“Have you heard back from Mallory?” Chad hoists the saddle onto his horse’s back and begins securing it. He doesn’t look at me, though, because he’s trying to act casual.

“No, not a word. I’ve left her a voice mail and sent her a text—just in case. She hasn’t answered either of them. That was three days ago.” In fact, I haven’t talked to her at all since I dropped her off after our date.

“Give her time and some space, man. She’ll come around.”

“Chad, she’s had four years and nearly a thousand miles. I think she’s had plenty of time and space from me.”

“Well, when you put it that way…”

“Shut up and ride off into the sunset already. You have a group ride waiting for you.” I hear him laugh as I leave the barn and walk toward the office. There’s no point in asking if he’s talked to Amelia. If I had to guess, which I don’t even want to, she’s the one he’s been texting nonstop for the last few days.

“Good morning, Hunter.” Mom’s already at her desk, checking the schedules and confirming the payments for the upcoming reservations. I don’t know what I’d do without her bookkeeping skills because I certainly can’t do it all by myself. “You boys have a full day today.”

“Yes, we do. You keep piling the tourists on us, one family after the other. Not that I’m complaining, though.” She hands the day’s full schedule to me, and I release a low whistle. “It’s a good thing we all love our jobs because we won’t be taking off anytime soon. We have more carriage and trail rides today than I thought.”

“Don’t stress over it. I’ve already talked to our extra trail guides, and they’re on their way in as we speak. The horses will be tacked, and the riders will be in good hands.”

“You’re the best office manager ever, Mom. Thank you.”

“No need to thank me. You’re not the only one who loves their job.”

“Did you manage to talk Henry into accepting his bonus? I’m glad he enjoys taking people out on sleigh rides, but he won’t accept tips from the locals.”

“Actually, I didn’t tell him anything about it. It’s automatically deposited into his account, so he won’t even realize it until he checks his bank balance.”

“Very sneaky, Mom. I like it.”

“Maybe you should think about being sneaky yourself. Calling and texting her only gives her an opportunity to avoid you. It’s very difficult to plan for a surprise when you don’t know it’s coming.”

My eyebrows disappear into my hairline. “How did you know?”

She releases a disappointed sigh, one I’ve heard too many times in my life. “Hunter, we live in a town where everyone knows everyone else. Exactly how many secrets do you think you have from me?”

“Let’s change the subject.”

“Then let’s talk about how long you’ve been working without a break.”

“What are you talking about? I take breaks.”

“Sleeping for a few hours at night is not taking time off, son. Twenty-five is way too young to be burned out from working nonstop. You have to get away from here for a while—at least a week or two—to recharge yourself. You’ve heard of a work-life balance, right? I know you’ve felt like you had something to prove, but you’ve achieved that many times over now.”

“You know I hate it when you psychoanalyze me.”

“No, I haven’t even started psychoanalyzing you. I’m simply stating the obvious facts. You’re my son, Hunter, and I only want you to be happy.”

“I know, Mom, and I appreciate your concern. But I have to do this my way, not your way.”

“You are every bit as stubborn as your daddy.”

“Must be why you’re so crazy over both of us.” I wink at her, knowing our stubborn streaks are the spice of her life. Just maybe not the kind of spice she prefers.

“Yes, I’m sure that’s the reason why.” She rolls her eyes at me playfully. “Hey, do you think you can take Banjo by the vet today? His incision looks a little red to me.”

“Sure, Mom. Let me finish a few things around here first, and I’ll go by and get him.”

With the schedule in hand, I return to the barn to check the horses and gear before the horde of tourists descends on us later today. My thoughts return to Mallory, as they usually do when I’m alone. I could kick my own ass for pushing her too hard too soon. Especially when I knew better after the way we broke up. But part of me thought if she just remembered the good times, we could get past the bad times faster. Now I realize that was naïve thinking and I’ve probably lost even more ground with her.

After I’ve checked and fed all the horses, it’s almost time for the next set of tourists to arrive for their horseback ride in the snow. A couple of the wranglers get the horses ready to ride while the guide covers the safety speech. Maybe Mom was right—about everything. A surprise visit to make Mallory talk to me and show her I’m not giving up so easily is in order. And maybe, just maybe, a couple of weeks off work isn’t such a bad idea.

All work and no play—all that jazz.

Knowing the customers are in good hands, I head down the mountain and straight to my parents’ house. Mom hates taking Banjo to the vet for anything except his shots, but I have a feeling this is a wild goose chase to ease her mind. Maybe my day will get better and Mallory will just happen to be working today. Mal can’t blame me for taking good care of the family dog. In no time, I’m walking into the clinic with Banjo in tow, the familiar ringing of the bell over the door as we enter. The young receptionist behind the desk is on the phone, engrossed in a conversation about pet care, so I sign in and take a seat.

When Amelia comes out from the back to call the next pet’s name, she scans the full room as she watches to see who stands. Her gaze stops and lingers on me, and I greet her with a smile and a quick wave. She walks over to me and crosses her arms.

“What did you do to her?”

“Nothing. I just wanted to make sure she had a good time.”

Amelia raises one eyebrow at me, disbelief written all over her face.

“Fine. Maybe I also wanted to make her miss our old times a little. Is that so bad?”

“Yes. Because any memory of your time together includes your breakup. I suggest starting there if you want to change anything. That is, if she gives you a chance to talk to her again.”

“Oh, she’ll give me a chance if I have to kidnap her and hold her hostage until she develops Stockholm syndrome.” I’m more than determined. This is happening one way or another.

