Once we were done stringing popcorn, Mrs. Stephenson came in, declared our work adequate, and ushered us out to the living room to start decorating the tree. I giggled as Jacob got trapped between the tree and the popcorn string.

He made a face which caused me to laugh harder—to the annoyance of Mrs. Stephenson.

When we finally got him untangled, I glanced over at my parents’ tree to see Andrew studying us. His eyebrows were furrowed, and he was glaring at Jacob.

My laughter died down as I watched him. What was with him? From the way my parents and the Stephensons were moving around the living room, no one else seemed to notice the heavy air between them.

Maybe it was just me. Maybe I was making it into a bigger deal than it was.

After the popcorn was wrapped around the tree, Mom declared that it was time to break for dinner.

We all filed into the kitchen, where Mom had been cooking a roast in the crockpot. After everyone dished up, I went and sat down at the table. To my frustration, Andrew joined me, taking the only open chair next to me.

I peeked over at Jacob, who had been heading over. But he stopped once Andrew settled in. Instead of sitting at the opposite end of the table, he grabbed a soda and slipped into the living room.

Now I’d not only missed an opportunity to sit next to Jacob, but he was nowhere to be seen. Thanks, Andrew.

Trying to make the best of this situation, I glanced over at my brother, who was shoveling the roast beef into his mouth. I pulled a disgusted expression as I cut my potato into smaller bites.

Aiden and Alex were busy throwing their carrots at each other, and Mom was scolding them. For some reason, when Jacob wasn’t here, the magic of this vacation was sucked out of me. I was back to being plain, ol’ Ava. And nothing very special ever happened to her.

I studied my brother. He glanced over at me and shrugged.

“What?” he asked through a mouthful of meat.

I shook my head and turned my attention back to my plate. “Nothing,” I said as I pushed my food around. Suddenly, I wasn’t very hungry.

And then I decided to confront the person who was causing this lack of an appetite. My brother.

Sure, Jacob didn’t want to tell me the truth, but Andrew would. He was my blood relative. I was sure there was a law that, as siblings, you must tell each other the truth.

“What’s with you and Jacob?” I asked, taking a bite of my potato.

Andrew coughed and grabbed his glass of water. After a long drink, he set his cup down and glanced over at me. “What did Jacob say?” he asked. There was an accusatory hint to his voice.

I eyed him, then I shook my head. “Nothing. Seriously. He’s shut up tighter than a clam about you.” I dipped a piece of meat into some gravy and slipped it into my mouth. It almost melted when it hit my tongue.

Say what you want about Mom, but she knew how to make a mean roast.

“He hasn’t told you anything?” Andrew asked. He sounded relieved.

I studied him. “Nope. Nothing,” I said, drawing out each word. So there was something. “What shouldn’t he be telling me?”

Andrew shrugged as he zeroed in on his vegetables. After he finished half of them, he turned his attention back over to me. “Jacob believes things happened differently that night last summer.” He downed the rest of his water. “He hates me because of it.”

I stared at Andrew. “He blames you for the fact that he robbed a gas station?” I knit my eyebrows together. That didn’t make sense. I didn’t know a lot about Jacob, but I did know he wasn’t delusional. Why would he assume Andrew had anything to do with it?

After scooping up the rest of his food, Andrew set his fork down on his plate and stood. “I don’t know, Ava. He’s crazy. Don’t believe anything he tells you about me.”

Frustration rose up in my stomach. I did not like the fact that my brother was calling Jacob crazy. Sure, he was mysterious and brooding in a sexy kind of way…wait, where was I going with this?

I blinked a few times, trying to get my thoughts together. But before I could respond to Andrew’s allegations, he was already out of earshot. I watched as he dumped his dishes into the sink and made his way out of the kitchen, stating that he was headed upstairs to get some of his honors homework done.

Mom started to protest, but Andrew reminded her that if she wanted him to keep his scholarship, he needed to do his school work. That seemed to appease Mom, and after one look at the Stephensons, she nodded.

I could see her thoughts written across her face. She wanted Andrew to win at the get into college and come out with the best job game they were playing with the Stephensons. My stomach churned at the thought. This competition was really getting out of hand. Both sets of parents were being terrible role models.

Not wanting my food anymore, I stood, grabbed my plate, dumped the remaining food into the garbage, and set it by the sink. After drying my hands, I moved out into the living room.

As I left, I overheard the parents discussing how it might be a good idea to give the kids some time to relax. They’d start up the competition again tomorrow morning.

I tried to keep my gaze trained on the ground as I walked past Jacob, who had finished his food and was back on his phone.

I tried to force my feet over to the stairs so that I could hide out in my room and figure out how I felt about everything that had happened today, but they didn’t comply. Instead, I found myself over at the bookshelf, pulling out a book and sitting down in the armchair across from Jacob.

I flipped open the book I’d picked, A Christmas Carol, and started reading it.

It was a tradition I’d started a few years ago—I would read A Christmas Carol during the week of Christmas. It was stupid, I know, but what can I say? I loved the story.

