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Disappointment settled on her, heavy and consuming. She reminded herself she only had to get through the wedding today, and then she could have a good sulk for the couple of days her parents were up at Whistler for their second honeymoon. They would be home Christmas Eve morning, and then the whole family would be together. A slightly bigger family, now that Dena and Micah were a thing.

So just today, and then her tasteful breakdown. After Christmas, she would head back to Seattle and pick up the pieces of her broken and discouraged heart. At least she had a good life there. Friends, a routine, her work. Plus she wasn’t used to seeing Toby all the time there, so maybe she would miss him less.

Her mother breezed into her bedroom. “I’ve changed my mind.”

Reggie looked at her. “About marrying Dad? I think it’s kind of late for that. You two seem like a couple to me.”

Her mother laughed. “No, about you and Dena being bridesmaids. I want you in the ceremony.”

Reggie groaned. “Mom, it’s too late. The wedding is tonight. We don’t have dresses and—”

Her mother shook her head. “I’ve already talked to Dena. She has a beautiful dark blue dress that would be perfect, and you have one that’s practically the same color.”

Reggie was about to say she didn’t have anything like that in her closet, only she remembered that she did. Not at home, but here.

“No,” she breathed. “No, Mom. No. You can’t make me wear that.”

“Why not? I’m sure it still fits, and it’s a very classic style.”

“But it’s my prom dress.”

“What does that matter? Reggie, no one’s seen it since you were in high school.”

“I’m not worried that they’ve seen it. I’m worried it’s out of style and not appropriate for a grown woman. I was seventeen when I wore that.”

Her mother patted her arm. “Try it on. I’m sure it’s going to look beautiful on you.”

No. She couldn’t. It was just too . . . She held in a groan as she realized Toby was coming to the wedding, and he would see the dress. What if he assumed she was wearing it to get him to think about the past and how they’d been together? Because telling him he was in love with her wasn’t enough? It was all so humiliating.

“Mom, please. I beg you. Don’t make me wear my prom dress.”

“It’s going to be perfect. You’ll see.”

Toby would have said Reggie couldn’t surprise him anymore, but he would have been wrong. In the thirty-six hours since she’d called him stupid and told him he was still in love with her, he’d been dealing with the ramifications of her verbal landslide, alternating between knowing her head injury was worse than the doctors thought and wondering if maybe she was right about him and them.

After dinner, Harrison went into the media room for his twice-a-week two hours of online games with his friends. Toby looked in on him to make sure he was playing the allowed game, then retreated to his office, where he told himself he was going to pay a few bills but knew instead he would be staring unseeingly at his computer screen while thinking about Reggie.

Had she nailed the problem? Was she the reason he’d never fallen in love with anyone else?

He thought about how he’d felt after leaving Wishing Tree and Washington State behind. He’d moved to Texas because it seemed like the kind of place where an eighteen-year-old running from his life could get lost. He’d made friends, he’d hooked up and he’d dated, but he’d never fallen in love. His relationship with Harrison’s mother had lasted nearly four months, and then he’d moved on without looking back.

He didn’t think there was anything wrong with him, nor did he not believe in love. He’d expected to find someone and settle down, but that hadn’t happened. He’d picked what he’d assumed was a safe choice instead. Lori.

Once he’d realized what she’d done, he’d vowed to never get involved until Harrison was old enough to take care of himself. A decision that had seemed sensible at the time but now felt more like . . . what? Giving up? Hiding? He didn’t have an answer. Worse, he didn’t like the question. He would rather think about Reggie. About her smile and her laugh. How even as she’d been fighting a head injury, she’d taken care of Harrison and Belle. He knew her. He’d always known her.

“Toby?”

He looked up and saw his grandmother in the doorway to his office. He was immediately on his feet.

“Judy, you don’t have to climb the stairs to talk to me. Just use the intercom. I’ll come right down.”

She smiled. “I try to take the stairs at least once a day. It’s good for me.”

He ushered her to the sofa and sat at the other end, angled toward her. As always, he could see that she was getting older. There were more wrinkles, and her hair was pure white. There was something about her walk these days. It was slower, and she was a little more bent.

“I’ve been going through old pictures,” she said, smiling at him. “Sorting them and labeling them.”

“Don’t tell me you’re getting your things in order. I don’t want to hear that.”