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She raised her gaze to his. “I didn’t think you would, but then how did it happen?”

“I don’t know. I only told Brian.” He grimaced. “It was in the locker room, so someone must have overheard us. That’s the only thing I can think of to explain what happened.” He looked into her eyes. “I loved you, and I would never have knowingly hurt you.”

Despite the years and the miles, hearing him say he’d loved her still gave her the same tingle it had back when she’d been all of seventeen.

“I know,” she told him. “I didn’t then, not at first, but I do now, and I believe you. It was just such a shock and so awful. Even after we broke up, I assumed we would figure it out, but then you were gone.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault.”

“I should have told you why I left.”

She smiled. “I should have listened when you wanted to explain.”

They looked at each other. Reggie felt some shift in the energy between them, but didn’t know what that meant. Nor was she going to pursue the topic.

“You were a good boyfriend,” she said with a smile. “I’m guessing that’s still true, so why didn’t you bring a wife back to Wishing Tree?”

She’d thought he would give her a funny response, but instead his face went blank and he turned away.

“I’m not getting married anytime soon.”

There was something in his voice, a finality along with a hint at dark secrets she knew she couldn’t ask about.

As quickly as his mood changed, it shifted back again to easygoing Toby.

“What about you? It’s been over a year since you and Jake broke up. There must be a guy in your life.”

“One would think,” she said lightly. “But one would be wrong.” She shrugged. “It took me a while to get over him, and since then, I’ve gone out some, but just casually. So far I haven’t met anyone relationship-worthy.”

A statement that seemed designed to make things awkward, she thought, setting down her wineglass and coming to her feet.

“This has been fun,” she said. “But I need to get Belle and head home. She gets really cranky if she doesn’t get enough sleep.”

For a second she thought Toby was going to call her on her bolt for freedom, but he only nodded and rose.

“A cranky Great Dane can’t be fun. Come on, I’ll walk you out.”

Fifteen minutes later, as she drove home, Reggie told herself she’d made the smart decision. Lingering would only have led to—well, she wasn’t sure what, but something complicated. She and Toby had a past, but that was no reason to assume they had a future. Better to keep things casual and friendly. Or maybe just safer.

Micah figured he’d clocked about ten miles since he’d left the B and B. He was still frustrated by his inability to write, so he’d decided to walk until he had something close to a creative thought.

He’d walked through several residential sections of town before heading west to Gray Wolf Lake. Then he’d gone south, bundled up against the freezing temperatures.

All the houses he passed were decorated for the holidays. Santas and reindeer dotted lawns, and wreaths hung in windows. About an hour into his journey, he realized there weren’t any snowmen anywhere. Obviously not real ones, what with there being no snow, but also no plastic or ceramic ones. Now that he thought about it, Dena hadn’t used snowmen in her decorating at the B and B. Was it a town thing? Some tradition he didn’t know about? He would have to ask her.

He paused to check for traffic before crossing the street. There weren’t a lot of people walking and not that many cars. He knew if he headed for the center of town, he would run into more pedestrians. The area around The Wreath was always busy.

He wondered what Adriana would have thought of Wishing Tree. Would she have seen the charm of the place, as he did, or would she have thought it was too small? Neither of them had grown up with much in the way of a community. The longest he’d lived anywhere had been when he’d stayed with Steve in high school. He and Adriana had bought the house in Malibu—the one he rarely went back to. Not so much because of any memories, but more because he didn’t see the point of returning. It had never been a home for either of them.

He supposed if she hadn’t been killed, everything would have been different. That house would have been where they’d brought their baby. They would have made memories there. As it was, he knew he should sell the place, and he would. Just as soon as he figured out where he was going to settle.

He continued south on Celebration Pass, then turned left on Virginia Street. About a dozen kids came running toward him, passing him with an eagerness that told him it must be just after three and school had let out. His step quickened as he hurried up the front stairs and into the main building. This hadn’t been his destination, but now that he was here, it seemed rude not to stop by and say hello.

He checked in at the front office and asked if he could go by Dena’s classroom. The receptionist recognized him from his last visit and waved him down the hall.

“She’s still here,” the woman said with a smile.