ivy said as we all stood.

It had been fun. More than fun. One I felt I’d remember long after I left Montana and returned to my real world. That almost made the ache underneath it worse. Actually, it made it much worse.

I glanced over at Grant but, instead of the usual covert look we shared before we left a group activity, his focus seemed to be on Jack.

He was going to tell him. Tonight.

I left with Holly and Rhett, lighter and happier than I’d been for days. Grant was going to come through for me. I had to only hope he was wrong about Jack’s reaction. His version of my brother was seen through his unclear vision. But I knew my brother. It would all be all right. But Grant needed to tell him the truth.

He was going to, I told myself. And then we can decide what we’re doing about the rest of our lives.