Amelia flops down across the bed in my old room and props her chin up on her hands. The cunning smile plastered on her face is not a good sign…for me. “You’ve only mentioned Hunter once or twice since I met you during our freshman year. You never said anything about how sexy he is. Those brown eyes with gold flecks and his naturally muscular build. How serious were you two?”

“We were kids.” I cringe when I realize I used the exact same words Gran used to describe us just under four years ago. During my senior year in high school. When he dumped me without warning and crushed my heart. “He’s three years older than me, but we dated all through my high school years. He was my first.”

“Any chance for a reconciliation?”

“None.” My emphatic tone leaves little room for argument. I turn to rummage through my suitcase, looking for my pajamas.

“No chance of reconciling with your first love, huh? Then you won’t mind if I make him my last.”

I’ve changed my mind—there is a lot of room for argument.

My voice is a little louder than I intended when I whirl around to face her. “What the hell, Amelia? Have you lost your mind?”

A slow, satisfied smile crawls across her face. “Seems like an especially strong response for someone who has no desire to rekindle a relationship with her ex-boyfriend.”

“My relationship with Hunter was a long time ago, and it was also over a long time ago. Regardless of how strong my reaction to your idea of marrying him and living happily ever after is, I still can’t see a different outcome than the one we’re in right now.”

“Maybe you need to take a step back, then. Because from where I was sitting during dinner, I can plainly see that man is still in love with you.”

“He’s an ex for a reason, Amelia. He broke my heart. I guess, in a really sad way, I should thank him. His betrayal was a huge contributing factor in why I chose to attend UGA. And if not for that choice, I wouldn’t have met you.”

“You should forgive him for that reason alone. I mean, having me in your life is worth more than whatever heartbreak you endured in your pre-Amelia years.”

Her sarcastic wit always cheers me up. She doesn’t sugarcoat anything for me, and she doesn’t pat me on the head and tell me everything will be all right in the end. She does remind me of what’s important, though, and expects me to put on my big-girl panties and deal with the situation head on.

“There’s nothing to forgive anymore. It was a long time ago, and I’ve moved on, so there’s no reason to hold on to a grudge.”

She laughs out loud—her sarcastic, disbelieving, I’m-calling-you-on-your-bullshit laugh. “Girl, who do you think you’re talking to here? I know you better than anyone. You still have the hots for him just as much as he does for you. Moved on, my ass.”

“Shut up.”

“Oh, good comeback, Mal. You really burned me with that one. I may never recover from the gaping wound in my ego that response left in its wake.” She rolls over onto her back and stretches out, content in her wittiness. “So, when do I get to meet this wonderful grandmother of yours?”

After several heartbeats of silence, Amelia moves to sit on the side of the bed, staring at me with her eyebrows drawn down and her head slightly cocked to the side. Silence isn’t a common occurrence between the two of us.

“Hopefully never, because that would mean I’d have to be around her again.”

“What’d she do to you, Mallory? What happened?”

“I overheard her telling Hunter he’d be better off without me. That we weren’t a good fit, I’d ruin any plans he had for his life, and he should find someone better. The next day, he broke up with me.”

“Did you talk to her about it? Surely, you misunderstood her words or why she said those things.”

“No, I didn’t talk to her, but I also didn’t misunderstand anything. She has always been controlling and domineering. She thinks she owns everyone and can rule them with an iron fist. One of my earliest memories of her was when she tried to break up my parents’ marriage. She never liked my mom when they were dating, and she liked her even less after they got married. There was a huge fight at our house—but my parents stuck together and told her to leave. They didn’t speak to her again for several years.”

“All that, and your mom is taking care of that woman willingly?”

“Gran came back and apologized for her behavior—but not for calling my mom a gold digger. I don’t even know why she would think that. I mean, my parents have nice things now, but they’ve worked for every dime they have. Dad isn’t rich by any means.

“But I remember that scene so well because I didn’t know what that term meant. I thought it was so cool that Mom was a gold digger, I took my toy shovel to the backyard and dug holes everywhere, looking for my own gold. Anyway, Gran agreed to stop spewing her vitriol about their marriage when she showed up on our doorstep one day, so they let her back into our family. She kept her word for the most part, other than some occasional indirect remarks.”

“Wow. Okay. So, when Hunter broke up with you, did you ask him about what she’d said?”

“No, I didn’t. He used her words almost verbatim. We weren’t right for each other. If we stayed together, we’d both regret it later. I’d find someone else and forget all about him. Everything had been fine between us just the day before, until he talked to Gran and listened to every word she said about me. He had every opportunity to explain what I’d heard and why he’d listened to her. But he didn’t. He walked out of my house and my life forever.”

“Not forever, Mal. He just walked into the restaurant and right back into your life tonight. Maybe this trip home will be your Christmas miracle on Main Street.”

“You are such a dork. And why do you keep taking his side? You’re supposed to be my best friend.” I sit down beside her and pull the pillow into my lap, hugging it to my chest.

“Mallory Alexandra Conner, I should wash your mouth out with soap for saying that. I have never and will never side with anyone over you. But you’ve barely dated anyone in the last four years I’ve known you. When some guy starts getting too close to you after a few dates, you find any reason under the sun to kick him to the curb.”

