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Sam laughed. “Yeah, pretty much. I think we might find Atlantis in there, one day.”

Maya smiled.

“Anyway,” he continued. “I was in a foul mood and you caught me at the wrong time. Especially since . . .” He tailed off, glancing away.

“Since what?” she asked gently.

He swallowed, and met her gaze. “Since Cat and I had a big row last night. That’s why I was relegated to the spare room, aka the general dumping ground.” He shot her a smile.

Maya winced. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be . . .” He rubbed his face. “It’s me who’s apologizing to you here.”

“Did the argument with Cat start in the deli?” Maya asked, remembering his quiet mood after they’d met back at the car.

He frowned. “The deli? No, why?”

Maya blew her fringe out of her eyes. “You seemed a lot quieter after I’d gotten my new jacket at Brodie’s place.”

A dark expression passed over his face, but he covered it with a weak smile. “No, it was later on.”

Maya wasn’t sure how hard she should try to delve into it. She wanted to support him but was aware how cagey he tended to be. He’d also already confided more than it seemed Liv would have anticipated. Was that because he viewed Maya as neutral ground, rather than being too close to the subject as family?

“Listen,” she said as he glanced up to meet her eyes. “If you ever want, or need, to talk about anything, you can speak to me, okay? I won’t judge, and I certainly won’t tell anyone else. Just think of me as a sounding board.”

He held her gaze with an intense look in his eyes, and it seemed as if he was struggling to decide whether to say anything more. But then he appeared to check himself. “I really appreciate that, Maya. And thanks for overlooking me being a tosser this morning.”

“Well, you know.” She shot him a grin. “You’re still a tosser. But what can we do?”

Sam laughed, and it gave her a warm feeling after he’d seemed so miserable earlier. Suddenly, Maya remembered the good news she’d wanted to give him that morning. She’d forgotten after the wind had been knocked out of her sails.

Infused with anticipation, she stood, clapping her hands together.

Sam raised his eyebrows. “What?”

“Oh my God, I just remembered what I needed to tell you.” Her voice felt squeaky with excitement, and a smile spread over Sam’s face as he watched her.

Trying not to speak too quickly, she continued. “I’ve organized that other prize I told you about. It’s going to have to take top billing, because it’s good.” She said the word good in a deep voice, and the sound of it brought him to his feet.

“What is it?”

“Okay,” Maya said, unable to keep still as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “You remember my friend Kirsty? The one whose house you were naked in?”

Sam laughed, taking a step toward her. “How could I forget?”

“Her husband, Paul, works for a record company. They’ve got Iona Mac signed with them.”

Sam raised his eyebrows. “Iona Mac, as in the biggest pop star in Scotland?”

“No,” Maya said, waggling her finger. “The biggest pop star in Britain, according to the charts.”

Sam took another step closer, his eyes becoming wider by the minute. “You need to conclude this story right now, before I die of anticipation.”

Maya couldn’t help letting out a little squeal. “Paul’s got us six free tickets with backstage passes to Iona’s Glasgow gig in January!”

Sam’s mouth dropped open, and he stared at her for a second. “Oh my God!” He closed the gap between them and enveloped her in a hug, lifting her right off the ground. “I can’t believe it! That’s awesome.”

He squeezed her tightly, and she found her face buried in his hair, breathing in his scent. As he set her down to meet her gaze, that scene from years ago, in the boot room, was right there. She could almost reach out and touch it.