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“I came to have breakfast with Christine, of course.”

“You okay, Dad?”

I rubbed my tired eyes. “Yeah, yeah. I just didn’t sleep well last night.”

“You should join us at the spa then.” Audrey said with a smirk. “I was able to get an appointment for Christine and me, but I can see if they’ll fit you in. A nice massage might help you relax.”

“No thanks.”

“Oh, come on. You used to get massages when you played football.”

“From the therapist that worked for the team. I knew her for years. I don’t like the idea of some stranger putting their hands on me.”

But if Heather wanted to give me a massage…

I grinned into my coffee. That woman had truly gotten under my skin.

“You should meet us afterward, though,” Christine said. “The resort is hosting a cooking class. We’re going to learn how to make sushi.”

“Is it cooking if it’s raw seafood?”

“The rice is cooked.”

She said that like I was the dumbest person in the world, but I didn’t care because the anger and distance from last night was gone. I still didn’t feel good about what I said about Heather, and I’d have to set the record straight about what she really meant to me at some point, but for now, I was glad that she was happy again.

“I stand corrected. Okay, I’ll be there.”

The two of them finished breakfast and left for the spa, and I finished my coffee before walking to the resort. It wasn’t too early, but I wasn’t sure how much Heather had drunk last night. She might have been sleeping in—it would explain why she hadn’t texted me yet this morning—so I knocked softly when I reached her room.

But there was no need. She pulled open the door right away, fully dressed in shorts and a tank.

“Morning, Starlight,” I said, offering her a small grin. “You’re not hung over, are you?”

I didn’t want to have a serious conversation about our relationship if she wasn’t feeling well.

“No.”

My smile faltered as I looked closely at her face. She looked different this morning, colder somehow. Like all of the warmth had been sucked out of her in the night. It was disconcerting.

“Do you feel okay? You’re not sick, are you?”

I started to reach for her forehead, but before I could touch it to see if she was warm, she stepped back, out of my reach.

“I’m fine. About to leave for a hike, actually. The whole wedding party is going.”

Her voice was flat, lifeless. Something in my chest twisted with concern.

“Heather, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing at all. I just need to get going.”

Stepping out into the hallway, she closed the door behind her and even though she didn’t slam it, the sound seemed to echo like a gunshot in the empty hallway.

“Wait,” I moved to block her path as she took a step toward the elevator. “Wait just a minute. Something’s not right. You’re… I don’t know what’s wrong. But you’re not yourself. Are you upset with me?”

Her eyes hadn’t held mine for more than a fraction of a second since she opened the door but now, she looked right at me, and the emotion I saw blazing there made my lungs seize.

“No,” she lied. I could see that she was upset. It was right there in those pretty green eyes of hers. “I just think that things have run their course with us. It’s over.”