“Stella!”

The sound of Breanna’s voice had me stilling at the bottom of the snowy steps. The snow was coming down quicker than the groundskeeper could clear it, fat, fluffy flakes that had already covered the grassy areas completely.

Numb, I turned back to face Breanna as she rushed down the steps.

My teeth were chattering by the time she reached me and she scowled. “You need to put your coat on,” she said, reaching for the heavy garment I’d thrown over top of the two boxes I carried.

“I’m fine.” I barely felt the cold. It was shock and disbelief hitting me more than anything else. I’d been fired. I couldn’t believe it. I’d been fired. “He thinks I stole twenty thousand dollars from the firm.”

Dazed, I turned around and started for my car.

Breanna followed along next to me, her arms crossed over her midsection. “I’m going to go back in there and kick his ass. He can’t do this!”

“He can,” I said weakly. “He did. I guess I should be glad he didn’t call the cops.” A weird, hiccupping noise that sounded like a mix between a laugh and a sob escaped me. “He said he wasn’t calling the police because he was worried our sexual relationship would come to light. Lucky me, huh?”

Breanna looked like she wanted to hug me.

The boxes were in the way and I was glad of that. I felt like my bones had turn to brittle glass and the slightest touch would shatter me. “Let me get the door for you,” she said, stepping closer and slipping a hand into my purse. “Are you sure you don’t want me to kick his ass over this, honey? You know I will.”

“I know. But you need to keep your job.”

The two of us wrestled the boxes into the small hatchback and when Breanna grabbed my coat and turned it over, I obediently pulled it on. She leaned into me and I hugged her close.

“Here,” she said, pushing something into my hand.

I looked down and saw one of the postcards from the campaign.

Tears blurred my eyes but I blinked them back. “Thank you.”

She brushed my hair back. “What are you going to do?”

“Pack.” Bleakly, I stared at the falling snow, clutching the postcard like it was a lifeline. “I’m going to pack and go back home.”

Her face fell and I squeezed her gently.

“There’s nothing for me here, Bree. I should have just listened to my gut from the get-go.”

She didn’t argue with me this time, and after a moment, she hugged me tight and murmured, “I’ll miss you.”

We drew apart and she gave me a wobbly smile.

“Take care of yourself.”

* * *

My eyes were dry by the time I got home.

Tears had threatened for the first fifteen minutes of the drive, but I hadn’t given into the urge to cry and I wasn’t going to. Not yet.

I had to pack.

I had to call home.

I had to figure out if I was going to drive or fly back and arrange for the car to be transported. Hell, maybe I should just sell the damn thing. But I discarded that idea almost immediately, because I liked my little sports car. It wasn’t as practical as it could be for driving on snowy Denver streets but I was tired of always being practical.

Granted, that lack of practicality was going to prove to be a pain in the ass if I decided to drive this tiny little car back home.

Home.

My heart panged inside my chest as I glanced west toward the mountains. I couldn’t see them, and although I didn’t exactly want to travel up into them, I’d gotten used to the view. Denver had been becoming home.

But I hadn’t lied when I told Breanna there wasn’t anything for me here.

I’d come here for all the wrong reasons.

At least I’d leave for the right ones.

* * *

Listlessly, I went about doing the one simple thing that could be accomplished as I struggled to make decisions.

Packing.

Packing had to be done no matter what.

But even an hour into the task, I still had no idea what I wanted to do or how I wanted to do anything.

In the few short months I’d been here, I’d accumulated a lot of stuff, and the thought of moving everything across country was a nightmare I didn’t want to think about. The thought of booking a flight and worrying about my stuff being on one side of the country while I was in New York was another nightmare I didn’t want to consider.

It was that thought that decided me.

I’d arrange for a moving service to come get all the stuff that wouldn’t fit in my car. Maybe I’d be lucky and they wouldn’t be too busy this time of year.

The boxes I’d used in the move were tucked in the back of the closet, one small miracle in a very dim, gray day and I found the packing tape I’d used stash in the bottom of my junk box. Some of my stuff still wasn’t unpacked at all, stashed away in the storage unit that came with Breanna’s apartment.

All in all, I’d have to pack up about half my life. A quarter of it was still in boxes and the rest was furniture...like the new bedroom suite I’d bought, an arm chair, some pictures.

I picked up a framed one that sat by my bed and stared at the blue-eyed man in the frame. He hadn’t noticed I’d taken the picture. I’d printed it out at one of the kiosks at a local pharmacy and used one of my favorite frames so I could have a picture of him close.

Now, with careful, precise movements, I undid the hinges on the back that held the image secure. Flipping it open, I took the picture out and studied it up close.

Then, in an unexpected fit of fury, I tore it down the middle.

A knock at the door kept me from tearing it completely to shreds. My heart leaped up into my throat. Lukas?

But immediately, I quashed the thought.

I didn’t want it to be Lukas. I was better off without him and I didn’t even have to convince myself of that.

After today, what I needed to convince myself of was that I would eventually be able to trust myself when it came to men again. I had no idea when, but it had to happen.

Dropping the torn halves of the picture onto the floor, I walked through the apartment, ignoring the hammering of my heart. I knew it wasn’t him, but some stupid part of me was still hoping. I wanted to throttle that piece of myself. I settled for mental chastisement as I reached up to put a hand on the door, bracing myself before leaning in to peek through the Judas hole.

Gracie stood out there.

I opened the door and steadied the smile even as it threatened to wobble then fall right off my face. “Hi.”

“I heard.” She came inside and hugged me tightly before drawing back, studying me. “At least, I heard some of it. I’m confused though. Please tell me that Breanna got it wrong – tell me Lukas didn’t fire you because he thinks you were embezzling from the company.”

“I can tell you that,” I said weakly. “But I’d be lying.”

Her face crumpled and she dropped her head onto my shoulder. After a few seconds, she pulled back and muttered, “That dumbass.”

“I’ve had similar thoughts a few times today.” Lifting a shoulder, I admitted, “And that’s the most complimentary.”

With a scathing laugh, she replied, “It’s the most complimentary thing going through my head right now too. When I see him, I swear, I’m going to tell him a thing or two.”

“No.” I stepped back and waved her in. “Come on inside. I’m in the middle of packing.”

“You’re going back to New York, aren’t you?” she asked as she trailed after me into my bedroom.

With a grim smile, I faced her over the bed. “There’s no reason to stay, Gracie. This job was the only reason I came out here. So far, I’ve made two real friends and that’s not enough to keep me here after everything that’s gone wrong.” I laughed, but the sound was strained even to my own ears. “To be honest, very little has gone right. I’ll do better in New York. At least I’ve got family and friends there.”

“But your family sometimes sucks,” she reminded me.

I flinched at the gentle reminder.

“Yeah. There is that.” Dejected, I turned and leaned against the bed. “I just can’t stay here, Gracie.”

She came around the bed and leaned against it next to me, slipping an arm around my shoulders. “I’ll miss you.”

Resting my head on her shoulder, I said, “I’ll miss you, too. If things hadn’t gone so badly, I’d stay. You and Breanna would be worth it. But nothing...hell, I think Denver just hates me. That or the mountain air and me just don’t click.”