Jace had totally screwed that up.

He dumped the plate of half-eaten hors d'ouerves on a passing waiter's tray and spun, scanning for Chuck. He caught sight of Cash Trudeau dancing with a blonde-haired woman Jace didn't recognize.

No Chuck. Seriously, where was he? The dude was supposed to have come over and introduced himself!

Although, judging by Amber's reaction, maybe it was better that he hadn't.

I've got something in my eye.

Liar. After twelve years of marriage, he could recognize when a woman was about to cry.

But why had his words caused such a reaction? All he'd asked was whether she might be interested in going out with a friend of his.

If she wasn't interested in Chuck, no one was going to force her on a date with the guy.

But maybe it hadn't been his fumbling question.

She'd gone quiet when he'd brought up her family. He wracked his brain but couldn't think of a time he'd heard her talk about her family. Which was weird. She was great with Bo. The best. She'd have to have learned that somewhere, right? Maybe she simply wasn't close with her family.

Or maybe he was still self-absorbed. Maybe he should've offered her some time off for the holiday to be with them.

He was such a jerk.

Even more so for not going after her when he’d known she was upset. He and Patricia had had their share of fights, tears, and making up. He wasn't as scared off by a woman's tears as some of his single friends were.

He was more afraid that if he tried to comfort her, he'd end up pulling her into his arms.

Because he'd almost done just that, here in the ballroom. He'd completely forgotten about Chuck.

The only thing that had saved him was Bo.

Bo needed Amber.

Which meant Jace needed to to keep his hands off.

Chuck appeared out of the crowd, and Jace strode up to him, not caring that they were in the middle of lots of nosy ears.

"Where the heck were you? I thought you were coming over to introduce yourself."

The other man looked intimated, and Jace reminded himself that this wasn't his business.

"I was g-going to," Chuck stammered. "But I took another look at her in that dress, and I just... I just..." He shrugged as if Jace would know what he meant.

He had no clue.

"Look," Jace said. "You just gotta gather up your courage and ask her to dance or something, okay?" Jace wanted no more part of this.

He'd hang around awhile longer. Offer Amber a ride home if she needed it. Even better, maybe he could just follow her in his truck, make sure she made it back to the ranch safely. Without being in the same vehicle.

He was a coward.

"Please," Chuck said. "I'm begging you. The last girl I had a crush on ended up marrying my best friend."

Ouch.

But still, not Jace's problem.

Chuck kept going. "If you could just talk to her one more time for me. Please. Tell her I think she's beautiful. And that I admire her."

Jace shook his head. This was over his head. He was out.

Except he couldn't quite erase the memory of her eyes filling with tears, ones she'd quickly tried to hide.

He'd messed up, somehow.

He didn't care about Chuck, one way or another. Not really.

But he needed to make things right with Amber.

For Bo's sake.

Amber ducked into what must have been a guest bedroom somewhere in the back of the sprawling house.

Mansion. Just call it what it was.

A house that Amber would never be able to afford, not in her wildest dreams.

It was dark, and that was good. She didn't turn on the light.

Blinded by tears now, she stumbled over the corner of the bed and couldn't help a small cry.

"Ouch. Are you okay?"

Crap. Double crap.

That was a woman's voice. Someone was in here.

"Yeah. I'm f-fine." Her voice broke, betraying her.

But the overhead light didn't go on.

A softer light did. From an attached bathroom.

Amber was peripherally aware of the unknown woman's shoes tapping on the tiled floor, then going quiet again when she walked on the plush carpet.

A wad of tissues was pressed into her hand.

"Th-thanks," she whispered.

And then her throat was too clogged with tears to say anything else.

She sat on the end of the bed. It dipped when the mystery woman sat next to her.

She hated crying in general. Her face puffed up and turned a blotchy red.

Crying in front of anyone else... even worse.

But she couldn't seem to stop the tears. She'd put so much hope into tonight's event. Didn't she know how dangerous hope could be?

"Is there anything I can do?" the mystery woman asked.

Amber mopped at her face, even though she was still crying. "I d-don't think so." She hiccupped.

"Can I call someone for you? Your husband? Or boyfriend? Sister? Mom?"

Amber laughed through her tears, the sound slightly hysterical. "None of those."

The other woman was silent for several moments, long enough for Amber to take several deep breaths as she tried to get ahold of herself.

"I'll be all right," Amber said. Her tears were finally starting to dry up.

She'd come through worse than this rejection, hadn't she? It might hurt for now, but she wasn't going to die. Even if she did feel humiliated and hopeless.

"Is it man trouble?" the mystery woman asked.

Amber gave another teary laugh. "That obvious?"