“You’re exaggerating, Meli.”

“No, I’m not. Remember Russell? You broke up with him because he poured the milk in the bowl before the cereal.”

“That was just weird, and you know it.”

“And Grant? You quit seeing him because of his toes.”

“Did you see his feet in sandals? His toes were like fingers! I can’t handle finger-like toes.”

“What about Ronnie? You didn’t like the way he kissed.”

“Noooo. He kissed just fine. It was the way he said ‘yummy’ after every kiss that I couldn’t handle. Don’t even try to tell me you’d put up with that for a week, much less a month.”

“Okay, I’ll give you that one. My point is you haven’t exactly given another man a real chance to get to know you since Hunter. Maybe it’s not that you want him back as much as you want closure—for both your relationship with him and your grandmother.”

“So, you think I should confront him and demand answers while I’m here.”

“That sounds a little…aggressive. Maybe approach it more as a friendly talk to restore an old friendship and clear the air.”

“For the record, I like my plot of waterboarding, removing fingernails, and stringing him up by his balls better.”

“Duly noted. Keep those ideas in your back pocket in case you need a Plan B.”

We laugh together, and my mood lightens, the way it always does when my best friend puts my life back into perspective for me. “I feel sorry for everyone else in the world.”

“Why is that?”

“Because I have the best friend ever, and they don’t.”

“You’re not going to kiss me now, are you? That would just make things awkward. I’ve told you before, I love you, but not like that.”

“Shut up.”

“What did he say to you before we left the restaurant? I could tell he wanted a second alone with you, so I hung back a few steps to give you two a little privacy.”

“But only long enough for you to get me alone later?” I give Amelia the side eye, playfully questioning her motives.

“Exactly. Now quit stalling and spill it.”

“He didn’t say anything significant. Dad had just said he finally understood why Mr. Kirkman refused to play Santa anymore, and Hunter had a good laugh about it. Then he looked at me and said I should start thinking about what I’ll tell Santa I want for Christmas this year.”

“Funny guy. Everyone thinks they’re a comedian.”

A knock on the door immediately brings a smile to Amelia’s face. “That’s your mom bringing hot chocolate with tiny marshmallows before tucking us into bed.”

Who is this crazy person sitting beside me?

“Since when did you get in touch with your inner child?”

“Open the door, Mal. It’s hot chocolate. With tiny marshmallows. Chop, chop. You’re wasting time.” She motions toward the door, clearly over her concern for my imaginary love life.

“Come on in, Mom.” I take one of the cups from her and kiss her on the cheek. “Thank you for spoiling us.”

“You are so welcome. And I would gladly spoil you more if you came home more often.”

“Nice segue, Mom. Not obvious at all.”

“While I’m at it, your father and I recently had a talk, and we agree we’d both love to have a few grandkids soon.”

The hot chocolate gets stuck in my throat when I start nervously coughing. “Geez, Mom. That’s not funny. I may need skin grafts on my esophagus now.”

“Stop whining, Mallory. I’m still waiting for my hot chocolate.” Amelia narrows her eyes at me, daring me to take any more of Mom’s time.

“Here’s yours, Amelia. I put extra marshmallows in it for you, sweetie. I remember that’s how you liked it from our visit last Christmas.”

“Thank you, Mama Jackie. This is perfect.” Amelia puts on a good show of enjoying her drink—eyes closed, soft moans, and licking her lips. She’s such a ham.

“Sweetheart, I’ll be with Gran all day tomorrow, but when I get back, your dad and I will take you two girls out so we can show Amelia around our winter wonderland.”

“Since I’ve seen it a time or two, why don’t you take Amelia, and I’ll stay here?”

“If you don’t go with us, you can stay with Gran. Give her sitter a break.”

“That’s really cold, Mom.”

“So is trying to get out of spending time with your family, while you’re home to spend time with your family.”

“Being logical is so overrated. Fine. I’ll walk around town with you, in the freezing cold, with the horrible four-letter-word white precipitation all around us, and suffer through frostbitten fingers and toes.”

“You know, you really should’ve been an actress instead of going to college for early childhood education. You’re quite dramatic.” Mom smiles sweetly, but I know it’s secretly a smile of triumph. I’ll choose the cold air of our little town over the cold heart of Gran any day.

“Everyone’s a comedian these days. Usually at my expense.”

“You just give us so much material.” Amelia smirks at me over the rim of her mug. Then she shifts her gaze to my mom. “Hey, Mama Jackie. Since Mr. Kirkman retired, do you think it’s safe for Mallory and me to sit in Santa’s lap while we’re here?”

“That can definitely be arranged. We’ve needed new Christmas pictures for a long time now. What a great idea, Amelia.”

“Yes. Thank you, Amelia, for that suggestion. I appreciate it so much. Remind me to show you how much when Mom isn’t around.”

Amelia’s smirk turns into a full belly laugh that she doesn’t even try to hide.

“Mallory, behave. Amelia is our guest.”

“Are you kidding right now, Mom?”

Mom smiles and pats my shoulder as she leaves the bedroom. When I turn my sights back to Amelia, she wiggles farther under the covers. “It’s so cozy here.”

“Yeah, I think you’re getting a little too comfortable.”