The worst part about living in such a small town was that word of her breakup traveled fast. All Mackenzie had to do was send a heartbroken text to her friends, and by Monday morning, she was getting sympathetic looks from passers-by on the street as she walked to go get breakfast. Was it really so obvious? She’d washed her hair and even put on a clean pair of jeans, after spending the weekend in sweatpants, wrapped up in a numb, heartbroken haze. But clearly, Mackenzie’s half-hearted attempts to hide her pain weren’t working, because the moment she stepped through the door of the bakery, Summer was at her side.

“Hey,” Summer said, her voice warm. “Come sit down. I just baked a fresh batch of cinnamon rolls, and there are two with your name on them.”

“And have a cup of tea,” Franny pitched in from the next table. “Nothing’s so bad with a nice cup of Earl Grey.”

Her phone buzzed with a text. It was her mom. I’m here if you want to talk.

Mackenzie sighed and looked around. “Is there anyone on the Cape who doesn’t know I’ve been dumped?”

Summer winced. “Sorry.”

“Maybe Hank at the market?” Franny suggested. “You know his hearing isn’t what it used to be.”

“Nope,” said Ellie Lucas, who was just leaving with a paper bag of pastries. “I was just in there getting detergent, and they were talking about it. He offered to go whoop Jake’s ass, if that helps.”

Mackenzie sighed. “He’d have to go all the way to California.”

She didn’t want to sit out in the café, with all the tongues wagging, so she followed Summer into the kitchen in back. Every surface was covered in holiday treats, and for good reason: the Starbright Festival officially kicked off that night, and the whole town had gone celebration-crazy.

Mackenzie leaned against the counter and snaffled a broken piece of gingerbread. She knew it must be delicious, but she couldn’t taste a thing. Maybe she was still in shock: after Jake had left, she’d dragged herself to her potter’s wheel and spent the weekend turning out new stock for the gallery, losing herself in the steady spinning of the clay until she could barely feel anything at all.

“So, how are you feeling?” Summer asked, piping some frosting on a line of star-shaped cookies. “Or is that a dumb question?”

Mackenzie gave a helpless shrug.

“What happened?” Summer shot her an anxious look. “I mean, you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to. All I heard was that he went to take that job in LA.”

Mackenzie took a deep breath. “That’s pretty much the whole story. I told him I loved him, and he left.” Her voice twisted on the words, and Summer dropped the frosting tub to sweep her into a hug.

“I’m so sorry, babe.”

“Me too.” Mackenzie gulped back the tears. “I hate it. I hate feeling like this. I can’t even hate him, because he didn’t do anything wrong. I was the one diving in the deep end, not waiting a second to see if he felt the same.”

“If he didn’t, then he’s crazy,” Summer said firmly. “Who wouldn’t love you?”

Mackenzie gave a wistful smile. “Pretty much every guy I’ve ever dated.”

Summer didn’t have a reply for that. She held out a cookie. “Well, we love you. And I’m proud of you, you know.”

“For what?” Mackenzie asked, surprised.

“For knowing what you’re worth.” Summer gave her a rueful look. “I’ve been in your shoes, and I know how tempting it is to just take whatever he’s willing to give you—even if that’s not enough.”

“But Grayson realized he couldn’t live without you,” Mackenzie said sadly. “He didn’t get on a plane and fly thousands of miles in the other direction.”

“True,” Summer agreed. “But planes go both ways. It doesn’t mean he can’t fly back.”

Mackenzie shook her head. “I’ve been over it in my mind a hundred times. He just doesn’t feel the same way about me. Whatever we had—the chemistry, the spark—it wasn’t real, not in the end. It was just some casual thing to him.”

“But I saw the way he looked at you,” Summer argued. “That wasn’t casual.”

Mackenzie’s heart ached. “It doesn’t make a difference either way, not anymore. He made his choice, and it wasn’t me.”

Summer looked stricken. “I didn’t mean to upset you more.”

“You haven’t,” Mackenzie reassured her. “It’s just going to take me some time. I would still be hiding out in sweatpants if I didn’t have to go open the gallery.”

“And the Starbright kick-off is tonight, too.”

She nodded. “I don’t know if I’ll make it. Debra’s almost back on her feet, so she’s going to oversee the candle-lighting ceremony.”

“But you have to come!” Summer exclaimed. “Everyone will be there. Even Grayson, and you know how he feels about town events.”

“I want to, I just don’t know if I want to face all the gossip.” Mackenzie sighed. “What am I supposed to tell people when they ask about Jake?”

“Whatever you like.” Summer gave a wicked smile. “Maybe he ran off to join a Buddhist meditation group, or eloped with a Real Housewife.”

Mackenzie laughed. “I couldn’t.”

“I know. But I could.” Summer winked. “We’ll come pick you up at seven, and I won’t take no for an answer.”

---

True to her word, Summer was on Mackenzie’s doorstep at seven. Mackenzie, however, was already in her pajamas. She’d managed to keep it together all day at the gallery, but the moment she’d arrived back home, all her determination melted away.

She missed him.

She wanted him.

He was gone.

“Oh no,” Summer said, looking her up and down. “Unless you want to give the town a glimpse of Snoopy, you need to go change.”

“You go ahead without me,” Mackenzie said listlessly. “I don’t feel so good.”

