Kaitlyn fingered the lacrosse ball, her lacrosse ball, as she walked into work at Kenworth’s. Almost three months had passed since the day Axel handed her his number, and she still dreamed about him regularly—night and daydreams. She’d tapped his number into her phone more times than she could count and even composed lengthy texts, but she always deleted them before she pushed send. She had his number memorized, which was a good thing since she’d rubbed it, and his signature, to a dull black smudge by fingering the ball so often. It was her good luck charm.

Letting go of the ball, she swung the door wide and inhaled the wonderful scents of Kenworth’s—new clothes and chocolate. She’d come home for the summer to work at her favorite department store, staying busy in her free time keeping her and Lolly’s online swimwear company on track for its spring launch. Now there were only a few weeks left until she’d be back at school in the city. She liked the city, but it was nothing compared to Echo Ridge—the lush, green mountains and people she’d known and loved her entire life. Like Mason. She smiled thinking about her boyfriend. He was one of the best guys she knew. They’d had a month together this summer before he’d headed back to Syracuse to start practicing for fall lacrosse. They’d done a lot of fun things, but something was very off with their relationship. The entire summer there had been a nagging feeling in the back of her mind, something that kept drawing her back to thinking about Axel. It was silly and far-fetched. She shouldn’t be so sad that she and Mason didn’t have much to talk about anymore or the fact that when he kissed her it was quick and she felt nothing. They’d been together a long time and were going through an odd patch. That’s all. It would get better. They’d still had a lot of fun moments—mountain biking, hiking, and taking his little sisters on picnics and park visits. Sure, it was hard not to miss the excitement and romance she thought she’d have in her life, but dreams of Axel needed to stay tucked away. It was like envisioning herself as the heroine in a romance novel—fun, but not reality. Axel was never going to happen for her.

“Hey there, my beautiful friend,” Jessica called out as Kaitlyn approached the women’s department.

“Good morning,” Kaitlyn said, smiling at her boss, mentor, and friend. Jessica was living the life as far as Kaitlyn was concerned—managing Kenworth’s, married to the love of her life, and expecting a baby at Christmastime.

“Such formal speech. You doing okay?” Jessica dropped the t-shirts she’d been rearranging and wrapped Kaitlyn up in a hug, her baby bump coming between them.

“Yeah, just not ready to go back to school.”

“You’ve got three more weeks. Stop stressing about something that isn’t even here yet.”

Kaitlyn nodded. Jessica was right. Truthfully, the worry wasn’t about going back to school. Yes, she’d hate to leave Echo Ridge and Kenworth’s again, but she really liked school and the city, and Lolly made everything fun. She’d missed her friend who was touring Europe this summer with her parents. The truth was she was weighed down by guilt that she was falling out of love with her boyfriend because of some guy who could never actually be hers. It was nuts and very depressing. Even if she broke things off with Mason, which would be horribly sad and tough on both of them, she’d never get up the nerve to text Axel. She was sure he’d forgotten all about her, and she wouldn’t see him until April when the professional lacrosse season started up again.

She got to work and soon was busy with customers, restocking clothes, and fun discussions with Jessica about orders for winter jackets and if Christian Louboutin or Manolo Blahnik was the better shoe designer.

On her lunch break, she checked her phone and saw a text from Mason.

I’m in town. Have a surprise for you tonight.

Aw, Mason. It would be great to see him. She wondered if he sensed how lackadaisical their relationship was becoming. With all the time they’d spent together this summer, they’d kissed and hugged, but it had been quick and comfortable like they’d already been married for fifty years. Maybe tonight she could talk to him about her concerns and together they could either decide to date other people or figure out how to bring the spark back to their relationship. Maybe if you didn’t daydream about another man all the time, there wouldn’t be a problem. Shush, she told the voice in her head. It was Lolly’s voice, which kind of made her laugh. She typed quickly back to Mason:

Sounds great. Where should we meet?

I’ll pick you up at six. My mom’s doing a barbecue, so come hungry.

Thanks.

She put her phone back in her pocket. That was it. No love you from either of them. Back in high school, Mason used to tell her how much he loved her all of the time, but it felt like they were more like friends now than boyfriend and girlfriend. It was so hard to wrap her mind around the change. She wondered if he felt it too or if he was so busy with lacrosse and school that he didn’t really get caught up in their relationship or lack of romance or sparks.

She threw away her lunch wrappings and headed down the short hallway and past the men’s department. Gentry, Jessica’s husband, was standing near a rack of Paul Smith dress slacks with a customer who had broad shoulders, nicely defined triceps, and thick, dark hair that curled slightly. Kaitlyn stuttered to a stop and stared at the man’s backside. He looked so familiar. She could swear … No. It couldn’t be him. What would he be doing in Echo Ridge?