An hour later, I glanced up. The house had grown quiet. The three younger boys went downstairs to watch a movie while the parents headed up to their rooms to rest. Mom asked me to make sure the twins didn’t burn the house down.

Tracy slipped by after tapping me on the shoulder to tell me that she was going up to do homework. I waved to show I’d heard her, and didn’t look up from the page I was on.

I glanced over at Jacob. He had his headphones in and was watching something on his phone. He’d stretched out on the couch, with his head resting on a pillow and his feet up on the other arm.

I tried to rest the book on my knees so it would look like I was reading instead of staring at him.

His dark hair fell over his forehead, and he’d occasionally brush it to the side. From this angle, I could see his long, dark lashes.

My heart picked up speed. I cleared my throat softly—worried that he would hear me—and readjusted. After trying a few different positions, I ended up with a crick in my neck. I rubbed it a few times, but there was nothing I could do except get into the hot tub and soak until I was a prune.

I closed my book and set it on the table next to me as I stood and made my way over to the stairs.

“Bailing on me, Ava?”

Jacob’s teasing voice made me jump. I turned to see that he’d lowered his phone and was studying me.

“Yes,” I said, my voice hoarse. Heat rushed to my cheeks as I scolded myself for being so transparent. “I’m heading to the hot tub,” I confessed, and then I pinched my lips together. He hadn’t asked, so why was I sharing?

He glanced around. “There’s a hot tub here?”

I shrugged. “That’s what my mom said.” Oh man, I hoped my mom was right about that. How stupid would I feel if I came down here in my swimsuit only to find that there actually wasn’t a hot tub?

But Jacob didn’t ask anything else. Instead, he brought his phone back up and said, “Cool.”

Realizing that our conversation was over, I nodded and made my way upstairs.

I passed by the parents’ rooms and could hear snoring coming from inside. I rolled my eyes, wondering if they had a competition to see who could fall asleep the fastest. Or snore the loudest.

When I got to my room, I found Tracy sitting on her bed. She had a textbook spread across her lap. I just nodded to her when I noticed that she had in earbuds.

I grabbed my black swimsuit from the dresser and headed to the bathroom. After I changed, I wrapped my robe around my body, grabbed a towel, and headed downstairs. I tried not to feel disappointed when I discovered that Jacob had left the living room. I glanced around but didn’t find him.

He must have gone up to bed or something.

I made my way through the kitchen to the back door. I grabbed my boots and headed outside. The blast of cold air hit me like a sledgehammer. I shivered as I wrapped my arms around me and sprinted over to the covered porch.

After I slid off the hot tub’s cover, I pressed start on the whirlpool and waited—hugging my robe to my body and blowing on my hands to keep them from freezing. A few moments later, the water began bubbling, and steam floated up from the top of the water.

I dipped my fingers in to make sure it was warm enough. Then I pulled off my robe and boots and set them next to the towel on a chair and got in.

The warmth enveloped me as I sunk down to my chin. I closed my eyes as the bubbles surrounded me and the jets massaged my aching muscles.

I could stay here forever.

And with how cold it was out here, I really wanted to stay in the water forever. The idea of the frigid air biting my wet skin sounded like torture.

“Is there room for one more?” Jacob’s low, teasing voice asked.

I yelped as I whipped my eyes open. Jacob was standing there next to the hot tub in his swim trunks and boots. His fists were clenched at his sides, and his shoulders were hunched as tried to hang on to whatever body heat he had left.

“What’s the matter with you?” I asked, trying to ignore how good his chest looked in the moonlight. “Get in here,” I said, waving my hand toward him.

He shot me a relieved look, slipped off his boots, and got in.

Once he was sitting across from me, it finally dawned on me that we were in the hot tub together. Jacob was half-naked and sitting in the boiling water with me.

Why?

I must have been staring at him a little too long because he laughed as he sunk down until only his head was above the water.

“Don’t read into this too much,” he said with a grin. “You had a good idea, coming out here, and I’m just taking advantage of it.” He lifted his hand out of the water and ran it through his hair.

I dropped my gaze. If I couldn’t stop staring at him before, his semi-wet hair and glistening skin wasn’t going to help.

Suddenly, I felt his hand on my arm. I glanced up, startled.

He had a concerned look in his eye. “Hey, I was just joking.” He glanced toward the kitchen. “I can go back inside if you don’t want me here.”

I shook my head. “It’s a free country. Besides, there’s plenty of room.” I shrugged as I shot him what I hoped was a relaxed smile.

He studied me and then leaned back against the side. “That’s mighty kind of you,” he said in a cowboy accent as he tipped a pretend cowboy hat.

I chuckled as I leaned back and folded my arms. Was that something people did when they were relaxed? Maybe. I wasn’t sure. But I was certain that I couldn’t let Jacob know the effect his presence had on me.

If he found out that I was so flustered around him, he’d never let me live it down. Or he’d distance himself from me because he didn’t want to lead me on. Either way, I had to keep my feelings hidden.

I could do that. Right?