“Good. No excuses, Beckett.”

Amelia walks the pet and owner to the back and leaves me with a glimmer of hope. I have Mallory’s best friend on my side. That’s always a good sign. When it’s finally our turn to be seen, Amelia takes us to the exam room and crosses her fingers at me in a sign of good luck before closing the door.

We don’t have to wait too long before Mallory opens the door and stops dead in her tracks when she sees me. “Hi.” She glances back down at the manila folder in her hand. “You surprised me. I thought Lisa would be here with Banjo. I haven’t seen your mom in forever.”

“Mom is busy working, but I had a short break, so I brought him for her. She thinks his incision may be getting infected.”

“All right, put him up here on the table, and let’s see what’s going on with his handsome guy.”

When he’s on the table, she talks to him while petting him, and he immediately takes to her. Not that I had any doubt—she seems to have that effect on all the Becketts. He relaxes from his rigid stance, and his tail starts wagging fast, like a propeller about to take off in flight. She coaxes him to lie down and scratches his belly, prompting him to roll over without a fight.

Funny, that same trick always worked on me too.

“His incision looks good—maybe just a touch of redness. That’s probably from where he has licked it, though. Does he stay inside most of the time?”

“Yes, almost all the time. He’s Mom’s cure for empty-nest syndrome. She spoils him more than she ever did Dad or me.” I laugh and scratch his belly, not admitting that we all pitch in on spoiling the dog.

Mallory looks up at me, her lips parted and eyes wide. When she left for college, I still lived at home. Seems she assumed I still do, but she doesn’t appear to want to actually break down and ask me.

“Amelia and I went out riding around the outskirts of town last night so I could show her the rest of the area. We drove by what I now know is your old house. She loved the sleigh ride you arranged the other night, so I was going to show her the barn your family ran them out of a few years ago. But everything was dark and quiet, and I didn’t know where you’d moved it.”

“Business really picked up, and we needed more space. We added guided horseback rides for the tourists, so we bought the old horse farm at the foot of the mountain and built a bigger barn. Now we have direct access to one of the trails leading up to Santa’s Village.”

“That was a great idea, Hunter. I bet that was your suggestion.”

“Yeah, it was, but one of the trails I use to go up the mountain is the one you and I blazed together.”

She looks back down at Banjo and runs her fingers through his coat, slowly nodding her head. “I remember that trail.” Her words are spoken so softly, I don’t think she meant for me to hear them. “Okay, well, Dad will be with you in just a minute to double-check Banjo, but I don’t think his incision is infected.”

“You should’ve been a veterinarian. You’re every bit as good at this as your parents are.”

“No, I’m really not. I’ve helped as an assistant with on-the-job training, but I can’t be part of euthanizing animals. I bawl my eyes out along with the family—even when it’s the best decision for the pet. My sobs don’t really help comfort anyone. Anyway, I’d better get to the next patient. Dad will be in here soon.” She opens the door and takes a step out of the room.

“Before you go, I want to ask you something.”

She looks over her shoulder at me and waits with her eyebrows slightly lifted.

“Did I do something wrong the other night? I thought we were having a good time, but everything seemed to change out of the blue.”

“No, you didn’t do anything wrong—I had a good time. We’re just two old friends who reconnected after a long time apart. Once this semester break is over, I’m going back to Georgia to finish school.” She pauses for a moment, her chest rising with the deep breath she draws in. “And after graduation, I don’t plan to come back here.”

She pulls the door closed behind her as she leaves, taking all the air out of the room with her.

I’ve known all along there was a possibility she wouldn’t come back home after college. After getting a taste of what the world has to offer, she could decide she preferred the fast pace of a big city over the slower lifestyle of small-town living.

But hearing her say the words out loud, confirming what I’d inwardly questioned over the last few years, hurts worse than I thought they could.

“Hello, Hunter. Good to see you again.”

I didn’t even hear the door open or sense Pete walk into the exam room. I’m still standing in the same spot where Mallory left me, rubbing Banjo to keep him calm. “Hey, Doc. How are you?”

“Good, good. Mallory said she thought the incision looks okay, but let’s be sure before we send him back home.” Pete’s bedside manners are nearly identical to Mal’s earlier methods, confirming she watched his every move over the years she grew up in this clinic. “No sign of infection at all. It’s normal for the incision to pucker like that as it heals. Tell Lisa not to worry.” He describes the signs we should watch for and reminds me to keep Banjo from licking his wound for at least another week or so.

“Thanks, Doc. Mom will be very relieved to hear all is well.”

“Hunter?”

I stand after setting Banjo on the floor and meet Pete’s gaze. “Yeah?”

“Jackie and I raised Mallory to be independent and self-sufficient. We give her advice when asked and guidance when needed. We try to let her make her own mistakes so she’ll learn from the consequences of her decisions, while also shielding her from a lot of the unpleasantness in the world. Maybe we protected her from a little too much, though. There are a few details about the past and the present she doesn’t know. Maybe it’s time she learns the whole truth.”

“What you share with her is up to you, Pete. She makes up her mind without help from anyone else, and she made up her mind about me almost four years ago. You know what I find odd about our split?”

“What’s that?”

“She never asked me why. Not once. She never questioned or argued that we belonged together. She never offered a suggestion of how we could make it work while she was in school and I was here working. Before she walked out of this room a few minutes ago, she informed me she’s not coming back here after she graduates from college. Her course is set, and I’m not part of it.”

“No one’s course is set in stone, Hunter. She can change her mind as easily as anyone else can.”

“I wouldn’t advise holding your breath for that.”