She shook her head and clenched her fists. This fantasizing about Axel Olson had to stop. Gentry caught her staring and gave her a smile and a friendly wave. The man turned, and all the oxygen seemed to swoop out of the building. Kaitlyn grabbed onto a nearby clothes rack. She didn’t have a low-blood sugar excuse for feeling faint right now.

Axel’s dark gaze zeroed in on her, and she saw recognition flare in his eyes. A welcoming smile crossed his face as he took a step in her direction. It was all Kaitlyn could do to stay upright and hold onto the clothes rack. Was he really here? How? Why? Her mind had put him in a little box at the stadium at Hofstra University in his Lizard’s uniform. To see him dressed in a fitted Henley and Volcom shorts … Good heavens! Had Kiera forgotten to pay the utility bill, or maybe the air conditioner had stopped working? She fanned herself.

Axel kept coming. Gentry said something to him. He responded but remained laser-focused on her. Twenty more feet and he’d be in talking and touching distance. A giddy anticipation rose in her as she focused on his handsome face. Axel was here!

Strong arms wrapped around her, and Kaitlyn was lifted off her feet.

“There’s my girl!” Mason swung her around then gave her a quick peck on the lips before setting her down.

“Mason?” Kaitlyn was dazed and confused. Nothing made sense. Axel in Echo Ridge. Mason in the store when he was supposed to be in Syracuse. “I thought you weren’t coming until tonight.”

“Coach cancelled practice today, so I drove home early for the weekend.” He beamed at her. “Man, you’re exactly what I needed today.” His eyes swept over her appreciatively. “I missed you.”

“I, um, missed you too.” She tucked some hair behind her ear and glanced around, looking for Axel. She didn’t really want to meet him again with Mason by her side, but she’d already told Axel she was in a relationship, and Mason would be ecstatic to meet one of his lacrosse heroes.

Axel had stopped walking. He stared at her with an expression that could only be deciphered as pain. Kaitlyn’s gut wrenched. She wanted to reassure him somehow, but she couldn’t tell him that this wasn’t what it looked like, because it was. Mason was her boyfriend, had been for the past four years. He was a fabulous person, and she couldn’t stand the thought of hurting him.

Axel turned and strode toward the front of the store. Kaitlyn focused back on Mason. He was staring at her, oblivious to the other man even having been there.

“Can you go to lunch? Now that I don’t work at Jack’s anymore, I miss their pizza.” He grinned.

Kaitlyn smiled back at him, though her stomach ached from seeing Axel again but not being able to talk to him and maybe touch him just once before she forced herself to deny that he was the dream and she had to live in reality. “I just finished my lunch break.”

“I thought I might be too late. I can’t wait for tonight. You’re going to love your surprise.”

Kaitlyn realized she’d never seen Mason quite this animated. He was usually pretty laidback and quiet. An absolutely terrifying thought hit her. He wasn’t going to propose tonight, was he? Her heart started beating hard and fast. They’d planned on getting through college before they took that next step. At first, it had been hard to think about waiting four years to be with Mason, but it would’ve been even harder for either of them to give up their dream schools. Lately, she wondered if waiting until they were established was just an excuse for both of them. Did she even love him romantically? And if she didn’t, why didn’t she set them both free? Yet was romantic love even a reality? Axel’s face popped into her mind again and the way it had felt when he touched her at the lacrosse game. Dang him.

“I’ll see you then.” She finally managed to get the words out.

Mason gave her another quick peck that she didn’t really even feel before saying hello to Gentry and striding out of the store. Kaitlyn stood there in a fog.

“What was that?” Gentry asked.

Kaitlyn jumped. She hadn’t even realized he’d approached her. She fumbled with a rack of clearance swimsuits, organizing them into sizes. “What? Mason? He came home to visit.”

“No. I’m talking about Axel Olson chatting with me about pants until he saw you and then rushing toward you like he was dying of thirst and you were a Gatorade vendor.”

Kaitlyn couldn’t meet Gentry’s amused gaze. “I don’t know Axel Olson.”

“Of course you do. He’s a lacrosse superstar.”

She glanced up, forcing herself to act calm. “I know who he is, but I don’t know him, know him.” No matter how much she wished she did.

Gentry arched an eyebrow. “Hmm. Do I need to get Jessica involved in this discussion?”

“No!” Jessica was worse than a priest. She could get a confession out of a mobster, and matchmaking was her favorite pastime. She was also one of the only people who knew Kaitlyn was struggling with her relationship with Mason.

A customer approached the counter with a load of clothes, and Kaitlyn ran to help her. Thank you for intervention.