She sighed. "Just a feeling. I'm having some of that kind of trouble myself."

Amber might not be acquainted with the woman sitting next to her, but she'd showed compassion and consideration, and Amber felt a little kinship with her.

"Why does it have to be so hard?" the mystery woman asked. "Actually, my situation is kind of my fault."

Amber bit her lip. Why not spill it all? It wasn't like she knew this woman. "The man I've been in love with for months just told me about a friend he wants to set me up with."

"Ouch. That sucks."

There was a beat of silence.

"Did he name this friend, or was it more like, 'I've got this friend...'" The mystery woman shifted on the bed. "Just curious."

"The latter." Amber wiped beneath her eyes with the tissue. Her tears had run dry. If she could wait another few minutes, the red blotches on her face might fade enough that she could sneak back through the ballroom and make her escape.

"I don't know your situation," mystery woman said, "but maybe your guy was talking about himself."

"What?" That sounded a little out there to Amber.

"Is there any reason he might not want to come on too strong?"

Amber considered. "I’m his son’s nanny."

"Aha." Mystery woman sounded way more upbeat than Amber could muster. "Maybe he wanted to broach the idea without you knowing it was him, to feel things out. Then if you said no, it wasn't an outright rejection."

Are you seeing anybody? Socially, I mean. Dating. Are you dating anyone? Jace's fumbling words replayed in her memory.

And the tiny kernel of the hope that had died so spectacularly came back to life.

"I don't know," Amber said slowly. "I mean, he did ask me if I was dating anyone. But then he told me about this friend of his. Who was shy."

It was weird.

Jace wasn't usually someone to beat around the bush. When it came to Bo, he was quick to let her know what his son needed and how things should be done. If he was going to be out in the barn late, he called and told her. He didn't waste a lot of time hemming and hawing.

But... "He's a widower," she said softly.

"So, there you go," Mystery woman said. "Maybe he was uncomfortable just coming right out and asking you out."

Could she be right?

Amber's hope swelled, but she was a little afraid to trust it. What if she was wrong?

"There's only one way to find out," Mystery woman said. "Ask him outright."

Amber could never do that. She'd spent the money on her dress, hair, and makeup, hoping Jace would notice her. Asking him out on a date? She lived in his house. If she was wrong, there would be humiliation involved. Every day. It was too risky. Wasn’t it?

"I should go home," she said. "I'm pretty sure my makeup is ruined."

"Oh, I can fix that."

Maybe her heart wasn't broken after all, because it pulsed painfully as she let her mystery friend pull her into the well-appointed bathroom.

Under the bright bathroom lights, she winced at her image in the mirror, the one with mascara running down both cheeks. The puffiness beneath her eyes had diminished some, but the tip of her nose was still bright red.

She got her first good look at her new friend as the other woman rummaged in a medium-sized purse. She wore a black cocktail dress, and her blond hair was pulled back in a simple updo. She had compassionate eyes. "Here we go." She handed Amber a packet of makeup wipes. "Those babies will take anything off."

Amber hesitated before taking them. "I don't even know your name."

"I'm Delaney." The other woman had a warm smile, one that Amber found herself returning.

"I'm Amber. Nice to meet you."

Maybe Delaney was right.

Maybe she did still have a chance with Jace.

She leaned over the counter as she used the makeup wipe beneath her eyes. By the time she'd scrubbed away the smeared mascara, her foundation had come away too, leaving weird patches on her cheeks. She sighed and began scrubbing at her entire face.

The makeup hadn't really been her. The makeup artist from Austin had caked it on, while Amber usually chose a more natural look. She'd thought it made her look striking, but maybe all those looks in the ballroom were folks thinking she shouldn't be trying so hard.

"Our skin tones aren't a match, but I think I can fix your eye makeup."

Amber blinked at her bare face in the mirror. Without the mascara and the smoky way her eyes had been made up, she was just... Amber.

For better or for worse.

"I think I'll just go like this." Jace was used to seeing her first thing in the morning, messy hair bun and no makeup as she got Bo ready for the early bus. If he was interested in her, the makeup wouldn't matter. Right?

"I've taken up too much of your night," she continued. "You're missing the party."

For the first time, Delaney grimaced. "Yeah." It was her turn to sigh. "I'm not exactly on the guest list." What did that mean? "And not being on the guest list is why I'm having man troubles."

Amber shook her head, confused.

But Delaney just gave her a gentle push toward the door. "Don't worry about me. You go get your guy."

Amber's stomach was jumping as if a whole flock of Christmas geese had taken up residence there. But she obediently made her way out of the darkened bedroom.

She was going to do this.

She was going to ask Jace if he'd meant he was the friend.