“A broken heart isn’t like the flu,” a voice came from further down the path, and then Brooke pushed inside. “It won’t go away with chicken soup and Netflix.”

“It might,” Mackenzie argued, feeling pathetic. “It’s Aunt June’s chicken soup. That stuff is magic.”

“Oh, you’re right.” Summer’s face changed. “But that’s still no excuse. Come on, chop chop.” She pushed Mackenzie down the hall and into her bedroom. “Unless you pick out something in the next ten seconds, I’m choosing you the most hideous holiday sweater I can find.”

“Since when did you become so mean?” Mackenzie protested.

“Tough love, baby.”

“I could just throw on a coat?” she suggested. “I’d be so bundled up, nobody would even know.”

Brooke shook her head. “Just listen to yourself. Friends don’t let friends go out in their pajamas.”

“They should,” Mackenzie grumbled. “We’d all be much more comfortable.”

She reluctantly gave up her cozy flannel and dressed in a sweater and jeans. Soon, she was cocooned in her winter gear and shuffling down the street towards the town square. “Everyone knows he dumped me,” she said, checking around to see if the gossips were still out in force. “I may as well have ‘spinster’ written on my forehead.”

She’d always joked about her title before—the Spinster of Sweetbriar Cove—but that was when a future going solo (with a dozen cats) seemed like a happy fate. Now that she knew what happiness she could have had with Jake, it cut deep to think of being alone.

“You’re allowed to wallow in self-pity for exactly one more hour,” Brooke declared, linking arms. “Then I’m cutting you off.”

“Here.” Summer sandwiched her from the other side. “This will help.”

She passed a hip flask, and Mackenzie took a swig. Hot milk and spices burned the back of her throat—and a healthy dose of bourbon. She whistled. “Is this your entry in the nog-off? You’ll give Franny a run for her money.”

“Damn straight.” Summer grinned. “I’ve got my eye on the big prize.”

“There’s actually no prize,” Mackenzie confided. “Just an old trophy, and the glory, of course.”

“I’ll settle for that!”

They turned the corner and reached the town square, and despite the ache in her chest, Mackenzie couldn’t help but smile. One tree, of course, wasn’t festive enough for the Starbright Festival, so instead, they had half a dozen ringing the town square, each of them decorated by a different class from the grade school—which meant dazzling pink lights in one corner, and another adorned with superhero ornaments. And in the center of the square was the crowning glory, a majestic fir tree towering thirty feet in the air. It was still cast in darkness, but hundreds of people were gathering all around, bearing candles and torches that lit up the night.

“It’s so pretty,” Brooke cooed. “You did a great job.”

“It was nothing.” Mackenzie dismissed the praise. “Everyone in town pitched in. I just made a few calls to keep everything on track.”

“We both know that’s a lie.”

Mackenzie turned. Debra was there in a brightly-knitted poncho, leaning heavily on a cane. “Lovely work,” she said, giving Mackenzie a rare smile of approval. “I knew I could leave the planning in your capable hands.”

“Jake helped too,” she felt obliged to say. “I couldn’t have done it without him.”

“Yes. Well. He’s not here, is he?” Debra’s lips tightened with disapproval. “Are you sure you don’t want to flip the switch? It’s a perk of the position.”

“No thanks, you do it,” Mackenzie said. “I like the view from here.”

Debra nodded, and made to head through the crowd. But she paused before she went, and touched Mackenzie’s arm. “I’m sorry,” she said softly. “I shouldn’t have meddled, pairing the two of you up. I never dreamed it would turn out like this. I just wanted the best for you . . .” Her voice faltered, her pale eyes getting watery. “You deserve someone special.”

Mackenzie covered her hand with her own. “It’s OK,” she said, feeling choked up herself. “I know you only meant well. I’m fine,” she insisted. “I’ll be fine.”

“Of course you will.” Debra nodded firmly. “And when you feel up to dating again, my niece just broke up with a lovely man—”

“I’ll let you know.” Mackenzie cut her off. “Thank you.”

Debra headed off, slowly through the crowd. Mackenzie watched her go, touched by her concern. She realized suddenly that all the gossip she’d felt so self-conscious about was really just people wanting the best for her. They were her friends and neighbors, and they cared.

Just maybe they could care more discreetly next time.

She looked around the square, feeling a sense of belonging, which dulled the pain. Grayson had come to meet Summer, and Riley was snuggled up with Brooke, too, blowing on a steaming Thermos. Poppy and Cooper were over with her Aunt June, and even Ellie was on the outskirts of the crowd with a dark-haired man Mackenzie didn’t recognize. Eliza hadn’t been able to make it, but she would be back for the caroling on Christmas Eve.

And Mackenzie was there in the middle of it all, alone.

Not alone, she corrected herself. She was surrounded by people who cared about her.

She watched as the crowd fell silent, and Debra announced the official start of the Starbright Festival. She ceremoniously flipped a switch on the electric board, and the main tree suddenly flared to life: a thousand tiny white lights blazing all the way to the top, stars bright in the crisp, clear night.

It was magical.

Mackenzie’s heart lifted for the first time since Jake had walked away. She decided she wouldn’t spend another moment pining after him; she’d spent too much of her life doing that already.

She didn’t know where he was, or what he was doing, but she could bet he wasn’t giving her a second thought.